First Phase News

Taiwanese shipping firm Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp has purchased three 8,000 TEU methanol dual-fuel-ready container ships from Japanese ship leasing company Shoei Kisen Kaisha.The vessels, being built by Imabari Shipbuilding, are scheduled for delivery between 2028 and 2029.Yang Ming said the acquisition will strengthen its global service network and reinforce its commitment to providing customers with reliable and sustainable transportation service.To support business growth and maintain core competitiveness…

Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) said it intends to award a contract for seven new loch-class electric ferries to Poland's Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A in Gdansk, Poland.The Small Vessel Replacement Program (SVRP) will see seven fully electric vessels built in the first phase, with an additional three delivered in phase two of the project, which will be procured through a separate competitive tender process later in 2025."These seven new vessels, when combined with the six major new vessels joining the fleet in 2025 and 2026…

Woodside Energy has held talks with several potential buyers of stakes in its Louisiana liquefied natural gas plant, including Tokyo Gas, Japan's JERA and Saudi Aramco-backed MidOcean Energy, multiple sources told Reuters.The timing of the stake sale is a test case for buoyant market expectations around LNG with the return of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency. Trump has said trade partners should buy more U.S. energy and issued several executive orders in his first weeks in…

Woodside Energy has held talks with several potential buyers of stakes in its Louisiana liquefied natural gas plant, including Tokyo Gas, Japan's JERA and Saudi Aramco-backed MidOcean Energy, multiple sources told Reuters.The timing of the stake sale is a test case for buoyant market expectations around LNG with the return of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency. Trump has said trade partners should buy more U.S. energy and issued several executive orders in his first weeks in…

A.P. Møller - Maersk has decided to initiate a share buy-back program of up to DKK 14.4 billion (around $2 billion) to be executed over a period of 12 months.The purpose of the program is to adjust the capital structure of the company ultimately through cancellation of shares repurchased. It was in February last year due to market uncertainties caused by disruptions in the Red Sea.The first phase of the share buy-back program will run from February 7 to August 6, 2025. The shares to be acquired will be limited to a total market value of DKK 7.2 billion (around $1 billion).

There’s more to domestic dredging than meets the eye. Dredging Contractors of America CEO Bill Doyle is just the guy tell you why.William P. Doyle serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Dredging Contractors of America (DCA). DCA represents the dredging industry on key issues before Congress and is an active partner to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public port authorities, state and local governments, as well as allied construction and maritime organizations.Immediately prior to this appointment, Mr. Doyle served as the Port of Baltimore’s Chief Executive for three years.

Saipem’s pipelay vessel Castorone has crossed the Bosphorus Strait in Türkiye, continuing its journey toward the Black Sea for a pipeline installation job as part of the second phase of the Sakarya project for Turkish Petroleum - Offshore Technology Center (TP – OTC).In the early hours of December 26, the vessel crossed the Dardanelles Strait, covering a distance of 36 nautical miles in approximately six hours.In the afternoon, it continued its journey through the Sea of Marmara.

Dogger Bank Offshore Wind Farm, a joint venture partnership between SSE Renewables, Equinor, and Vårgrønn, has signed a vessel reservation agreement with Seaway7 to support the construction of the offshore wind farm being built in the U.K. North Sea.The contract represents additional work for Seaway7 at the Dogger Bank offshore wind development, where it is currently installing monopile foundations and transition pieces.The value of the agreement is between $150 million and $300 million…

Energy and marine consultancy ABL has completed its scope of work as marine warranty surveyor (MWS) to support the successful transport and re-installation of the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Toscana, off the coast of Livorno in Italy.ABL was appointed on this project by OLT Offshore LNG Toscana, the owner of FSRU Toscana.In mid-April 2024, the FSRU Toscana was successfully towed with the support of two tugs, to the port of Genoa, Italy, where it began the first phase of an 'extraordinary maintenance intervention' campaign.

Suez Canal Chairman Gamal El-Dein says Canal Economic Zone set for rapid expansion.Egypt's Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCEZ) has invested $3 billion on infrastructure over the past few years and has plans to invest a similar amount over the next few years as it works to attract investors, its chairman said in an interview.The zone, a collection of six ports and four industrial areas alongside, or near the waterway, has been given special legal and tax advantages to benefit from the vast amount of international shipping passing by.While government-run, it is administratively separate from the canal. Attacks on Red Sea shipping by Yemen's Houthis…

The IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) held its 82nd session from September 30 to October 4, 2024, with outcomes including the adoption of the Canadian Arctic and the Norwegian Sea as NOx, SOx and PM Emission Control Areas.The relevant MARPOL amendments will enter into force on March 1, 2026.DNV reports that for the Canadian Arctic:• The 0.10% fuel sulphur content requirement takes effect from March 1, 2027.• Tier III NOx requirements will apply to ships constructed (keel-laid) on or after 1 January 2025…

Federal regulators on Friday gave Venture Global LNG permission to begin preparations for the start-up of liquefied natural gas equipment at its Plaquemines export plant in Louisiana, taking a step closer to first LNG production for the facility, about 20 miles south of New Orleans.A tanker containing LNG has been docked at Plaquemines with a cargo of chilled gas since late August, according to Venture Global LNG and data from financial firm LSEG. The cargo is expected to be used…

The Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard Company (ASRY) has launched the first phase of the Bapco Refining Self-Propelled Fuel Oil Bunker Barges project with a keel-laying ceremony.The project, which is scheduled for execution in the final quarter of 2024, comes as part of a strategic alliance between ASRY and Bapco Refining and is a step towards positioning the Kingdom of Bahrain as a key maritime hub in the region.The project consists of the delivery of two self-propelled fuel…

Mainstream Renewable Power, the pureplay global wind and solar company majority-owned by Aker Horizons, has announced that KF Wind, a 1,125MW floating offshore wind project being developed off the coast of Ulsan, South Korea, has secured the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval from the Ministry of Environment for the totality of the two-phase project. The Award of the EIA is a key milestone for the development of the two-phase floating offshore wind project, advancing towards construction.The EIA comprises the first phase…

A tanker full of liquefied natural gas (LNG) docked at Venture Global LNG's Plaquemines export plant in Louisiana, according to shipping data from LSEG on Friday, in what energy analysts said was a sign the plant could start up in test mode soon.The vessel named Qogir came from Norway full of LNG, according to LSEG data and energy analysts.LNG plants under construction, like Plaquemines, use super-cooled fuel to test and cool equipment in preparation for startup.After Plaquemines started pulling in small amounts of natural gas from U.S.

Green Marine (UK)’s initiative looking to retrofit crew transfer vessels (CTV) with hydrogen, fuel cells and battery, with the aim to cut emissions while servicing offshore wind farms, has been granted Approval in Principle (AiP) by global classification society RINA.The first phase of Project Verdant, involving a preliminary design and feasibility study, has now been completed and deemed viable, opening the door to subsequent project phases seeking to execute design, engineering and sea trials.Led by Green Marine (UK)…

Deme Offshore has laid all inter-array cables, manufactured by its partner Hellenic Cables, for the first phase of 3.6 GW Dogger Bank offshore wind farm in UK.More than 200 miles of 66KV inter-array cables have been successfully installed by delivery partners working on the construction of the world’s largest offshore wind farm.The cables were laid by DEME Offshore’s Viking Neptun, with burial works being completed by DEME Offshore’s Living Stone.This work marks the completion of all inter-array cables on the first phase of the wind farm…

The IMO Council met for its 132nd session from July 8 to 12, 2024, at IMO headquarters in London, and among the key outcomes of the meeting were the decisions to live-stream plenary sessions of the Council and make Council meeting documents accessible to the public.Decisions on advancing multilingualism, improving the Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS) and supporting the sustainability of the IMO Member State Audit Scheme were also taken.The Council is the executive organ of IMO and is responsible…

Adani Ports expects to complete the first of four phases of a key transshipment container port in southern India this year, it said on Friday, firming the timeline for a project already delayed by six years due to protests by locals.The Vizhinjam deep-sea port at the southern tip of the country is of strategic importance due to its proximity to international shipping routes and will help India rival Dubai, Singapore and Sri Lanka.Adani Ports, a part of billionaire Gautam Adani's ports-to-power conglomerate…

U.S. offshore wind aspirations, both federal and state, have resulted in excitement about the potential opportunity of a large U.S. offshore wind market. But uncertainty, initially financially driven and increasingly a result of political uncertainty, is leading us into a challenging period, which will undoubtedly impact short-term activity, according to the latest market report from Intelatus Global Partners. A darkening cloud for the U.S. wind industry is the forthcoming presidential elections…

Esgian provides an update on the current lull in contracting in its Week 27 Rig Analytics Market Roundup.Report SummaryContractsAban Offshore-owned 250-ft jackup Aban II has received a letter of award (LOA) from Oil India for an offshore work program in Andhra Pradesh, India.Shelf Drilling North Sea has secured a new 17-month contract for the 400-ft Shelf Drilling Winner (previously known as Noble Sam Turner) jackup rig with TotalEnergies EP Denmark.Drilling Activity and DiscoveriesThe…

Golar LNG has entered into definitive agreements with Pan American Energy (PAE) for a 20-year deployment of a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) vessel in Argentina.The FLNG project will monetize Argentine gas, tapping into the vast resources from the Vaca Muerta shale formation in the Neuquina Basin, the world's second-largest shale gas resources. The project is expected to start LNG exports within 2027, establishing Argentina as an LNG exporter.The agreement includes a gas sales agreement from PAE for the supply of gas…

Equinor has been awarded the operatorship for the development of two new CO2 storages in the North Sea along with a 100% share for the two licenses, Albondigas and Kinno.The new licenses are each expected to have the capacity to store around 5 million tons of CO2 per year when in operation. This estimate will be further determined in the exploration phase.Equinor expects 4-8% real base project returns for its early phase CO2 storage business, and further value uplift potential…