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Large Crude Carrier News

26 Jan 2024

AET Names New LNG Dual-fuel VLCC

(Photo: AET)

AET, a member of the MISC Group, held a naming ceremony in Singapore for its latest liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel very large crude carrier (VLCC), Eagle Veracruz.The Singapore-flagged 300,000 dwt tanker was named by Singapore’s Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) Grace Fu, who is also the Lady Sponsor of the vessel. The ceremony, which was held at the PSA Keppel Terminal, also saw attendance by Teo Eng Dih, Chief Executive of Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and senior officials from MSE…

23 Jan 2024

Singapore Registry of Ships Reaches 100 Million Gross Tonnage

Source: MPA

The Singapore Registry of Ships (SRS) surpassed the 100 million gross tonnage (GT) milestone, with the registration of AET’s Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC), Eagle Veracruz, on January 23, 2024.SRS is administered by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA). Established in 1966 and administering about 4,000 vessels aggregating over 100 million gross tonnage, the SRS is among the world’s largest ship registries with one of the youngest quality fleets.Eagle Veracruz, is a dual-fuelled LNG VLCC named after the Mexican state of Veracruz where one of the oldest ports in Mexico is located…

17 Jan 2024

Hunter Group Signs Charter for Eco-Design VLCC

© Jouni Niskakoski / Adobe Stock

Norwegian shipowner Hunter Group has entered into a three-year back-to-back charterparty for an eco-design and scrubber fitted Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) with an internationally renowned counterparty.Delivery of the 2016-built vessel is expected to take place during March/April 2024.The company will charter the vessel in at a fixed rate of $51,000 per day, before subsequently chartering the vessel out on a floating index-linked spot rate contract."This agreement is yet another…

10 Jan 2024

Surging VLCC Rates Impact US Crude Oil Shipments to Asia

© Andriy Sharpilo / Adobe Stock

The economic incentive to import oil from the U.S. Gulf Coast to Asia has closed as the cost of booking supertankers on the route has surged amid a jump in bookings for the vessels, traders said this week.With the arbitrage for U.S. shipments closed, Asian refiners may make up some of the difference with similar Middle Eastern crude oil after top regional producer Saudi Arabia cut their sales prices for February, which is expected to carry over to other regional crudes. The spur…

22 Nov 2023

MAN Engine Ordered for World's First Methanol-fueled VLCC

(Image: MAN Energy Solutions)

China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES), the Shanghai-listed shipping giant and daughter company of China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI), has ordered an MAN B&W 7G80ME-LGIM (-Liquid Gas Injection Methanol) main engine in connection with the construction of a very large crude carrier (VLCC). The first such dual-fuel methanol order for the ship type, Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co (DSIC) will construct the vessel with delivery due by April 2026.CSE (China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation Diesel Engine Co.…

20 Nov 2023

Supertanker Chartered by Polish Firm to Load Venezuelan Oil for China

© momentscatcher / Adobe Stock

Polish oil and gas firm Orlen has provisionally chartered a supertanker to load Venezuelan oil for China, according to a shipbroker and tracking data, following a temporary easing of U.S. sanctions on the South American country.The Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Olympic Trophy, chartered for $13 million, is scheduled to load in early December, according to a source and ship tracking data on Kpler.Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, chartered a supertanker earlier this month to load Venezuelan crude for China.

16 Nov 2023

Vitol Hires Ship to Load Venezuela Crude for China after U.S. Lifts Sanctions

Credit: nelasova/AdobeStock

Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, has provisionally chartered a supertanker to load oil from Venezuela for China, according to two shipbrokers and data from shiptracking firms Kpler and Vortexa.The Very Large Crude Carrier Gustavia S., chartered for $11 million, is scheduled to load its cargo between Nov. 27 and Dec. 2, according to the sources.The company declined to comment on the issue.Vitol is among major European trading houses seeking to resume trade in Venezuelan oil after Washington in mid-October issued a general licence lifting…

27 Oct 2023

LR Grants AIP for LNG Dual-fuel VLCC Design

(Image: Deltamarin)

GTT and Deltamarin have obtained an approval in principle (AIP) from Lloyd's Register for their design of a dual-fuel very large crude carrier (VLCC), which incorporates a 12,500m3 liquefied natural gas (LNG) tank equipped with GTT's Mark III Flex membrane technology.The concept developed by GTT aims at maximizing vessel autonomy thanks to a large-capacity tank, giving shipowners and charterers the benefit of longer trade navigation with a single refueling operation, without any…

26 Sep 2023

Mideast-Asia Oil Shipping Rates Rebound, Capped by OPEC+ Supply Cuts

Credit: Carabay/AdobeStock

The cost of chartering a supertanker to load Middle Eastern crude oil for Asia has rebounded from a 19-month low in September, but industry sources expect output supply cuts, led by Saudi Arabia, to cap freight rates for the rest of the year.The world's benchmark very large crude carrier (VLCC) export route from the Middle East Gulf (MEG) to Japan, known as TD3, rose to W50.46 on Monday in the Worldscale measure of freight rates, LSEG data showed. It fell to W35.60 in September…

05 Sep 2023

ABS, GTT and DHT Developing LNG-fueled VLCC Design

From left: Philippe Berterottiere, Chairman and CEO, GTT; John McDonald, ABS President and COO; and Svenn Magne Edvardsen, Managing Director, DHT; to sign a JDP at Gastech 2023. (Photo: ABS)

ABS, Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) and DHT Holdings, Inc. signed a joint development project (JDP) to optimize a new, very large crude carrier (VLCC) with liquified natural gas (LNG) propulsion that meets Class and statutory requirements.The dual fuel vessel is intended to provide flexibility for operations and to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.The agreement—signed at the Gastech 2023 conference in Singapore—will see ABS, GTT and DHT focus on optimizing the VLCC design…

28 Aug 2023

AET Delivers LNG Dual-Fuel VLCC to Shell

EAGLE VELLORE: AET's newest LNG dual-fuel VLCC Eagle Vellore was named today in Malaysia. Image courtesy AET

AET delivered its newest vessel, the first of three Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) powered by dual-fuel liquefied natural gas (LNG) engines, on long-term charter to Shell Tankers (Singapore) Private Limited.The Malaysian-flagged Eagle Vellore was named at a ceremony at the MMHE Pasir Gudang yard, attended by the Deputy Minister of Transport, Malaysia and other Malaysian government officials. The naming of the 300,000 dwt tanker in Malaysia marks an important milestone for AET…

10 Aug 2023

Pavilion Energy, CNOOC Complete First Bunker Delivery to LNG-powered VLCC

Credit: Pavilion Energy

Singapore's Pavilion Energy and China's CNOOC Gas and Power Group completed their first liquefied natural gas (LNG) ship-to-ship bunker operation for a very large crude carrier (VLCC) at China's Guangzhou port, the companies said on Thursday.A total of 2,800 metric tons of LNG was delivered from CNOOC's LNG bunker vessel Hai Yang Shi You 301 to the VLCC Maran Dione, owned by Angelicoussis Group's Maran Tankers Management (MTM), the companies said in a joint statement.The bunker operation came after Pavilion Energy…

11 Jul 2023

Indonesia Seizes Iranian-Flagged Supertanker Suspected of Illegal Oil Transfer

Indonesia's coast guard said on Tuesday it seized an Iranian-flagged supertanker suspected of involvement in the illegal transshipment of crude oil, and vowed to toughen maritime patrols.The MT Arman 114 was carrying 272,569 metric tons of light crude oil, valued at 4.6 trillion rupiah ($304 million), when it was seized last week, the Indonesian authorities said.The Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) was suspected of transferring oil to another vessel without a permit on Friday, the Southeast Asian nation's maritime security agency said.The vessel was captured after being spotted in Indonesia's North Natuna Sea, carrying out a ship-to-ship oil transfer with the Cameroon-flagged MT S Tinos, the agency's chief, Aan Kurnia, said.

05 Jul 2023

Shots Fired at Oil Tanker in Gulf

Shots were fired at a tanker in the Gulf on Wednesday in an interaction with an unspecified country's security forces, a British maritime body said, the latest incident in a series of seizures or attacks on commercial ships in the Gulf since 2019.The vessel and its crew were safe following the incident in waters between Iran and Oman off the coast of Omani capital Muscat on Wednesday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), part of the Royal Navy, said.The UKMTO described the incident as an "interaction with national maritime forces", without specifying which country the forces belonged to. Earlier it had classified it as a "suspicious approach".Maritime security company Ambrey said the ship was a Bahamas-flagged oil tanker…

15 Jun 2023

Supertanker Freight Rates Jump as Mideast Crude Exports to Asia Rise

©Carabay/AdobeStock

The costs of chartering supertankers to move crude oil from the Middle East to Asia have jumped to the highest since April as more cargoes are being booked in June, according to industry sources and data on Refinitiv Eikon.The rate for a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) from the Middle East to China, Japan and Singapore is assessed at just above worldscale 80 on Thursday, according to shipbroking firm Meiwa International, the highest levels since April. Worldscale (W) is an industry…

05 Jun 2023

Ports in China's Oil Hub Shandong Scrutinizing Old Tankers

© Nicola / Adobe Stock

Ports in China's Shandong province are demanding more detailed information about oil tankers that are more than 15 years old that call at their terminals, sources with knowledge of the matter said, potentially delaying the unloading of crude shipments in the world's biggest oil importer.Last week, the maritime safety administrations at Qingdao and Rizhao, which covers the oil terminals at the port of Lanshan, notified shipping agencies to submit details on their ships' age, where a ship is flagged…

08 May 2023

LNG Dual-fuel VLCC Design Gets AIP from Bureau Veritas

(Image: GTT)

French engineering firm GTT said it has obtained an approval in principle (AIP) from Bureau Veritas (BV) for the design of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel very large crude carrier (VLCC). This approval is part of a joint development project (JDP), started in May 2022, and carried out by Shanghai Waigaiqiao Shipyard (SWS) and BV.The SWS-designed vessel features optimized hull lines and is equipped with GTT’s high-tech system for LNG cargo containment, enabling safe and flexible carbon-neutral shipping.

25 Apr 2023

IMO Asks States for Equipment for FSO Safer Oil Spill Contingency Plan

Ndeavour courtesy of Boskalis

The IMO is urging Member States to contribute equipment to help UN-led efforts to prevent a possible catastrophic oil spill from the FSO Safer, an ageing and rapidly decaying floating storage offshore (FSO) unit moored 4.8 nautical miles off the Red Sea coast of Yemen.A converted super tanker, the FSO Safer contains an estimated 150,000 metric tonnes (approximately 1.1 million barrels) of crude oil, four times the amount spilled during the Exxon Valdez incident in 1989. It has been moored at Ras Isa since 1988 where it had been receiving…

20 Apr 2023

Preventing Oil Spill Disaster: Boskalis to Lead UN-coordinated Operation to Remove Oil From Decaying FSO off Yemen

©Boskalis

Dutch marine services firm Boskalis has, through its subsidiary SMIT Salvage, reached an agreement with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to remove the oil from the decaying FSO Safer moored off Yemen’s Red Sea coast in a push to avoid environmental disaster. This project is a part of the UN-coordinated operation to remove and transfer more than one million barrels of oil from the decaying tanker into a safe modern tanker and the responsible disposal of the Safer.

10 Mar 2023

NH3 FPSO Concept: Floating 'Green' Ammonia Production gets DNV AIP

Artists impression of the NH3 FPSO concept - a floating ammonia production unit developed by SWITCH2 and BW Offshore. Image courtesy SwitchH2 BV/BW Offshore

An industrial-scale concept for a floating production unit to produce green ammonia has secured Approval in Principle (AiP) from DNV, and the project is now ready to start the Basic Design phase.The NH3 FPSO concept is being developed by Netherlands-based SwitchH2 BV and Norway-based BW Offshore and will be built through conversion of an existing Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) or a dedicated newbuild vessel. Receiving power primarily from a wind farm, the unit will produce hydrogen by electrolysis of seawater and nitrogen through the use of an air separation unit…

13 Jan 2023

Russia Shipping Oil to Asia in Chinese Supertankers

© vladsv / Adobe Stock

At least four Chinese-owned supertankers are shipping Russian Urals crude to China, according to trading sources and tracking data, as Moscow seeks vessels for exports after a G7 oil price cap restricted the use of Western cargo services and insurance.China, the world's top oil importer, has continued buying Russian oil despite Western sanctions, after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping launched what they called a no-limit partnership before the war in Ukraine.The sources said a fifth supertanker…

24 Oct 2022

Tanker Unscathed After Failed Drone Attack in Yemen

File photo: Nissos Kea was delivered from Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea earlier this year. (Photo: Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp.)

A Greek oil tanker is unscathed after being targeted by a Houthi drone attack in Yemen's port of Ash Shihr.Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp. said its Marshall Islands-flagged very large crude carrier (VLCC) Nissos Kea was loading in Ash Shihr on October 21 when a pair of "drone-driven explosions" occurred in close proximity. "Neither explosion impacted the vessel. All crew is safe and unharmed. There was no damage to the vessel and no pollution," the Greek shipping company said in a statement.Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militias claimed responsibility for the attack…

28 Sep 2022

Wing Sail-fitted VLCC Newbuild Delivered

New Aden (Photo: CCS)

A Chinese-built very large crude carrier (VLCC) fitted with fuel-saving and emissions-reducing wing sails has been delivered to China Merchants Group.The New Aden was handed over from Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co., Ltd (DSIC) to China Merchant Energy Shipping Co., Ltd (CMES) on September 24. Built to China Classification Society (CCS) class, the newbuild tanker is equipped with two pairs of new generation rigid wing sails made of carbon fiber composite, which will provide auxiliary propulsion power to help reduce the vessel's fuel consumptions and emissions.