Regulation News

On April 17, the Trump administration shielded domestic exporters and vessel owners servicing the Great Lakes, the Caribbean and U.S. territories from port fees to be levied on China-built vessels.The Federal Register notice posted by the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) was watered down from a February proposal for fees on China-built ship of up to $1.5 million per port call.Ocean shipping transports about 80% of global trade - from food and furniture to cement and coal. Industry executives feared virtually every cargo carrier could face steep, stacking fees that would make U.S.

A tidal wave of new regulations is set to hit the global maritime sector this year, representing fresh, highly-complex compliance challenges. From environmental performance to evolving security and safety standards, the shipping industry faces a raft of new rules intended to ensure safe operations and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In this article, Stamatis Fradelos, Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at the American Bureau of Shipping, explains what the flood of new regulations really means…

The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended that land-based firefighters be better prepared for marine vessel firefighting following a fatal fire on the roll-on/roll-off container vessel Grande Costa D’Avorio in Newark, New Jersey.The Grande Costa D’Avorio was docked at Port Newark on July 5, 2023, when a vehicle used by shoreside workers to push used vehicles onto the vessel caught fire on an interior garage deck. The ship’s captain ordered use of the vessel’s carbon dioxide extinguishing system…

U.S. President Donald Trump administration plans to use ongoing tariff negotiations to pressure U.S. trading partners to limit their dealings with China, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday citing people with knowledge of the conversations.U.S. officials plan to use negotiations with more than 70 nations to ask them to disallow China to ship goods through their countries and prevent Chinese firms from being located in their territories to avoid U.S. tariffs, the report added.(Reuters - Reporting by Janaki Venugopalan in Bengaluru; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

While its implementation can sometimes take partisan forms, the goal of efficient delivery of government services is something that all Americans—both members of the public interacting with the government, and the government officials providing those services—can, and do, support. For the maritime industry, there are few government services more important than credentialing America’s merchant mariners.While Congress and the U.S. Coast Guard have recognized the need to modernize mariner credentialing and have taken some initial steps to begin that process…

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday aimed at reviving U.S. shipbuilding and reducing China's grip on the global shipping industry.Republican and Democratic U.S. lawmakers for years have warned about China's growing dominance on the seas and diminishing U.S. naval readiness.The order directs the U.S. Trade Representative to move ahead with a plan that includes levying U.S. port docking fees on any ship that is part of a fleet that includes Chinese-built or Chinese-flagged vessels.

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he would impose a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to the U.S. and higher duties on dozens of other countries, including some of the United States' biggest trading partners, deepening a trade war that he kicked off on his return to the White House.The sweeping duties would erect new barriers around the world's largest consumer economy, reversing decades of trade liberalization that have shaped the global order. Trading partners are…

Evac Group, a leader in sustainability technologies and solutions, has launched Dehydro, an onboard waste management system designed to meet the specific needs of smaller vessels. Traditional onboard waste systems typically require high volumes of wet waste to be cost-effective, which makes them impractical for smaller vessels. The Dehydro system, using dehydration technology, makes onboard waste treatment viable for smaller ships, reducing the need for overboard discharge or costly offloading to land-based facilities.

Fossil fuel and agriculture industry executives on Wednesday criticized a plan by President Donald Trump's administration for big fees on China-linked ships entering U.S. ports, arguing at a hearing in Washington that the move would hobble their ability to export everything from coal to soybeans.The proposed fees on China-built vessels could top $3 million per U.S. port call.The administration says the fees would curb China's commercial and military dominance on the high seas and promote a U.S.

The UK Maritime Minister Mike Kane has revealed the government’s new goals for all vessels that operate in UK waters and dock at UK ports to be carbon free.Part of the government’s Plan for Change, the new Maritime decarbonization strategy sets out goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030, 80% by 2040 and to zero by 2050.This will see the UK match the highest level of the ambitious goals agreed at the IMO in its 2023 strategy on reduction of greenhouse gas emission from ships.

Danelec launched an new vessel Emissions Compliance Module, offering shipowners and operators a way to meet stringent environmental regulations while reducing administrative burdens and improving fleet performance.Danelec’s Emissions Compliance Module allows shipowners and operators to transfer emissions data to class societies and third-party verifiers, simplifying compliance with regulations including EU Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV), UK MRV, IMO Data Collection System (DCS)…

Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee Ranking Member Salud Carbajal (CA-24) and Chair Mike Ezell (MS-04) introduced the bipartisan “American Cargo for American Ships Act” to strengthen U.S. Cargo preference laws and promote American economic growth.The legislation aims to reduce the ongoing decline of U.S. flagged ships.In 2022, the Maritime Administration (MARAD) testified before the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and highlighted the decline of U.S. flagged ships. Per MARAD, there were 106 ships in the foreign trade flying the U.S. flag in 2012.

The United States is preparing to impose docking fees at its ports on any ship belonging to a fleet that includes Chinese-built or Chinese-flagged vessels, according to a draft executive order, a move aimed to both revitalize U.S. shipbuilding while countering China’s dominance in global shipping and shipbuilding.The draft order from President Donald Trump also urges allied nations to adopt similar policies or risk facing retaliatory measures from the U.S.China’s growing control over the maritime industry has become a rare bipartisan concern in the U.S.…

The Department of Energy approved an LNG export permit extension for Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC, marking yet another step toward meeting President Trump’s and Secretary Wright’s commitment to unleash American energy dominance and restore regular order to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export reviews. The approval will grant additional time to begin LNG exports from the Golden Pass LNG Terminal, currently under construction in Sabine Pass, Texas. “Exporting U.S. LNG supports American jobs, bolsters our national security and strengthens America’s position as a world energy leader.

U.S. proposals to hit Chinese vessels with high port fees would have a major impact on all firms in a container shipping industry in which most vessels are built in China, French-based shipping firm CMA CGM said on Friday.The U.S. Trade Representative's office has proposed charging up to $1.5 million for Chinese-built vessels entering U.S. ports as part of its investigation into China's expansion in the shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors."China builds more than half of all container ships in the world…

Analysts caution that a new proposal to impose fees on China-built container ships entering the U.S. could trigger unintended consequences, including port congestion, rising freight costs, and shifts in global trade flows.The Trump administration has announced a plan to charge a $1 million fee every time a vessel operated by a Chinese carrier docks at a U.S. port. Additionally, the Federal Notice outlines potential extra charges for any China-built ships, even if operated by carriers from other nations.

The EU has just adopted its 16th sanctions package against Russia. The package targets systemically important sectors of the Russian economy such as energy, trade, transport, infrastructure and financial services.To curb the risk of our sanctions being bypassed, certain provisions of the 16th package are now also mirrored in the Belarus sanctions regime. The EU has in addition updated and strengthened its sanctions regimes concerning Crimea and Sevastopol, and the non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk…

The U.S. Trade Representative's office has proposed charging up to $1.5 million for Chinese-built vessels entering U.S. ports as part of its investigation into China's growing domination of the global shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors.USTR said in a January 16 report on a probe launched during the administration of former President Joe Biden that China increased its share of global shipbuilding tonnage from 5% in 1999 to over 50% in 2023 because of massive state subsidies…

Starting March 1, 2025, ocean common carriers of containerized cargo are expected to file documented export strategies with the US Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) on an annual basis.The increased obligation is one of several notable developments on the horizon for the ocean shipping industry in 2025, says the Venable LLP international trade team.As Venable explains in its latest advisory on expected trade laws in 2025, these expected changes will impact operations across a wide range of stakeholders…

Onerous emissions rules are certainly no stranger to the maritime sector at large, arguably none more so than those that work and live in California. The U.S. West Coast state is a global shipping hub, with a coastline spanning more than 800 miles and 11 major ports. It also is known for its penchant for creating and enforcing maritime rules, rules that on occasion transcend the technological means to enact them. Enter Jennifer Carpenter, President and CEO of the American Waterways Operators (AWO), the national advocacy group for the tugboat, towboat and barge sectors.

China's presence around the Panama Canal is a national security concern that Panama's government has to deal with, Mauricio Claver-Carone, the U.S. special envoy for Latin America, said on Friday, ahead of U.S. top diplomat Marco Rubio's visit to the country.Rubio will depart on Saturday on his first foreign trip, with a scheduled visit to the canal and a meeting with Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino, the first talks between the countries since President Donald Trump's threat to take control of the U.S.-built canal.Rubio will also visit El Salvador…

Germany is expanding its natural gas import options to replace Russian supply, a drive intensified by the latest suspension of Russian flows via Ukraine and U.S. President Donald Trump targeting Europe with liquefied natural gas exports.Plans also include shore-based regasification terminals and facilities to import and produce ammonia and green hydrogen under decarbonization strategies. A synopsis of changes and additions to Germany's energy plans and infrastructure is listed below:MUKRANMukran…

When Marco Rubio arrives in Latin America this weekend on his first foreign trip as Donald Trump's secretary of state, he'll find a region reeling from the new administration's shock-and-awe approach to diplomacy.In the first days of Trump's second term, the new president has doubled down on his intention to reclaim the Panama Canal, angered Brazilians by returning migrants in shackles and briefly imposed crushing sanctions and tariffs on Colombia in a tussle over deportee flights.Rubio's…