Star-Oceanbulk merger puts consolidation back on the agenda Deal sparks expectations of more M&A to come as IPO opportunities cool
Maersk Tankers cements its product tanker focus Broker reports of Eastern Force purchase underscore the carrier's shift away from crude
Star Bulk to merge with Oceanbulk's dry bulk fleet Oaktree will control 61% of $1bn Nasdaq-listed company with Petros Pappas as chief executive
Borealis buys three chemical tankers VesselsValue estimates the ships' prices at $9.7m and $7m
China Cosco invests $176m in six panamax bulkers Vessels will be built at two Chinese shipyards
Fortescue orders four very large ore carriers for $275m Australian miner says owning VLOCs will reduce freight costs
Hyundai Merchant Marine aims to raise $112m from share placement Struggling South Korean giant plans two $56m offerings to a Hong Kong fund
Modi government takes initial steps to explore easing of cabotage rules New government is expected to favour relaxing coastal shipping restrictions
Goldenport ponders its seven-bulker purchase plan Pricing sentiment persuaded the company to postpone its share placement, says Dragnis
Product tankers named in recent Ardmore-Daiichi Chuo deal Atlantic Innovator and Pacific Innovator were the ships sold
Nobu Su tanker sell-off under way Arrested VLCC Fortune Elephant sells for just shy of $80m
Fincantieri launches its initial public offering Italy plans to sell a 38% stake in state-owned shipbuilder
Beijing seeks to transform Chinese ports as throughput growth slows Real impact of initiative to enhance terminal services still doubtful without concrete measures
Torm gets covenant waiver from lenders Reprieve is significant as some of Torm's debt has been sold to new creditors this year
Finland gets tough on SOx cheats Helsinki will confiscate cheating owners' gains and plans other fines and sanctions
Long Beach offers discounts to attract more container cargo California's two box giants get competitive to tackle rival ports beyond San Pedro Bay
Box carriers plan July Asia-Europe price push as services pick up Shanghai-northern Europe freight rates rise $19 in a week to $1,202 per teu
Maritime authorities halt pirate attack near Malaysia Robbers escape with siphoned fuel before joint operation arrives
View From The Bridge: Andrew Abbott A story of stability against a turbulent backdrop
Global Gateways: Africa Containerisation International looks at the challenges facing ports in Africa
Pappas consolidates bulker holdings Star Bulk has announced an agreement to purchase Oceanbulk Shipping and Oceanbulk Carriers, creating one of the largest drybulk owners in the US public market. NASDAQ-listed Star Bulk was founded by Greece's Petros Pappas, who controls the Oceanbulk companies along with private-equity firm Oaktree.
Europe shortsea freights under pressure A general lack of grain, minerals, and scrap cargoes in the North and Baltic Sea ports has sent shortsea freight rates in Europe on a downward slope. Time charter equivalent earnings for mini bulkers and small general cargo vessels on typical round voyages in North Europe have slumped to their
Damen Shipyards secures 10 ASD tug order Damen Shipyards group has secured a 10 vessel order from the Venezuelan State-owned oil company. The contract is for 10 ASD 2810 Azimuthing Stern Drive tugs ordered by Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA). Delivery of these tugs is due in the next few months, since all units are being supplied from
UK MPs call for emissions rethink MPs in UK constituencies where shipping is a key industry, are calling for amendments to stricter sulphur emission rules due to be introduced next January. Transport consultants say the increase in the price of diesel could close ferry routes and result in job losses. Karl Turner, MP for Hull East,
Costa Concordia removal decision delayed The Italian government has officially put back its decision on the removal and dismantling of the wreck of Costa Concordia to 26 June. A decision was due today, but the Italian cabinet has accepted a recommendation from Franco Gabrielli, commissioner for the Concordia emergency, to postpone the
DS Torm, lenders agree on covenant waiver DS Torm, the listed Danish product tanker and dry bulk shipping company, said it has reached an agreement with its lenders to waive certain covenants. The company said in a statement it has obtained the expected covenant waiver from its lenders, which means that the company will not need to test
Fincantieri shares on sale Shares in state-owned Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri went on sale on Monday after the company obtained the approval of Italian stock exchange regulator CONSOB last week for the offering, that values it at between €1.57Bn and €1.84Bn ($2.1Bn to $2.5Bn). The IPO, which Fincantieri hopes
Fortescue seals $275M ship contract Australian miner Fortescue today announced it was extending its supply chain into shipping, after sealing a $275M contract with a Chinese shipyard for the construction of four very large ore carriers. The miner said the fleet of 260,000dwt class vessels to be delivered in 2016-17 would both reduce
CMHI raises $2Bn to repay debt China Merchants Holdings (International) has raised HK$15.3Bn ($2.0Bn) by issuing convertible securities on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. About 55% of the net proceeds from the issuance will be used to repay debts, including notes and bank loans, a stock filing of the company said today. About 40%
More piracy incidents reported in SEA in May More incidents of sea robbery were reported in Southeast Asia in May than in the same month last year, according to regional anti-piracy body ReCAAP ISC. Thirteen actual incidents were reported last month, compared to just four in May 2013. Five petty thefts were reported in the Straits of Malacca
HMM raises $111M from foreign investment Hyundai Merchant Marine said today it would raise KRW114Bn ($111M) from a foreign investor. HMM, South Korea's second biggest shipping company, has been actively raising funds to pay off massive debts. It said in a press statement that it has inked a memorandum of understanding with Hong Kong-based
Monsoon erodes Indian shipbreaking market The positivity seen in the Indian ship recycling market was eroded last week as the South Asian monsoon season beckoned. Prices in India have stayed at $455/lt ldt for bulkers and $485/lt ldt for tankers, a drop of $20/lt ldt from last month when Narendra Modi's election win injected bullishness
Victim's mother sues state, Sewol owner A woman who lost her son in the Sewol ferry sinking is suing the South Korean government and ferry owner Chonghaejin Marine. The boy was a student of Danwon High School, of which many of the Sewol victims were from. Of the Sewol's 476 passengers and crew, 304 are presumed dead in the 16 April
Japan's coal burn snaps 16-month growth string Japanese power utilities' coal consumption dipped in May, breaking a 16-month string of year-on-year uplift, according to figures from the Federation of Electric Power Companies. The utilities consumed 4.04M tonnes in May, down 2.2% y/y from 4.13M tonnes, and also 4.2% lower than 4.31M tonnes
China grain imports up 86% in first four months China has imported 6.66M tonnes of staple food grains from January to April 2014, an increase of 86% year-on-year (y/y), according to data released by Agriculture Ministry's Agricultural Trade Promotion Center.. The trade deficit of China's grain trade in the first four months hit $21.24Bn, up by
Strike hits Australia's Wheatstone A 24-hour stoppage, affecting Tidewater offshore support vessels in Western Australia will affect Chevron's Wheatstone LNG project off Onslow in the Pilbara region. Today's strike took affect at 4am local time when around 100 cooks, stewards and seafarers refused to crew Tidewater vessels. The
Thai junta to invest in three new ports Thailand's military rulers are set to invest in three new ports, a senior government official has confirmed to IHS Maritime. The ports, Pak Bara, on the Andaman Coast, and Songkhla 2 and Chumphon on the Gulf of Thailand are "not very big", Chula Sukmanop, director-general of the Office of Transport
Singapore company charged with aiding North Korea weapons smuggling A Singapore-based shipping company has been charged with helping to finance the shipment of North Korean weapons of mass destruction to Cuba. Chinpo Shipping Company faces one charge of transferring $72,000 on 8 July 2013 from its Bank of China account to C B Fenton & Co, a shipping agent in the
New York port's PNCT moves into 'path of growth' When Jim Pelliccio looks around Port Newark Container Terminal, he sees something other terminals may crave - land to expand. "We're the only terminal in the port that has land for expansion," said Pelliccio, chief executive at PNCT. The terminal handles one-fifth of the Port of New York and New Jersey's...
The ocean shipping evolution: Key priorities for ocean transport logistics Recently, my company, INTTRA, hosted a two-day summit that brought together CIOs and sea freight and e-commerce thought leaders from the world's largest ocean carriers and global shippers. Together, we took a hard look at obstacles in our industry's business processes - and at what it will take to bridge...
Strong growth in Port of Virginia's container traffic The Port of Virginia handled 204,232 TEUs in May, up 6.7 percent year-over-year. Full-size chart The Port of Virginia handled204,232 TEUs in May, up 6.7 percent year-over-year, marking the third-best month in the port's history for container traffic. The month's growth was led by imports, excluding empties, which improved 8.9 percent compared with...
Growing officer shortage to hurt ocean carriers' earnings A shortage of seafarers in the officer corps is expected to worsen, threatening carriers' bottom lines, according to Drewry's recently published Manning 2014 Annual Report. Drewry said shipowners and managers need experienced mariners, but do not have the resources to fund substantial rises in wages because of weak freight rates caused...
Acquisitions should target more than just additional customers, 3PLs told The average logistics merger or acquisition deal was $44 million in 2013, compared with $125 million in 2012. Full-size charts CHICAGO - Third-party logistics providers looking to acquire other firms should focus on what capabilities the deal will bring, rather than just gaining customers inorganically. Gaining new customers via acquisitions isn't necessarily a...
Chicago inland port shippers get temporary relief from truck ban Starting tomorrow, truck drivers serving a major intermodal complex in the Chicago area will be able to again use a shortcut after a judge temporarily repealed a local ban on truck traffic on the route. U.S. Northern District of Illinois Judge Gary Feinerman on June 16 issued a temporary restraining order...
Container carriers profiting from intra-Asia trade Cheaper ship charter rates and growth in cargo volumes are bringing gains to the bottom lines of ocean carriers operating in services between Asian countries, Drewry says. A report released by Drewry said many deep-sea carriers are losing money by the millions on international routes, while regional routes tend to return...
AGRO targets reefer expansion AGRO Merchants Group has been building its portfolio of temperature-controlled warehouse and distribution facilities at nine U.S. and European locations, and CEO Neal Rider says there's more to come. "We hope that by this time next year we will have at least twice the footprint we have today," Rider said. "We...
Senate Democrats aim for tougher US truck safety rules The furor over the truck crash with a limousine van that killed James McNair and injured comedian Tracy Morgan is spurring demand for tougher truck safety regulation, including stricter hours of service rules for truck drivers. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., wants federal regulators to require trucking companies to put electronic logging devices...
Rotterdam-Bavaria intermodal link seeing heavy use Additional intermodal capacity that was added between the port of Rotterdam and Bavaria has been well received and is helping alleviate a capacity shortage. It's been two months since European Gateway Services and TX Logistik AG launched a fourth round-trip train to transport cargo linking Rotterdam to both Munich and Nuremberg....
French rail strike snarls freight traffic Rail freight traffic is being seriously disrupted across France and to and from the nation's seaports as a strike by rail workers entered its sixth day with no sign of a settlement in sight. SNCF, the state-owned rail operator, asked its customers to postpone shipments scheduled for this week until further...
Rickmers-Linie (America) names new president, CEO Rickmers-Linie has named Waldemar "Val" Poulsen as president and CEO of Houston-based Rickmers-Linie (America), effective July 1. Robert Sappio, who has been leading Rickmers-Linie (America) since September 2012, will step down as president and CEO on the same date. He will remain connected to Rickmers-Linie as a board member of Rickmers-Linie...
PSA's Tuticorin Terminal restricts imports as truck delays intensify PSA Sical Terminals' management at India's Port of Tuticorin (now known as V.O. Chidambaranar) has issued a trade notice placing temporary restrictions on import cargo handling as congestion at the piers has reached a critical level. "As an interim measure to ease congestion, we are reducing import volume by 50 percent...
Borealis tied to buy Borealis Maritime of the UK has emerged as the buyer of three chemical carriers controlled by Greek operator Pan Regional.
Ion takes OceanGeo cake Seismic vessel operator OceanGeo is now wholly owned by US-based Ion Geophysical.
APT inks order General Dynamics NASSCO has secured a contract to construct another medium-range product tanker for American Petroleum Tankers (APT).
OSG's April loss shrinks Overseas Shipholding (OSG) has reported a nearly $6.25m loss in April, bringing its total losses to $959m since the tanker owner entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2012.
NNA firms fixture Navios Maritime Acquisition (Navios Acquisition) of Greece has secured employment for one the newest additions to its fleet of tankers.
Star shines on merger Star Bulk shares ran hot this morning as investors reacted positively to a merger with Oceanbulk which will see Oaktree Capital become the largest shareholder in the company.
Another year for Dof Norway's Dof has been awarded a one- year contract extension for a support ship in Brazil.
No warning A careless crewman was crushed to death on a Gearbulk cargoship in Australia after crane alert devices failed.
Star sets new model Today's merger between public Star Bulk and private OceanBulk could well be a template for others in private equity looking to exit their investments in shipping.
Cosco deepens ties Chinese owner Cosco has agreed to cooperate on tanker shipping with another state giant.
New $1bn Star is born Petros Pappas and Oaktree Capital are creating the largest dry cargo company in the US capital markets via the merger of Nasdaq quoted Star Bulk and IPO hopeful Oceanbulk.
Cecon still waiting Norway's Cecon has had to extend debt financing again as it awaits delivery of a delayed newbuilding in Canada.
Platou projects VLGC crash RS Platou Markets has downgraded shares in three of the world's four largest VLGC owners amid concerns shipping's runaway train will soon come crashing to a halt.
Greek owner guilty Seventeen years after the loss of the bulker Albion Two off France, Greek owner Panagiotis Lemos has been given a suspended sentence of 15 years.
FMG books VLOC quartet Fortescue Metals Group has made a major shipowning move and splashed out $275m on a series of four VLOCs in China.
New investor for HMM Loss-making Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) is aiming to raise KRW 114bn ($112m) through a share issue as it welcomes a new investor on board.
Duo win Isacson award Two students from Singapore and Sweden are the inaugural recipients of the Claes Isacson Scholarship set up in memory of the chief executive of the Gard insurance group who died last year.
Fredriksen ups Flex ante John Fredriksen has invested a further $12m to build a dominant position in LNG owner Flex.
Solstad sells Supporter Norway's Solstad Offshore has offloaded a 2005-built anchor-handler for a cash gain of NOK 40m ($6.66m).
Arctic backs LPG duo Arctic Securities has placed buy ratings on two Oslo-traded VLGC owners that are expected to cash in while the sun shines in the sector.
Torm in debt deal Torm has struck a waiver with hedge funds and banks controlling debt of $1.6bn.
Subsea 7 builds backlog Oslo-listed Subsea 7 has won an installation contract in the Gulf of Mexico worth more than $50m.
Wartsila teams with RCCL Wartsila has secured a second major engine maintenance and technical support agreement this time with a major cruise line.
Wuchang inks LNG vessels Wuchang Shipbuilding is building up to 13 LNG bunkering barges for the Chinese market.
Fincantieri launches IPO Italian state-owned shipbuilder Fincantieri launched an IPO on Monday that values it at up to EUR 1.84bn ($2.5bn).
Fleet growth boosts Epic Epic Gas has reported a 24% increase in first quarter revenue in its first set of results since listing in Oslo in February.
Trafigura profit up 24% Trafigura has seen its interim profit surge by 24% on the back of strong volume growth and healthy trading margins.
Tanker attack foiled A daring raid on a small tanker off southern Malaysia was thwarted in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Study urges 'bold standards' on truck fuel economy
OOIDA: Make driver training a priority According to the group's executive vice president, Todd Spencer, regulators need to focus on rules regarding real-life training for truckers instead of burdensome regulations.
Long Beach board considers new cargo incentives The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners on Friday gave pre-approval to two new incentives that officials hope will bring extra cargo to the port and increase the use of shore power and on-dock rail.
Drewry: Intra-Asia trade attracting carriers
Port of Virginia reports profitable May In May, cargo volume grew 6.7 percent, or 12,865 TEU, year-over-year. There was also growth in breakbulk tonnage (25.6 percent); rail containers (4.8 percent); barge containers (13.2 percent); and Virginia Inland Port containers (22.8 percent).
Trucking firms turning to new pay methods
Deloitte/Llamasoft partner on risk management strategic solutions
DP World raised $1 billion for growth
Report: Hyundai Merchant Marine issues stock to raise funds HMM, Korea's second largest carrier after Hanjin, will sell 6.81 million convertible preferred shares worth 57 billion won to Market Vantage Ltd. and make a similar sale to Market Vantage in the second half of the year.
ICS: Industry 'still not ready' for sulphur, BWM legislations 'Time is rapidly running out', says ICS secretary general.
Ferry operator supports campaign to reduce shipping emissions Has been using 0.10% low-sulphur MGO for the past 18 years.
Shipyard bags order for another LNG-conversion-ready carrier Eco features include ballast water treatment system and an optimised hull.
Bunker prices start week soft Rotterdam's bunker market was reported to be quiet, sources said.
Singapore: Fuel oil arrivals heading for two-month low Weak Chinese demand a factor, traders say.
Bunker prices soften in Fujairah Sharp falls in Suez.
Container sector 'set to improve' Better management of bunker costs a key factor, says Evergreeen vice-president.
Marine lubes: Castrol to handle BP's product Move brings customers 'greater simplicity and efficiency'.
UK politicians to debate ECA impact this week Key element in Chamber of Shipping's sulphur regulation action plan.
Ferry operator calls for handout to help meet ECA costs 'Traditionally, you would expect companies to be helped with the cost of meeting these targets,' says DFDS vice president.
Indian courts move against bunker pollution Bunker transfer entries of particular interest.
Technology group claims fuel savings of more than 25% ABB says results from independent tests 'exceeded our expectations'.
DFDS ship sets new record for lower fuel use Vessel used 23% less fuel than average between Estonia and Sweden.
Finland will get tough on ECA cheats Multi-agency approach to be used.
Asian IFO market fairly stable But direction unclear for MGO rates.
Pirates board MGO bunker tanker Singapore-based firm loses part of cargo to pirates after attack in South China Sea.
LNG bunker barges to join Chinese domestic fleet Company plans to buy at least 10 more bunker ships this year.
Methanol producer eyes bunker market Company developing technology around alternative to bunker fuel.
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