Petroleum Transportation News

U.S. marine petroleum transportation company Centerline Logistics has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with naval architecture and marine engineering firm Vard Marine to develop a customized 6,000-cubic-meter-capacity articulated tug and barge (ATB) liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge.Aiming to meet the shipping industry's growing need for LNG bunkering, the Jones Act-compliant ATB barge will be designed to navigate U.S. and International waters and to provide LNG refueling to a variety of ships as well as call at terminals.

Crowley said it recently took delivery of its new 55,000-barrel, articulated tug-barge (ATB), the Aurora/Qamun. The 410-foot vessel is the second ATB in Crowley’s fleet, after the Aveogan/Oliver Leavitt, to be dedicated to the Alaska market. The ATB is specially designed to add efficiency and range to transport clean petroleum products for Crowley Fuels, the company’s Alaska-based business unit.“This purpose-built vessel was specifically designed by our in-house naval architects to safely and effectively operate in the Last Frontier…

U.S.-based marine petroleum transportation services provider Centerline Logistics said it has formed an Alternative Fuels Working Group consisting of industry partners and internal representatives from within Centerline to spearhead the cooperative project that will be known as “Visionary Fuels”.According to Centerline, the Visionary Fuels initiative will aim to build future marine transportation equipment, standards and technology targeted toward reducing the carbon footprint of vessels transiting within America’s ports and harbors.

Marine transportation services company Centerline Logistics said it has finalized its acquisition of Saltchuk Marine Services’ California ship refueling business, currently operated by Saltchuk subsidiary Foss Maritime.With the completion of this expansion, Centerline expands its existing California bunkering operations, adding Saltchuk’s six bunker barges as well as its established customer contracts in the California market. Centerline now operates bunker barges in the ports of Los Angeles and San Francisco, part of a national fleet of marine transportation vessels serving customers along the West Coast, Gulf Coast and East Coast.“The completion of this significant acquisition achieves Centerline’s goal of strengthening our industry leadership in safe petroleum transportation…

Centerline Logistics acquired Saltchuk Marine Services’ California ship refueling business, currently operated by subsidiary Foss Maritime Company. According to a press release from Centerline, this "major acquisition" brings together the combined capabilities of two of the nation’s leaders in petroleum transportation, strengthening Centerline’s position as a provider of around the clock bunkering (ship refueling) services.Through this expansion, Centerline will "substantially…

Crowley Fuels has signed construction contracts to build a 55,000-barrel, articulated tug-barge (ATB) that is specifically designed to serve the Western Alaska market with delivery of clean fuel products.The 410-foot ATB will have enhanced performance features for the demanding river and sea conditions of Western Alaska, an area that depends on safe and reliable marine delivery services during the short open-water season. An ATB consists of a tugboat and barge that are connected from the bow of the tug to a notch in the stern of the barge by a hinged connection system…

Crowley Maritime Corp. has appointed Jonathan Zier manager of business development in Houston.Zier will assist customers globally with marine transportation projects such as sealifts and beach-landings, as well as offshore and coastal towing and installation of rigs, spars and other structures. He will also be responsible for providing solutions for alternative energy projects such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, offshore wind power generation, and other projects requiring offshore or coastal equipment and expertise.Zier will report to Johan Sperling…

Portland, Ore. shipbuilder Gunderson Marine announced today that it has secured an order from Tampa. Fla. based energy transportation firm Overseas Shipholding Group, Inc. (OSG) for the construction of a 204,000 barrel capacity tank barge for delivery in the second quarter of 2020. The agreement also includes an option to build a second sister barge which would have a scheduled delivery date during the fourth quarter of 2020.The state-of-the-art 581' oil and chemical tank barge will be constructed to pair with existing tugs within OSG's current fleet for operation as an articulated tug barge (ATB) unit. OSG intends to register the barge under the U.S. Flag with a coastwise endorsement, allowing it to be employed in Jones Act trades.The tank barge for dual mode ITB service pursuant to U.S.

Crowley Alaska Tankers, LLC, has completed its acquisition of three tankers from SeaRiver Maritime Inc. and is now chartering the vessels back to SeaRiver under varying multi-year terms.The tankers Liberty Bay and Eagle Bay, now under Crowley ownership and operation and renamed Washington and California respectively, each have a capacity of 760,000 barrels and transport crude from Alaska to West Coast refineries. The tanker SR American Progress, renamed Oregon, has a capacity of 342,000 barrels and transports refined petroleum between the U.S.

Pat Folan, a partner at Tug & Barge Solutions, weighs in on all things tugboat – with a focus on Subchapter M. Pat Folan is a partner in Daphne, Ala.-based Tug & Barge Solutions, a company that focuses on Subchapter M compliance for towing companies. The company also performs surveys of towing vessels and barges, manages safety management systems for towing companies and trains people on towing vessels and in offices. A professional mariner, he has operated towing vessels from Maine to Corpus Christi, Texas, including the Alabama Rivers, Lower Mississippi, Great Lakes and Erie Canal.

Wärtsilä and Crowley Petroleum Services said they are continuing their co-operation by extending and expanding their maintenance agreement for 11 articulated tug barges (ATBs) owned and operated by Crowley. The agreement, signed in December 2017, extends the original contract term from 2019 to 2023, and covers the maintenance of 22 Wärtsilä engines installed on board 11 ATBs. With the contract Crowley receives a comprehensive maintenance package, access to prompt technical service and troubleshooting and a response time guarantee in case of unforeseen circumstances requiring immediate action.

Crowley Maritime Corporation announced it has restructured its business units as the company aims to increase its focus on government-related business and better align vessel operations and fuel distribution services. Over the coming months, the 125-year-old company will transition its non-liner and logistics business units into three main service lines: Crowley Shipping, Crowley Fuels and Crowley Solutions. “This plan facilitates a pivot towards growing the company’s government portfolio of work…

Chembulk Tankers appointed David Ellis as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), succeeding Jack Noonan who will retire after 10 years of leading the team at Chembulk Tankers. Effective November 1, 2017, Jack will take on the role of CEO Emeritus through the balance of the year and will continue to advise and counsel Chembulk as part of the leadership transition. Ellis has more than 30 years in chemical and petroleum transportation experience, including over 20 years with Odfjell SE in various leadership roles culminating in the global leadership position in Odfjell’s joint venture with Lindsay Goldberg. He most recently served as CEO of Waypoint Solutions LLC, a Houston-based company he founded in 2016 to develop, buy, and operate midstream assets.

Crowley Alaska Tankers, LLC, has signed an agreement to purchase three tankers from SeaRiver Maritime Inc., and charter them back to SeaRiver under varying multi-year terms. The deal is subject to regulatory approval. Included in the acquisition are the tankers Liberty Bay and Eagle Bay, each of which have a capacity of 800,000 barrels and transport crude from Alaska to West Coast refineries; and the tanker SR American Progress, which has a capacity of 342,000 barrels and transports refined petroleum between U.S. gulf and East Coast ports. Crowley said it will now work with regulators to obtain the necessary regulatory approvals to serve the Alaska and West Coast markets.

The hallmarks of a successful vessel operator are the same whether they are carrying liquid, physical or human cargo: A laser focus on safety, a twin commitment to customers and crew, and the vision to embrace and invest in the future. However obvious the bar, it is not easy to meet. “I don’t think there is any magic formula,” says Rob Grune, senior vice president and general manager, petroleum services, Crowley Marine Solutions. “The difference is that everything we work on regards providing a high quality of service to customers, pays off. In a rising market, it’s easy to do well.

Overseas Shipholding Group, a provider of oceangoing energy transportation services, reported results for the fourth quarter and full year 2015. The company reported net income of $9.3 million in its fourth quarter. The crude oil and petroleum transportation company posted revenue of $243.7 million in the period. For the year, the company reported profit of $284 million, or 49 cents per share. Revenue was reported as $964.5 million. The Board has declared a dividend of $0.08 per share. “We are pleased to report strong results for the 4th quarter and full year 2015,” said Captain Ian T. Blackley, OSG’s president and CEO. “The positive supply and demand fundamentals in the international tanker market…

Marine petroleum transportation specialist Latvian Shipping Company (LSC) hopes to raise EUR 80 million via an initial public offering (IPO) on the Riga Stock Exchange in the first half of 2016. The Supervisory Council of LSC has supported the Management Board’s proposal to raise the equity capital in the IPO. LSC is looking to double its share capital and raise equity of EUR 80mn in order to pay down existing debts due in 2016 and 2017. The LSC Management Board believes a share capital raising would achieve this and place the company in a stronger position. The IPO is subject to approval by a shareholders meeting planned for April 2016. A successful float would be the first on the Latvian bourse in over a decade.

Chairman & CEO: Thomas B. Crowley Maritime Corporation is a U.S.-owned and operated marine solutions, transportation and logistics company providing services in domestic and international markets through six operating lines of business: Puerto Rico/Caribbean liner services; Latin America liner services; logistics; marine contract solutions; deep sea petroleum transportation; and petroleum transportation, distribution and sales in Alaska. The primary services offered by these six business lines include Shipping and Logistics…

Along the way, ATBs gain speed, efficiency, safety – and popularity. Operators of articulated tugs and barges, or ATBs, say they like the maneuverability, weather reliability, stability, speed of these units, and the manner in which the tug pushes the barge. As a marine transportation concept, they can also simply be described as versatile. ATBs move petroleum, chemicals, coal, grain, containerized cargo and rail cars for customers on the U.S. coasts, rivers, the Great Lakes and overseas. As a result, demand for articulated units expanded in the last two decades with new technology.

The Jones Act has been blamed for everything from higher prices of goods and oil to a shortage of rock salt supply in the Northeast during the past winter, but the 94-year-old U.S. federal statute governing the U.S. coastal shipping trades will not be going away anytime soon. The solid status of this deeply entrenched U.S. federal maritime law is reflected in heavy investments by oil, logistics and shipping companies in this lucrative domestic shipping sector. Last December, Kinder Morgan spent nearly $1 billion in its acquisition of its first Jones Act tanker assets when it bought American Petroleum Tankers and State Class Tankers. The market outlook for U.S.- flagged oil tankers remains bright, and some companies are banking on that.

Marine transport advisors, McQuilling Services recently released its 2014-2018 Tanker Market Outlook that forecasts spot freight rates across eight tanker classes and 13 major trading routes. This year’s edition also includes a forecast of asset prices over the same period for newbuilding, 5-year old and 10-year old tankers in these eight tanker classes. "This note discusses an important element of McQuilling’s forecasting process – the development of tanker supply. Tonnage supply…

Eleven years after the launch of its first Articulated Tug-Barge (ATB), Crowley Maritime Corporation christened its 17th ATB, the Liberty/750-3, yesterday at the VT Halter Marine Shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss. The tugboat and 330,000-barrel petroleum tank barge are the final vessels to be built in a more than $1 Billion, decade-long ATB construction program undertaken by Crowley to expand the company’s U.S.-flag petroleum services fleet. “We set out to offer customers the safest…

Wärtsilä is to supply inert gas systems for a Floating Storage Unit (FSU) on Norway's Heidrun offshore oil & gas field, and for two supporting shuttle tankers. The FSU is owned by Statoil, the Norwegian state owned energy company, and the tankers by AET Tanker Holdings, the Singapore based petroleum transportation company. All three vessels are being built by Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) in South Korea. The Wärtsilä contract with SHI was signed in February 2013. Delivery of the Wärtsilä equipment is scheduled for October, 2013.