Marine Link
Tuesday, May 26, 2026

Africa News

21 May 2026

QatarEnergy, ExxonMobil Explore Cyprus Gas Exports via Egypt’s Infrastructure

(Credit: QatarEnergy)

QatarEnergy has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Egyptian government and ExxonMobil to study the potential development and commercialization of gas discoveries in Cyprus through Egypt’s existing gas and LNG export infrastructure.The agreement will allow the parties to study future growth opportunities and commercial frameworks linked to Egypt’s gas infrastructure and its role as a regional energy hub in the Eastern Mediterranean.The companies said the cooperation…

21 May 2026

Oil Prices Rise as Iran Talks Stall and Inventories Shrink

© ANEK / Adobe Stock

Oil prices edged higher on Thursday, as investors monitored peace talks between the United States and Iran, while supply tightness and U.S. inventory drawdowns provided some support.Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 40 cents, or 0.4%, to $105.42 a barrel by 0809 GMT, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures CLc1 were up 50 cents, or 0.5%, at $98.76.Both benchmarks dropped around 5.6% on Wednesday to their lowest in more than a week after President Donald Trump said talks with Iran…

19 May 2026

Oil Prices Ease as US Holds Off Renewed Strikes Against Iran

© artegorov3@gmail / Adobe Stock

Oil fell by nearly 2% on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he had paused a planned attack on Iran to allow for negotiations to end the war in the Middle East.Trump posted on social media on Monday that he was holding off on a planned military attack on Iran scheduled for Tuesday, while efforts continue to reach a deal, adding that the United States was ready to resume attacking if one is not reached.Brent futures LCOc1 for July were down $2.02, or 1.8%, to $110.08 a barrel at 0802 GMT, while U.S.

18 May 2026

Oil Climbs Above $110 After Gulf Drone Attacks Raise Supply Fears

© Miha Creative / Adobe Stock

Oil prices extended gains on Monday as efforts to end the Iran war appeared to have stalled, after a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates came under attack and as U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to discuss military options on Iran.Brent crude futures LCOc1 climbed $1.65, or 1.51%, to $110.91 a barrel by 0703 GMT, but were off the $112 they had touched earlier for their highest since May 5.U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 stood at $107.42 a barrel, up $2, or 1.9%, after a rise to $108.70, its highest since April 30.

13 May 2026

Global Oil Supply to Fall Short of Demand as Iran War Goes On, IEA Says

© chitsanupong / Adobe Stock

Global oil supply will not meet total demand this year as the Iran war wreaks havoc on Middle East oil production, the International Energy Agency said in its monthly oil market report on Wednesday."With Hormuz tanker traffic still restricted, cumulative supply losses from Gulf producers already exceed 1 billion barrels with more than 14 million (barrels per day) of oil now shut in, an unprecedented supply shock," the agency said.Its base-case forecast is for a gradual resumption of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz from the third quarter onwards…

11 May 2026

CMA CGM Expands Support for Kenyan Logistics

Source: CMA CGM

The CMA CGM Group has signed a high-level framework agreement for joint cooperation with Keynan institutional authorities to develop Kenya’s logistics and port capacity.The objective is to accelerate solutions that support the growth of supply chain flows in and out of east and Central Africa including maritime demand, inland logistics and freight management.It has been signed as part of the Africa Forward Summit, and in the presence of the Presidents of the French and Kenyan Republics, M.

07 May 2026

IEA: Middle East Conflict Reshaping Medium-Term Gas Outlook

© sedsembak / Adobe Stock

The Iran war has already led to a loss of about 120 billion cubic metres of global liquefied natural gas supply over the 2026 to 2030 period, Gergely Molnar, an analyst from the International Energy Agency, said on Thursday.Speaking at the Budapest LNG Summit, Molnar said the conflict was reshaping the medium-term gas outlook, with tighter market conditions likely to persist longer than previously expected.He said the crisis had cut LNG supply by around 15%, but a strong increase in new liquefaction capacity was expected to offset lost volumes from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.Iranian at

27 Apr 2026

Suspected Pirates Take Control of Ship Off Somalia

© dummy / Adobe Stock

Suspected pirates have boarded a St. Kitts and Nevis-flagged general cargo vessel off Somalia's waters and were sailing it towards the Somali coastline, British maritime security groups Vanguard and Ambrey said.Somali pirates caused havoc in the waters off the Horn of Africa nation's long coastline between 2008 and 2018. After a lull, pirate activity started to pick up again in late 2023.Vanguard said in a note late on Sunday it was aware of reports that armed pirates had hijacked the vessel, Sward, in the vicinity of Godobjiran, Somalia.

13 Apr 2026

CoreMarine, Jumbo Offshore Collaborate on Argentina FLNG Installation & Hook-up Project

© Jumbo Offshore

CoreMarine & Jumbo Offshore have announced the award of a significant contract to perform the transport and installation of the soft-yoke (SSY) mooring systems, and hook-up of both the Hilli Episeyo FLNG and MKII FLNG vessels, in Argentina’s Golfo San Matías. The award represents a milestone for both companies as well as a breakthrough project for Argentina’s gas sector as it ramps up in export capabilities.The contract has been awarded by Southern Energy S.A. (SESA), supported by an international consortium comprising Pan American Energy, YPF, Pampa Energía, Harbour Energy, and Golar LNG.

07 Apr 2026

Oil Shoots Over $110 as Trump's Iran Deadline Looms

© Destina / Adobe Stock

Global stocks wavered on Tuesday, while oil prices were perched above $110 per barrel as the prospect of escalation in the war in the Middle East and the looming deadline for a deal to be reached kept nervy investors on the sidelines.Markets have been rattled since the U.S.-Israel war on Iran broke out at the end of February, with Tehran effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil transit chokepoint that has spurred inflation worries.While investors have pinned their hopes on a resolution to the war, the talks so far have yielded no progress, with U.S.

07 Apr 2026

IEA: Current Oil And Gas Crisis Exceeds Past Shocks Combined

Fatih Birol (Credit: IEA)

The current oil and gas crisis triggered by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is "more serious than the ones in 1973, 1979 and 2022 together", Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), told Le Figaro newspaper."The world has never experienced a disruption to energy supply of such magnitude," he said in an interview with the French newspaper released in its Tuesday edition.He said the European countries, as well Japan, Australia and others will suffer, but the countries most at risk were developing nations which will suffer from higher oil and gas prices…

06 Apr 2026

ABL Signs Marine Services Deal with Tidewater in Egypt

(Credit: ABL Group)

ABL Group has signed a one-year master service agreement with offshore vessel operator Tidewater to provide marine assurance and dynamic positioning consultancy services.The agreement, entered into by ABL’s Egypt unit and Tidewater Marine Egypt, covers offshore support vessels operating in the Egyptian Mediterranean, as well as the Black Sea and wider European region.ABL said the scope includes support for vessel safety, performance and asset integrity, with services such as audits…

23 Mar 2026

Bunkering Hubs Along African Coast See Surge as Vessels Reroute

© Adobe Stock/Kalyakan

Ship-refuelling companies along Africa's coast are seeing a surge in business as more vessels divert around the Cape of Good Hope, with war in the Middle East reshaping global shipping routes and boosting the continent's role as a bunkering hub.Carriers have been avoiding the Suez Canal and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait since late 2023, when Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping began. U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have reinforced the shift,…

16 Feb 2026

ABL Secures Work at Egypt’s Kamose Gas Field

© wanfahmy / Adobe Stock

Energy and marine consultancy ABL has been appointed to provide marine warranty survey (MWS) services to support the offshore construction for the Phase 4 development of the Kamose offshore gas field development in the Mediterranean Sea for North Sinai Petroleum Company (NOSPCO).The Kamose Phase 4 development, which is located at the Eastern flank of the Nile Delta, envisages the construction and installation of three new offshore production platforms monopods, named Hoor-1&2…

26 Jan 2026

Europeans Commit to Wind Energy Expansion Despite Trump Criticism

© Adobe Stock/NBLX

European governments including Germany, Britain and Denmark will reinforce their plans to massively expand wind power projects on Monday, despite U.S. President Donald Trump stepping up criticism of their green energy agenda, a draft declaration due to be signed by government leaders showed.Trump has been openly critical of European countries' efforts to shift to low-carbon energy.

16 Jan 2026

Eni Launches Hull for Coral North FLNG Offshore Mozambique

Image courtesy ENI

Eni and its partners have launched the hull of the Coral North floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) vessel, marking a key milestone in the development of Mozambique’s offshore gas resources.Coral North will be the second floating LNG facility deployed in the Rovuma Basin offshore Cabo Delgado in northern Mozambique and will produce gas from the northern part of the Coral reservoir.The project builds on experience gained from Coral South, which began production in 2022.Eni Greenlights Mozambique’s Coral North FLNG ProjectDesigned to improve efficiency and optimize performance…

22 Dec 2025

Shearwater Set to Start Multi-Client Survey Offshore Nigeria

SW Duchess (Credit: Shearwater Geoservices)

Offshore seismic services firm Shearwater Geoservices has finalized the preparations for the upcoming start of a new multi-client seismic project offshore Nigeria.The 3D survey is backed by significant industry funding and will be executed in partnership with Harvex Geosolutions and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).The project is scheduled to start at year-end 2025 and will be carried out by Shearwater’s high-end vessel SW Duchess over an expected two-month period.The survey will provide high-resolution subsurface data across the Western Niger Delta Basin…

16 Dec 2025

Morocco’s Marsa Maroc to Acquire 45% Stake in Spain’s Boluda Maritime Terminals

© kanpisut / Adobe Stock

Morocco's leading port operator, Marsa Maroc, said on Tuesday it signed a deal to acquire a 45% stake in Spain's Boluda Maritime Terminals (BMT), a branch of Spain's Boluda Corporacion Maritima for 80 million euros ($94.01 million).The deal, approved by Marsa Maroc's board, is subject to regulatory clearance, the company said in a statement.BMT handled more than 1 million containers in 2024 through its nine terminals across mainland Spain and the Canary Islands.The acquisition would enable Marsa Maroc International Logistics (MMIL), the group's international expansion, to strengthen its positi

11 Dec 2025

Cement Carrying Vessel Flourish Going into Africa

Source: BIMCO

“Between January and November 2025, cement shipments, including clinker, have jumped 13% y/y, driven by a 39% y/y increase in shipments to Africa’s Atlantic coast. The region is experiencing high economic growth, fast urbanisation and rapid development in infrastructure, supporting construction activity and boosting the demand for cement,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.Cement and clinker import dependency is high across most countries in the region as most countries have insufficient domestic production capacity.

02 Dec 2025

ABL, PMS Set Up Rig Moving Partnership for Red Sea and Gulf of Suez

© namning / Adobe Stock

Global energy and marine consultancy ABL has partnered up with Egypt’s Petroleum Marine Services (PMS) to introduce a unified rig moving service in the Red Sea and Gulf of Suez, with the support of the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).This milestone initiative supports Egypt’s strategic direction to enhance offshore operational efficiency, reduce downtime, and elevate the standards of marine and drilling logistics across two of the country’s most dynamic offshore basins.The new integrated service from PMS and ABL…

25 Nov 2025

Drydocks World Converts Tanker to FPSO Ahead of Deployment off Nigeria

(Credit: Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission - NUPRC)

Drydocks World has completed the full conversion and integration of the EMEM Floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit, delivering a key offshore asset to support production at Nigeria’s Okwok field.The FPSO, converted from double-hulled tanker, underwent structural modifications, marine system upgrades and the installation of 19 topside production and utility modules at Drydocks World’s Dubai facility.The unit was commissioned by World Carrier Corporation on behalf of Oriental Energy Resources for deployment its Okwok field in Petroleum Mining Lease 15.Once operational…

17 Nov 2025

Energy Transition' Future: Fractured, Bumpy and Long

Copyright vectorfusionart/AdobeStock

As COP30 kicks off its second week in Brazil, much has changed since the landmark Paris climate agreement was penned 10 years ago.The spirit of cooperation that once reigned has been shattered by economic rivalries and a stark divergence in climate policies among the world’s biggest polluters.The landmark UN COP21 climate agreement signed in Paris on December 12, 2015 saw 195 nations commit to setting binding targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to limit global warming to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial levels.

12 Nov 2025

NextGeo Gets $9.8M Job for Saipem Offshore Libya

NG Worker (Credit: Next Geosolutions)

Italian offshore services provider Next Geosolutions (NextGeo) has secured a new contract worth around $9.8 million by Saipem for offshore survey and installation support activities under the Bouri Gas Utilization Project (BGUP) in North Africa.The contract covers survey and construction support work for the development of the Bouri gas field, located off the Libyan coast, one of the largest offshore initiatives in the region aimed at boosting gas recovery and utilization.Next Geosolutions said the project will involve deployment of its vessels NG Worker and NG Surveyor…