Cayman Islands News

A new table published by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) indicates continuing positive performance by the vast majority of the maritime industry's flag states.Merchant ships are required to register under a flag state, which determines the vessel's nationality and gives jurisdiction under which to operate. Flag states have the authority and responsibility to enforce regulations over vessels registered under their flag, including those relating to inspection, certification…

Normal traffic is expected to resume through the Suez Canal within hours, the head of the canal authority said on Wednesday, following the collision of two vessels."Slight contact" was made after LNG carrier BW Lesmes made a sudden stop due to a technical failure that coincided with a strong current that drove oil tanker Burri towards it, authority chairman Osama Rabie said.The canal authority responded by sending tugboats to move both ships, he said.Singapore-flagged BW Lesmes was successfully towed outside of the waterway…

An oil/chemicals tanker came to the rescue of an ailing boater some 55 miles south of Lake Charles, La., on Friday.A man aboard a 22-foot pleasure craft put in a call for help to the U.S. Coast Guard via VHF-FM channel 16 at 3:03 p.m. stating that his wife was displaying symptoms of a heat stroke.The nearby vessel Stolt Perseverance responded to an urgent marine information broadcast issued by Coast Guard watchstanders at Sector Houston-Galveston. The tanker moored alongside the…

The annual Shipping Industry Flag State Performance Table, published today from the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), highlights a 25% increase in flag states reporting on seafarer labor standards compared to last year. Each year flag states must report on labor standards as part of their ILO audit commitments. Some of the labor standards specific to seafarers include repatriation of seafarers, accommodation provision, health protection and medical care. This year 67.6% of flag states reported on their ILO audit commitments…

The Italian government ordered police on Friday to impound a luxury yacht worth some $700 million that has been linked in the media to Russian President Vladimir Putin.The sleek, six-deck Scheherazade had been undergoing repairs in the Italian port of Marina di Carrara since September, but recent activity at the dockside suggested that the crew might be preparing to put to sea.A source with direct knowledge of a weeks-long investigation into the vessel said police believed the owner was Eduard Khudainatov, the former chief of Russian energy giant Rosneft who is not currently a target of EU sanctions.In a statement announcing the seizure order…

A yacht linked to Russian aluminum tycoon Oleg Deripaska arrived in a bay near the southwestern Turkish resort of Gocek on Saturday, as more Russian billionaires head for Turkey to flee Western sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.Deripaska, founder of Russian aluminum giant Rusal, has been sanctioned by the United States, European Union and Britain. He has previously called for peace.A Reuters witness saw the 73-metre (239.5 foot) yacht Clio arrive off the coast of Gocek in the Aegean coastal province of Mugla on Saturday. The Cayman Islands-flagged vessel remains in a bay off Gocek.The arrival of Clio in Turkish waters comes after two superyachts linked to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich…

Spanish authorities on Wednesday detained a mega-yacht called "Crescent" that is believed to belong to Igor Sechin, the sanctioned chief executive of Russian oil giant Rosneft, a police source told Reuters.The 135-metre-long yacht, described by specialist publications as one of the biggest in the world, sails under a Cayman Islands flag and arrived in Spain from Italy in November 2021, according to monitoring site Marine Traffic.Spain's Transport Ministry, which confirmed the detention but not the ownership, said it docked in the Mediterranean port city of Tarragona on November 2 and had sought permission from the coast guard to depart…

French customs have seized a yacht belonging to Rosneft boss Igor Sechin as it tried to leave the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat in a breach of EU sanctions on Russian oligarchs, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said.The move came as western states are implementing massive sanctions, including asset freezes, against Russia for invading its neighbor Ukraine. A separate nearly $600 million luxury yacht owned by Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov has also been seized, by German authorities, Forbes reported. The 88-meter "Amore Vero" arrived in La Ciotat on Jan.3 and was due to stay there until April 1st for repairs, the finance ministry said in a statement…

A crew member aboard a Cuba-flagged oil tanker on its way from a Mexican shipyard to Venezuela was reported missing this week, according to a shipping report seen by Reuters, marking the second incident aboard the same vessel in about a year.Sailor Rafael Desiderio Martinez Alonso was not found last Sunday by the doctor onboard oil tanker Petion, which set sail on May 6 from Mexico's port of Veracruz bound for the Cardon terminal in Venezuela's western coast.The report by the tanker's shipping agency to Venezuelan port authorities about the incident said Martinez Alonso, who was one the tanker's fitters, is believed to have fallen into open waters because his shoes were found near the ship's gas plant.

An ailing seafarer was medevaced from a 650-foot car carrier vessel, 100 miles northwest of Honolulu, Friday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.At 9 p.m., Thursday, the Cayman Islands-flagged Brilliant Ace notified Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) watchstanders in Honolulu that a 50-year-old crewmember on board appeared to be suffering from his medications not working.Duty flight surgeons from the Coast Guard were consulted and recommended a medevac based on the concern that the mariner’s condition could rapidly deteriorate if left untreated.

The Isle of Man Ship Registry has retained its place within the United States Coast Guard’s QUALSHIP 21 program, designed to recognize foreign-flagged vessels that maintain the highest safety and quality standards.Isle of Man Ship Registry director Cameron Mitchell said continued inclusion in the scheme through to July 2021 was great news for the registry and its clients, representing further independent verification of the quality of the Manx fleet.Entry into the program is based on data gathered during Port State Control inspections in the United States.

Norwegean offshore and subsea shipping company Siem Offshore has won one-year contracts for three anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessels in Australia.The Cayman Islands-registered marine transportation and logistics services provider said the AHTS trio would support an upcoming drilling campaign of an oil and gas company in Australia.Siem Offshore did not reveal the name of the client. It did not say which vessels would be used for the operation.The contract  duration  for each vessel is 365 days + options  and with commencement in first quarter 2020.Siem Offshore  operates a large number of support vessels: 10 Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessels, 5 Platform Supply Vessels and 6 OSCV & MRSV.

A top hostage negotiator, the CEO of a company which supplies environmental products to ship owners and operators and the heads of two maritime technology firms are all part of an impressive line-up of speakers scheduled to speak at the 2019 Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA) AGM & Conference which takes place next week from Tuesday, October 29, to Friday, November 1. The four-day event is being hosted by WISTA Cayman Islands and is expected to bring over 200 maritime experts from 30-plus countries.

Offshore helicopter services provider Bristow Group filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after reaching a deal with senior bondholders on a plan to slash its debt load.The struggling Houston-based helicopter operator for offshore oil and gas industry looks to cut debt after reaching deal with senior bondholders, as it attempts to restructure its crippling debt load.The Chapter 11 filing, dated 11 May, covers only six US- and two Cayman Islands-registered businesses, with overseas operations – including Bristow Helicopters in the UK – unaffected.The Texas-headquartered company said in a release that all its subsidiaries will continue to operate as normal while the financial restructuring is carried out.Bristow Group President and Chief Executive Officer, L.

Texas-based offshore drilling contractor Vantage Drilling International reported a net loss of  $52.2 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018 as compared to a net loss of $36.6 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017.For the year ended December 31, 2018, Vantage reported a net loss of $141.5 million or as compared to a net loss of $149.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2017.Vantage, a Cayman Islands exempted company, issued $350 million of new senior secured notes using proceeds to repay its first and second lien debt and to acquire the Soehanah jackup for $85.0, including transaction costs.Ihab Toma, CEO, Said: "We refinanced two tranches of debt thereby extending maturities to 2023.

Caribbean States and Territories have re-affirmed their commitment to implementing International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards for safe, secure and sustainable shipping.According to the UN body, this is part of wider efforts to intensify investments and harness the full potential of the oceans, rivers and lakes to accelerate economic growth, create jobs and fight poverty.Ministers responsible for maritime transport and other participants representing the Governments in the region met at a High Level Symposium (27 February) in Montego Bay, Jamaica, under the theme, “Maritime Transportation: Harnessing the Blue Economy for the Sustainable Development of the Caribbean”.The participating countries are Anguilla…

The UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) yesterday (5th February) launched a five-day capacity building seminar to help UK Overseas Territories support safe maritime trade.The seminar, delivered as part of the Government’s Overseas Territories Seabed Mapping Programme, will focus on international regulations, with sessions on maritime safety information training, best practice governance and maritime law. This guidance, given by experts at both the UKHO and MCA, will help each of the 10 participating territories to comply with international obligations and share their own maritime safety information with ships operating in their waters.For these ships, this information, including up-to-date bathymetry (seabed mapping data), navigational warnings and observations, is essential to safe navigation.

Will a rising tide in the offshore oil markets float all the boats? In the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, that remains to be seen.Offshore services, exploration and production are on a roll. In early October, yet another business combination of big drillers was announced. In a sign of optimism, Ensco announced its plan for an all-stock acquisition of Rowan Offshore, worth around $2.4 billion. The new company will be domiciled in the United Kingdom, but will have a large presence in Houston.

A $250 million superyacht, impounded as part of a hunt for assets linked to the multi-billion dollar investigation into 1Malaysia Development Bhd, arrived at a port in Malaysia on Tuesday about six months after it was seized.The Cayman Islands-flagged Equanimity was first seized in the Indonesian holiday venue of Bali in February at the request of U.S. authorities investigating 1MDB.The Malaysian state fund is at the center of money-laundering probes in at least six countries, including the United States, Switzerland and Singapore. A total of $4.5 billion was misappropriated from 1MDB by high-level officials of the fund and their associates, according to the U.S.

Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA has limited the damage from an unprecedented slump in crude exports by transferring oil between tankers at sea and loading vessels in neighboring Cuba to avoid asset seizures.But the OPEC member nation is still fulfilling less than 60 percent of its obligations under supply deals with customers.Venezuela has been pumping oil this year at the lowest rate in three decades after years of underinvestment and a mass exodus of workers. The state…

Indonesian police on Thursday questioned the captain and crew of a luxury yacht in Bali at the request of U.S. authorities, probing alleged money laundering at a Malaysian state fund, they said. The yacht was impounded in Bali on Wednesday amid a multi-billion dollar corruption investigation launched by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and tied to Malaysian state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Police seized the yacht, Equanimity, after receiving a letter on Feb. 21 from the U.S.

Vantage Drilling International announced that it has been notified that its drilling services contract for the Emerald Driller will be extended for two years, beginning in May 2018. Ihab Toma, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are very pleased that we will continue to work with one of our esteemed clients and keep our rigs working in this challenging environment. Vantage Drilling International, a Cayman Islands exempted company, is an offshore drilling contractor, with a fleet of three ultra-deepwater drillships, four premium jackup drilling rigs and one standard jack-up drilling rig. Vantage's primary business is to contract drilling units…

Ocean Rig UDW Inc., an international contractor of offshore deepwater drilling services, has announced that pursuant to an order of the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands Simon Appell of AlixPartners Services UK LLP and Eleanor Fisher of Kalo (Cayman) (formerly AlixPartners) have been discharged as joint provisional liquidators of the Company and its subsidiaries. The subsidiariesare Drill Rigs Holdings Inc. (DRH), Drillships Financing Holding Inc. (DFH), and Drillships Ocean Ventures Inc., (DOV) and together with UDW, DRH and DFH, the Scheme Companies. Accordingly, the petitions to wind up the Scheme Companies have been withdrawn. As previously announced by the Company, the schemes of arrangement proposed by the Scheme Companies became fully effective on September 22, 2017.