Ore Carriers News

A feasibility study has highlighted the potential for using clean ammonia to refuel ships, particularly iron ore carriers, visiting the Pilbara region of Western Australia.The study, commissioned by Yara Clean Ammonia (Yara) and Pilbara Ports, was undertaken by Lloyd's Register, and looked at key areas including the estimated demand and likely availability of ammonia as a replacement shipping fuel. The potential risks and regulatory requirements for ammonia bunkering at the ports…

German shipping company Neu Seeschiffahrt has inked a deal to install Yara Marine Technologies' (YMT) propulsion optimization technology across its fleet of six very large ore carriers (VLOC) and two recently acquired Newcastlemax vessels in 2024.YMT's FuelOpt system reduces fuel consumption and associated emissions by automatically adapting the vessel’s propulsive power to real-time environmental conditions. YMT says the system is available for newbuilds or retrofit, and is compatible with any type of propeller or engine as well as all existing and future fuels.

After implementing the vessel-to-cloud Vessel Insight technology to Guaibamax Bulk Carriers in 2020, Vale, iron ore producer and charterer of one of the world’s largest fleet of ore carriers, has signed with Kongsberg Digital to install Vessel Insight on four Valemax vessels, a continuation of Vale's investment in technology for efficient vessels, such as the Valemax and Guaibamax freighter classes.Vale signed the agreement with Kongsberg Digital to implement Vessel Insight Connect to Valemax bulk carriers, which are long-term charted and owned by Asyad Shipping.

The blocking of the Suez Canal by one of the largest container ships in service in the world – the Ever Given – in March 2021 caused huge delays to hundreds of vessels waiting to transit the canal, one of the biggest chokepoints on the critical East/West trade shipping route. The blockage was estimated to have affected an estimated $9.6bn of goods each day, or around 12% of total world trade.The latest in a growing list of incidents involving large vessels, the Ever Given has…

We have known it all along; the bigger the bunker fuel consumption of the ship, the more likely it is that shipowners will choose an SOx scrubber as the tool to comply with the IMO 2020 sulfur cap.Whiles only three Handysize bulkers in total have been delivered from the newbuilding yards with a scrubber fitted in 2020, one in three Handymax bulkers were delivered with scrubbers installed.Most scrubber-fitted bulkers were delivered in the Panamax sub-sector, that saw 81 units out of 150…

The world is in the midst of the second coronavirus wave and with that comes the natural question of how the current dynamics will play out for the dry bulk shipping market. Demand and the subsequent cargo flow of the major dry bulk commodities are critical for the freight market, as we enter the final quarter of the year.Iron ore…has without question performed well this year, on occasion even better than gold, driven by the robust demand generated by China, as the world’s leading iron ore consumer.

Converted very large ore carriers (VLOC) are increasingly becoming a thing of the past with the long-term freight contracts coming to an end as newer and more reliable ships replace them in the market. Since June 2017, 43% of the VLOC fleet have been sent to the scrapyards, while 18% of the fleet is idled or damaged.“The tragic Stellar Daisy accident brought the safety aspect of VLOCs into question. Now, three years on, three out of five VLOCs are no longer in operation as their long-term charters have now expired.

The Panama Canal is a strategic crossroads for maritime traffic, and is arguably one of the most important maritime developments in the past century. Here we take a deeper dive into the history behind that famous strip of waterway.The present canal, which saw its first vessel transits in 1914, along with possible alternatives through Nicaragua and Mexico, had actually been on the minds of merchants, explorers and military/political strategists since the Age of Exploration in early 1500’s.

Australian exploration and production company Woodside has opened a liquefied natural gas (LNG) truck loading facility at its Pluto LNG project in Western Australia (WA), as it looks to develop the domestic LNG market for remote power generation and transport fuels.The Pluto LNG project is located 190km north-west of Karratha in WA, in the Northern Carnarvon Basin. It processes LNG from the Pluto and Xena gas fields, which have total dry gas recoverable reserve volumes of 4.4 trillion cubic feet (tcf) and 0.6tcf respectively.Following the completion of commissioning activities, the facility will initially be able to deliver seven LNG truck loadings per day…

Uncertainty mounts in dry bulk shipping  against a backdrop of weaker growth in Chinese imports, said BIMCO."The extent of the freight rate recovery in 2018 was limited – when compared with initial expectations – by a faster-growing fleet. Q4-2018 wasn’t as strong as it often is either, but we now know that was merely the beginning of a sharp downturn. On top of that, in the first month of 2019, leading the way even further down was a massive lack of cargoes. By early February, the industry appeared to be paddling in quicksand," the report said.The November dip in Capesize freight rates was just an ill omen of what was to come. For the whole of January…

Currently, the liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered fleet has grown globally from 118 LNG-powered vessels in operation in 2017, to 143 LNG-powered vessels in operation – with a further 135 on order and 135 LNG-ready ships either in operation or on order.According to the LNG bunkering coalition SEA\LNG, Orders for LNG-powered vessels span a variety of vessel types including tankers, cruise ships, container ships, car carriers, and Very Large Ore Carriers (VLOC)s.A press note issued by Peter Keller, SEA\LNG Chairman revealed that in 2018, new LNG-fuelled vessels included ESL shipping’s delivery of its second LNG-fuelled 25,000 DWT bulker Haaga and Crowley’s combination container/roll on-roll off (ConRo) El Coquí.

Marine propulsion manufacturers are not just responding to but are anticipating tighter performance demands from the U.S. EPA  and the IMO by introducing both new and upgraded systems based on state-of-the-art propulsion technologies. Tom Mulligan reviews the latest engine product launches.AIP for MAN cryo Liquid Hydrogen Fuel-Gas systemMAN Cryo, a subsidiary of MAN Energy Solutions, has developed a marine fuel-gas system for liquefied hydrogen in cooperation with Fjord1 and Multi Maritime 0f Norway.

Wärtsilä has received a series of notable orders for the upgraded version of its Wärtsilä 20 engine.A total of 33 engines have been ordered for merchant auxiliary power application in three major shipbuilding projects. The orders, which were booked in June, have been contracted with Wärtsilä Qiyao Diesel Company Ltd (WQDC), the joint venture company of Wärtsilä and Shanghai Marine Diesel Engine Research Institute (SMDERI).The engines will be installed in 11 new vessels being built in shipyards owned by China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC).

Eco Marine Power (EMP) announce that it will exhibit for the first time a working prototype of its EnergySail technology and the automated control system at  Sea Japan in Tokyo. This laboratory prototype will be exhibited along with several associated technologies including an energy storage solution and flexible marine grade photovoltaic panels. The patented EnergySail is a rigid sail device developed by EMP that will allow ships to harness the power of the wind and sun in order to reduce fuel costs plus lower noxious gas and carbon emissions. The EnergySail is unlike any other sail and can be used even when a ship is at anchor or in port. EMP announced earlier this year that sea trials of its EnergySail technology will commence during 2018.

South Korean shipper Pan Ocean has won a 1.98 trillion won ($1.82 billion) contract to transport iron ore over a period of 27 years for Brazilian mining giant Vale, Reuters reported. The South Korea company said in a regulatory filing that it is set to carry iron ore from Brazil to China from January 2020 to August 2047. According to Straits TImes, the contract commences from the first quarter of 2020. "The main objective of the company for entering into this COA is to secure a stabilised source of revenue and profit," said Pan Ocean. Pan Ocean also said it has placed orders worth 483 billion won with a Chinese shipbuilder for six very large ore carriers. The new ships are intended to be employed on long-term cargo contracts. The ships are scheduled to be delivered by September 2021.

South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has clinched a deal worth approximately US$400 million to build five very large ore carriers(VLOCs) from Seoul-based shipper Polaris Shipping. "HHI has signed a $400 Million worth contract to build five 325,000 dwt VLOCs (Very Large Ore Carrier) with Polaris Shipping. It is the option exercised following the contract of ten same class VLOCs with Polaris Shipping on September 25," said a company statement. HHI Group’s shipbuilding affiliates have so far this year won new orders of 110 ships worth $ 6.7 billion, 90% of the $ 7.5 billion annual target. According to Pulse News, Polaris Shipping upon placing an $800 million order with Hyundai Heavy Industries for 10 VLOCs last month had the option to place additional shipbuilding orders.

U.K.-based ballast water treatment systems (BWTS) manufacturer Coldharbour Marine has launched a new treatment process designed specifically for large dry bulk vessels and ore carriers. The system uses the company’s existing inert gas based GLDTM treatment plant to meet the needs of large bulk carriers, which often ship large volumes of ballast water in upper wing tanks and discharge it directly into the sea. The IMO International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships'…

Brazilian mining company Vale SA on Wednesday said it has sold two ships with a capacity to carry 400,000 tonnes of iron ore each for a total of $178 million.   The company said it received the payment on August 8 and that it is in talks to sell two remaining ships of the same class (VLOC, very large ore carriers). Vale did not reveal the name of the buying company. (Reporting by Marcelo Teixeira; editing by Diane Craft)

ABS has introduced a new service and analysis tool that will allow atypical cargoes on bulk carriers. The software streamlines loading analysis and provides a safer approach to loading atypical bulk cargo. “ABS understands that maintaining a leadership role means finding ways to improve safety and efficiency for industry,” says ABS Executive Vice President for Global Marine Dr. Kirsi Tikka. In developing this new software and service, ABS has taken a comprehensive approach to steel coil loading. This new capability helps improve efficiency, enabling faster decisions regarding the safety of nontraditional loads. Using the ABS loading analysis software enables timely and accurate decisions about the achievable safety for steel coil loads that are not included in the loading manual.

South Korean shipping firm Polaris Shipping Co has placed an order with Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) to build three very large iron ore carriers, Yonhap reported.   Polaris said the 325,000-ton iron ore carriers will replace some of its aged ships. The financial details of the shipbuilding contract and delivery schedule for the newbuildings were not disclosed.   With the latest order from Polaris HHI's orderbook that was valued at $3.8bn in the first five months of 2017 will enlarge further.   Polaris has long-term contracts with the first-class charterers such as Vale, POSCO and subsidiaries of KEPCO.   A cargo ship operated by Polaris Shipping sank in the Atlantic Ocean in April this year with its crew still missing.

With an average age of 23.8 years, the fleet of very large ore carriers (VLOC) converted from very large crude carriers (VLCC) is vintage compared to the average age of 5.7 years for non-converted ore carriers above 200,000 DWT, according to BIMCO. But despite the huge 18.1 years age gap between converted VLOCs and normal VLOCs, the age itself is not the all-important explanatory factor behind a demolition decision. Naturally safety is a paramount issue, but also the fact that the vessels are still employed on a contract.

Tanker and dry bulk vessel newbuild contracts have been signed at an increasing pace so far in 2017, with newbuild activity for the first half of 2017 surpassing the same period last year by 20 percent. According to BIMCO, 5.9 million DWT was contracted in May 2017 and 3.1 million DWT so far in June 2017, which brings the total amount of newbuild orders up to 19.6 million DWT for 2017. So far for June 2017, 22 tankers have been contracted amounting to a total of 2.6 million DWT. For the crude oil tanker segment, this has been entirely for suezmax ships with 1.9 million DWT ordered.

Eco Marine Power (EMP) has begun preparing for sea trials of its Aquarius Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) solution in co-operation with strategic partners and ship owner Hisafuku Kisen K.K. of Onomichi, Japan. This preparatory work will lead to the world’s first installation of an integrated rigid sail and solar power system for ships using EMP’s patented technologies including the EnergySail. This is a major step forward towards a more sustainable future for shipping and is expected to result in the wider deployment of EMP’s solutions on ships ranging from coastal cargo vessels to bulk ore carriers and cruise ships. Currently underway is a feasibility study involving several large bulk carriers including the Belgrano, Nord Gemini and Bulk Chile.