Vlcc

BWTS Fitting on Japanese VLCC a First

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) plan to install a ballast water treatment system on an in-service very large crude oil carrier (VLCC). This will be the first such onboard system installed by any Japanese shipowner on an existing VLCC. The company chose the JFE Ballast Ace system developed by JFE Engineering Corporation. The installation will take place while the vessel is docked from March through April. Ballast water discharged while loading/discharging cargo carries marine organisms around the world and can have a negative impact on marine ecosystems and biodiversity. This has become a subject of global concern since the late 1980s. Accordingly, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted the Ballast Water Management Convention in February 2004, and its ratification is under way. Ship details: Type of vessel: Very large crude oil carrier (VLCC) 
Ship registry/class: Marshall Islands/Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK)
 Deadweight tons: About 300,000 tons 
Length: 333m
 Breadth: 60m The treatment capacity of the BWTS is 3,500m³/h x 2 units (explosion-proof), and the treatment method is of filters with chemical injection.  

Gulf Navigation to Buy Supertanker

According to a January 3 report from Gulf News, Gulf Navigation Holding confirmed its acquisition of a very large crude carrier (VLCC). The vessel, built in 2006 and with a 300,000 deadweight tonne capacity, can carry up to two million barrels of oil.The Gulf Eyadah will join the operator's other VLCC, Gulf Sheba, which was delivered in late 2007. (Source: Gulf News)

Hellespont Places Order With Samsung

Piraeus-based Hellespont Shipping Corp. has contracted Samsung Heavy Industries for the first two vessels in a new class of VLCC's. The contract also calls for the option to build two optional ships - with delivery beginning in the last quarter 2001. With a lightweight of 46,500-tons, the vessels will form a new standard for large tanker strength and speed - while equipped with various features. The ABS and LR-approved structures and scantlings will be 10 percent in excess of both rules.

Chinese Petroleum Corp. Exercises VLCC Tender

Taiwan's state-owned Chinese Petroleum Corp (CPC) has bought two very large crude carriers (VLCC) of West African crudes via its September tender, a company official said on Thursday. The volumes were below CPC's usual purchase of three to four VLCCs per month. Each VLCC can load up to two million barrels each. "We have high inventories and not so much requirement," the CPC official said. The details of the tender, which closed on Monday, were still unclear.

VLCC Rates

Eastbound VLCC freight that nearly topped W200 in November is now firmly mired beneath W100. "The market's really lost its way, but much of that is just down to sentiment," said one London tanker broker. Wednesday's fixture lists showed a number of deals hovering around the W100 mark, and even the very modern New Circassia accepted W101 from Stasco for an eastbound trip. Friday's fixture list however, showed the slightly older Musashi Spirit had been fixed at W90 to Japan

TEN Acquires VLCC

Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited (TEN) recently acquired the 299,700 dwt double hull VLCC M/T Maersk Estelle, built in Denmark in 1994, from the AP Moller / Maersk Group. Initially, this vessel will participate in the current strong spot market while the Company considers opportunities for longer-term employment. TEN will assume ownership of the vessel during the later part of January 2004. "We are very excited about this latest addition to our fleet of young and environmentally friendly

Creating the VLCC

Since the birth of the very first large crude carrier (VLCC) - the 206,000-dwt Idemitsu Maru in 1966, the stage was on the verge of being set for another 1,000 large tankers of VLCC size and above that would be built over the next 30 years. VLCCs are tankers ranging in size from 200,000-320,000-dwt, with a smaller sized version less than 275,000-dwt - equivalent to about two million barrels, which is a common cargo consignment size. The largest VLCCs are 275,000-dwt and above.

MISC Buys Aframax Tankers

MISC Bhd has bought four Aframax tankers from Japan's Tsuneishi Corp for $260m. The first unit of the 107,500-deadweight tonnage (DWT) tankers will be delivered in 2009, while the rest in 2010, MISC said in a statement. It added that the continuous expansion of MISC's petroleum fleet under American Eagle Tankers (AET), supported by regional offices in London, Singapore and Houston will provide it with the critical mass to better serve its customers globally.

Delivery of a New VLCC to Oman Shipping

Oman Shipping Company S.A.O.C. accepted delivery of a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC), SAMAIL, from Universal Shipbuilding Corporation, in Kawasaki city inJapan, becoming the 29th vessel to be operated by the company. The 300,000-dwt Panamanian flagged vessel SAMAIL measures 330 x 60 m with a draft of around 22 m. She will be the first VLCC to be technically managed "in house" by OSC’s subsidiary by Oman Ship Management Company S.A.O.C. in Muscat.

Wärtsilä RT-flex Engines Achieve 1000 Orders Milestone

Wärtsilä has received its 1000th order for the 2-stroke, electronically controlled, common-rail low-speed diesel engine. The 1000th order will power an efficient Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) tanker being built for JX Tanker Company Limited, the Yokohama, Japan based major tanker company. The 310.000 DWT vessel is being built at the IHI Marine United Inc., Kure shipyard, and is scheduled for delivery in 2014. The engine will be manufactured by Diesel United, Ltd