In the vast expanses of the world's oceans, a silent yet pervasive threat is taking shape: nurdles. These tiny, pre-production plastic pellets, measuring between 2 to 5 millimeters in diameter, are fundamental to the plastics industry, serving as the building blocks...

The abandonment of vessels and their crews is running significantly ahead of the rate in 2024 and is on track to a new record warns the International Transport Workers’ Federation. The association of transport unions is reiterating its long-standing call for more...

Researchers based in California studied the electronic reservation system established for containerships and have now concluded that the digital port queuing system is low-hanging fruit that can help drastically cut shipping emissions. They are the latest to endorse...

There has been a growing focus in many destinations around the world on the challenges as cruise ships get larger and efforts to limit or even ban large cruise ships grow. A small town in southern Alaska, Sitka (population 8,300) however bucked the trend by rejecting...

The U.S. Department of Defense confirmed on Friday, May 30, that the dismantling contract for ex-USS Enterprise has been awarded. It marks the official end to the process that began several years ago after the first U.S. Navy nuclear aircraft carrier was...

The crew of the Coast Guard cutter USCGC Thetis have offloaded nearly 30,000 pounds of cocaine onto the dock at Port Everglades, Florida, the product of four different interdictions in the Eastern Pacific. Unusually, the majority of the drugs were found...

Forth Ports operator of the Port of Tilbury located near London in the UK, released plans for a large expansion, which they are calling T3. It would represent a nearly 10 percent increase in the land area for the port which is reported to be the largest multi-modal...

The Panama Maritime Authority (PMA) is taking further actions to crack down on suspicious tankers by establishing new rules for ship-to-ship oil transfers for vessels in its registry. It is the latest in a series of steps responding to international pressure to stop...

The world's first all-electric, zero-emissions passenger vessel conducted an emergency evacuation of hundreds of passengers on Tuesday after smoke was spotted coming from a battery compartment. No one was injured, and the operator believes that it has identified the...

Vietnamese officials confirmed that there was a devastating fire at the Song Doc offshore oil platform on Wednesday. The platform is the country’s first decommissioning project.  An unconfirmed report in the Viet Nam News and appearing in the other local outlets...

Russia’s tanker operator PAO Sovcomflot is citing the impact of the Western sanctions on the company’s results. It reported a significant drop in revenues and a loss for the first quarter of 2025 along with recording a non-cash impairment related to the fleet. The...

The deeply troubled construction project to deliver two LNG-fueled ferries for Scotland’s CalMac continued to experience problems. Shipbuilder Ferguson Marine confirmed that the delivery of the second of the ferries, Glen Rosa will yet again be delayed by up...

The latest demonstration of the uneasy standoff between India and Pakistan is playing out in the Indian port of Paradip on India’s east coast far away from Pakistan. Port officials are confirming that the port was placed on a security alert after a tanker arrived with...

Forth Ports operator of the Port of Tilbury located near London in the UK, released plans for a large expansion, which they are calling T3. It would represent a nearly 10 percent increase in the land area for the port which is reported to be the largest multi-modal...

On Thursday, a large fire broke out in the hold of a bulker in Amsterdam's western port district, sending noxious smoke over a large area of the city and prompting an air-quality alert. Firefighting efforts continued into Friday morning.  At about 1700 hours...

The Israel Defense Force late on Friday, May 16, launched two powerful attacks on the Houthi-controlled ports of Hodeidah and Al-Salif saying that they believed the ports would be out of commission for months. The Israelis also warned of more attacks if the Houthis...

The passengers were marveling recently at the wonderful views from the deck of the luxury cruise ship Silver Ray as the captain maneuvered the ship to view the coastal treasures of Italy. While everyone thought it was a spectacular scene as the vessel...

A freight forwarder is an organization that helps other companies manage freight transportation across transport modes and geographies. As freight moves from one location, like a factory in China, to another destination, like a distribution centre in Kansas, it will...

On Saturday, just at the point when the conflict between India and Pakistan was threatening to escalate out of control, the United States brokered an immediate ceasefire between the two nuclear armed countries. The agreement was still holding as of midday Sunday,...

After pressure from the cruise industry and concerns raised by local government in the states where cruises contribute to the economy, Mexico’s federal government has reportedly agreed to a lower amount and phased-in rollout to the hefty head tax planned for...

Morocco is further expanding its footprint in the African port sector with a new deal to modernize Liberia’s major ports. Last week, the Liberian National Port Authority (NPA) signed a modernization agreement with Tanger Med Engineering, a subsidiary of Tanger...

Worn-out mooring lines that were not replaced on time are being called the reason a US-flagged cargo RoRo broke free from its dock and out-of-control hit a pier and dry dock at the Port of Bremerhaven in Germany. Germany's Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty...

Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box program this morning (April 29), the Port of Los Angeles’ Executive Director Gene Seroka forecasted a “precipitous drop” in volumes coming to the port as the impact of the Trump tariffs begins to materialize. Seroka was the latest in a...

Multiple reports are coming from Yemen that the Houthis have been denying permission for vessels to depart the Ras Isa port complex in the two weeks since U.S. forces attacked the oil terminal facilities. The UK Maritime Trade Operations which monitor the region said...

The first monthly data has appeared since the major container carrier alliances began to shift, and it is showing a positive impact on schedule reliability. The analysts at Sea-Intelligence highlight that the sector remains in transition with the move to the new...

Iran’s clerical leaders are attempting to suppress discussion in Iran on the causes of the explosion in Bandar Abbas port on April 26. The official narrative pushes the idea that the explosion was caused by a safety breach in handling hazardous material. Officials are...

A sanctioned Iranian cargo vessel, which in the past is likely to have been involved with shipping arms to Syria, has just completed a northerly passage up the Red Sea.  The Iranian-owned cargo vessel Elyana (IMO: 9165827) was located on May 3, underway...

On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed a much-anticipated executive order that will set up an American permitting process for deep sea mining in international waters, beyond the U.S. outer continental shelf.  The order directs the Commerce Department to...

The dramatic container explosion aboard the boxship YM Mobility at Ningbo last year was caused by thermal runaway in a cargo of organic peroxides, according to China's Maritime Safety Administration (CMSA). It is the latest in a long string of container...

German renewable energy giant RWE is set to announce that it has stopped its offshore activities in the United States and setting higher requirements for future investments because of the “political developments.” The company follows TotalEnergies, Shell, and BP which...

Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD and shipbuilder China Merchants are highlighting the delivery of the world’s largest capacity car carrier. The naming ceremony took place for BYD Shenzhen on April 22 in Yizheng, China as the new vessel prepares for...

The U.S. government is continuing its support to strengthen the capabilities of the Tunisian armed forces to enable them to respond effectively to a fragile security situation and a worsening immigrant crisis in the northern Africa region. According to U.S. officials...

The Coast Guard has initiated the final of five planned phases of the service life extension program (SLEP) for Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star, the service’s sole operational heavy icebreaker. Polar Star arrived at Mare Island Dry Dock in Vallejo,...

While recognizing the Trump administration softened the financial impact of its port fees on Chinese-built shipping for many carriers, the shipping industry was quick to respond raising serious concerns after the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office released the...

The first test steps were undertaken at the Port of Rotterdam to test the port’s capabilities for future ammonia bunkering operations. Rotterdam is the world’s second-largest bunker port and expects that ammonia-fueled vessels requiring bunkering will begin in 2026 or...

Less than a year after becoming the first port in Europe to offer shore power for large containerships, Hamburg, Germany is on track to complete the installation of shore power capabilities at all its terminals for large containerships. Testing commenced last week at...

Scotland is largely operating blind in the management of its marine resources according to new research published this week as part of a project designed to create a better understanding of the exposure of whales, dolphins, and seals to coastal shipping. It emerged...

The Black Sea container terminals of Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine handled 1,313,392 TEU in 2024, including empty containers and transshipment.   This review examines the laden container volumes of these countries imported and exported by sea only, since...

Internal budget documents leaked to the media Friday suggest that the Trump White House wants to cut funding for NOAA's National Ocean Service in half, move the National Marine Fisheries Service to the Department of the Interior, end the Sea Grant program for...

The shipper of a cargo of Russian crude oil loaded aboard a sanctioned shadow tanker has found a creative way around Indian regulations that were barring the ship from offloading. A second tanker, also sanctioned in the west and operating in the shadow fleet moving...

Coming from Switzerland, the International Year of Glacier Preservation and World Water Day’s glacier theme strike a chord with me. I have witnessed the alarming retreat of Swiss glaciers firsthand—a 65% ice loss since 1850, with 10% gone in just 2022-2023. Maritime...

Reports from Israel suggest that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force is making progress in its search for new routes into Lebanon, following the destruction of the traditional smuggling routes into Lebanon by Israel in recent months. A primary...

Markets reacted negatively on Monday after President Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs on major trading partners, including an additional 34 percent tariff on China. The Dow fell four percent, the S&P 500 dropped five percent, the Nasdaq was...

Stena Line, one of Europe's leading ferry companies and a pioneer with advanced designs, presented its latest thinking for Stena Futuro, a RoRo that would reduce energy usage by 20 percent or more. The company’s goal is an overall 30 percent reduction in its CO2...

A new project led by the Maersk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping addressed the challenges and processes required to convert one of the largest segments of the current global shipping fleet, the Kamsarmax bulk carrier, for dual-fuel methanol operations....

Upset by Belgium’s new collation government’s plans for budget cutting, public and private workers walked on their jobs on Monday, March 31, for a 24-hour strike that stopped many parts of Belgium for the day. Officials for the Port of Antwerp-Bruges said the...

Coming from Switzerland, the International Year of Glacier Preservation and World Water Day’s glacier theme strike a chord with me. I have witnessed the alarming retreat of Swiss glaciers firsthand—a 65% ice loss since 1850, with 10% gone in just 2022-2023. Maritime...

DP World reports that it has gained the necessary permitting and is poised to begin work in just a matter of weeks on a planned expansion of its London Gateway. It represents a £1 billion (US$1.3 billion ) project which when completed will add 50 percent capacity to...

The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers celebrating the opening of the Soo Locks on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula this morning, March 21, providing an earlier-than-anticipated start to the 2025 shipping season on the Upper Great Lakes. The lock is reported to be one of the...