Overseas Freight

LR Classed Ships Head USCG Qualship List

The United States Coast Guard (USCG) initiated the Qualship program on January 1, 2001 to reward quality owners. Lloyd's Register classed ships dominate the latest USCG list, with more quality ratings than any other classification society. These ships will all benefit from less frequent USCG inspections. Among the 41% of ships that are classed by Lloyd's Register are those owned by AP Moller, P & O Nedlloyd, Overseas Shipholding Group, Shell International and BP Amoco. "I am very supportive of the USCG Qualship initiative", said Alan Gavin, Marine Director at Lloyd's Register. " It is an important step in the right direction. We have many owners who run quality ships and who do not deserve to be treated the same as the substandard owner and be continually subjected to unnecessary inspections." The level of reward for quality ship operation varies with ship type. Ships carrying freight will benefit the most by having only biennial examinations in future. Annual inspections continue for tankers, but intermediate examinations will be less detailed.

President Obama Announces Seven Significan Port Projects

U.S. President Barack Obama recognizes port projects as nationally and regionally significant The projects announced are the first seven of 43 additional projects that will be expedited under the Executive Order.  The names of the other projects will be announced in the coming weeks. The seven projects include five harbor improvements to deepen federal navigation channels for larger ships (in Jacksonville, Miami, Charleston, Savannah and New York/New Jersey)

AAPA: Study Proves Need For Improvement

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) welcomed the recent release of the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) "Report to Congress on National Highway System (NHS) Intermodal Freight Connectors." The report, requested by Congress under the provisions of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), reviews connectors to seaports, airports, and major intermodal terminals to determine: (1) their condition; (2) improvements or investments made or planned; and

Ocean Freight Shipping Rates on the Rise

After a downtrend in the freight shipping tanker market since the middle of 2007, the industry has seen nothing but rate increases in the last month. This freight rate increase can affect consumers across the board, according to the freight transportation The cost of freight shipping can mean an increase in the cost of many consumer products, according to FreightBrokering.info, which is why it's so important to keep freight transportation costs down

Tanker Shares Sink Lower

At  MarineMoney's New York City event earlier this summer, tanker operators were in a somber mood, and Michael Reardon, Manager Global Strategy and Freight Traiding, ConocoPhillips, was quoted as saying: “Floating storage took VLCCs out of the market and sent false signals to the market ... We are at or near the bottom; things can get worse, but not much worse.” Don't look now, but things have gotten worse.

US Intermodal Container Leasing Market Report

'Intermodal Container Leasing in the US Industry' market research report published by IBISWorld Excerpts from the report are as follows: The Intermodal Container Leasing industry is heavily dependent on large-scale domestic and international trade levels. Thus, as consumer spending fell during the recession and demand for goods across the economy dipped, fewer containers were needed for the transport of products. However, China's resilience and strong growth throughout the past five years

U.S. International Trade and Freight Transportation Trends

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics issued a Press Release

China Oil Giant To Double Overseas Output

China's state oil giant China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) is expected to more than double its overseas oil output to around 120,000 barrels per day (bpd) this year, Chinese industry sources said on Wednesday. CNPC produced about 2.5 million tons of crude oil in 1999, or 51,000 bpd, up one third from the previous year. Overseas production increases this year would come primarily from the company's operations in Sudan where it is expected to reach 60,000 bpd, from Kazakhstan at 30

Drewry Expands Container Freight Rate Benchmarking

Drewry Maritime Research, the global leader in freight rate benchmarking, has expanded its flagship Container Freight Rate Insight publication and now provides freight rate benchmarks on 550 international trade routes. Published monthly, the report provides all-in spot rates on all the key shipping routes of the world, including both headhaul and backhaul trades. In  addition to the monthly report, subscribers also have access to an online database of both current and historical freight

Overseas Reymar Cleared to Sail; Investigation Continues

Overseas Reymar cleared to sail; Coast Guard Calls on Harbor Safety Committee to review Critical Maneuvering Areas; investigation continues.   The U.S. Coast Guard has completed interviews, evidence collection, and a thorough safety inspection onboard the oil tanker Overseas Reymar which has been anchored in San Francisco Bay’s Anchorage 7 since the vessel’s allision with a support tower of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Monday morning.