Alison Williams News

QatarEnergy CEO Saad Al Kaabi announced on Sunday that the company has finalised a number of charter contracts with several Asian ship owners to bolster its shipping fleet by 19 LNG vessels ahead of a massive expansion in LNG output.In a ceremony at its Doha headquarters state-owned QatarEnergy signed contracts to charter six vessels from CMES LNG Carrier Investment, six vessels from Shandong Marine Energy and three vessels from MISC Berhad. Those 15 vessels will be built at South Korea's Samsung Heavy Industries…

Twenty armed people have boarded a cargo ship off the coast of Somalia and have taken control of it, a maritime security firm said on Tuesday.The vessel is the latest to be targeted following a resurgence of attacks by Somali pirates in recent months although the maritime security firm, Ambrey, did not specify that it was Somali pirates who boarded the ship.Ambrey said the ship was a Bangladesh-flagged bulk carrier - a type of merchant ship used to transport large amounts of cargo…

When the Rubymar sank in the Red Sea after a Houthi attack, the ship went down carrying 21,000-tonnes of fertiliser which could trigger massive algal blooms that could create "dead zones" for marine life and starve coral reefs of light.Alongside a slick of leaking fuel, the ammonium phosphate sulphate fertilisers could deliver an extreme pulse of nutrients into waters harbouring rare corals, marine mammals and reef fish, creating a spread of foamy scum on the water.According to a maritime warning circulated to ships in the area…

The Houthi Transport Ministry in Yemen said on Saturday there had been a "glitch" in undersea communication cables in the Red Sea as a result of actions by U.S. and British naval vessels.The actions "endangered the security and safety of the international communications and the flow of information," the ministry said in a statement, reported by the Houthi-run Saba news agency, without giving details."Any glitch in these cables as a result of the militarization of the Red Sea by U.S.

The UK-owned Rubymar, attacked by Houthi militants last month, has sunk in the Red Sea, Yemen's internationally recognized government said on Saturday, warning of an "environmental catastrophe" from the ship's cargo of fertilizer.The vessel is the first lost since the Houthis began targeting commercial shipping in November, forcing shipping firms to divert vessels on to the longer, more expensive route around southern Africa.The Iranian-backed Houthis, who control the north of Yemen and other large centers…

Maersk said explosions nearby forced two ships operated by its U.S. subsidiary and carrying U.S. military supplies to turn around when they were transiting the Bab al-Mandab Strait off Yemen, accompanied by the U.S. Navy."While en route, both ships reported seeing explosions close by and the U.S. Navy accompaniment also intercepted multiple projectiles," Maersk said in a statement, adding it was suspending Red Sea transits by vessels of the U.S. subsidiary.A spokesperson for Yemen's Houthi military forces said they fired ballistic missiles at several U.S. warships that were protecting two U.S.

Iran's Alborz warship has entered the Red Sea, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Monday, at a time of soaring tensions on the key shipping route amid the Israel-Hamas war and attacks on vessels by forces allied to Tehran.Tasnim did not give details of the Alborz's mission but said Iranian warships had been operating in open waters to secure shipping routes, combat piracy and carry out other tasks since 2009.Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis have been targeting vessels…

London's marine insurance market has widened the area in the Red Sea it deems as high risk amid a surge in attacks on commercial ships, according to a statement issued on Monday.Guidance from the Joint War Committee, which comprises syndicate members from the Lloyd's Market Association (LMA) and representatives from the London insurance company market, is watched closely and influences underwriters' considerations over insurance premiums.The joint war committee widened the high risk zone to 18 degrees north from 15 degrees north previously, the statement said.(Reuters - Reporting by Jonathan S

U.S. guided-missile destroyer shot down 14 drones launched by Yemen's Houthis in the Red Sea on Saturday, the U.S. Central Command said in a statement."In the early morning hours of December 16 (Sanna time) the U.S. Arliegh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Carney (DDG 64), operating in the Red Sea, successfully engaged 14 unmanned aerial systems launched as a drone wave from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen," read the statement."The UAS were assessed to be one-way attack drones and were shot down with no damage to ships in the area or reported injuries.

Saudi Arabia has asked the United States to show restraint in responding to attacks by Yemen's Houthis against ships in the Red Sea, two sources familiar with Saudi thinking said, as Riyadh seeks to contain spillover from the Hamas-Israel war.The Iran-aligned Houthis have waded into the conflict that has spread around the Middle East since war erupted on Oct. 7, attacking vessels in vital shipping lanes and firing drones and missiles at Israel itself.The group which rules much…

War risk insurance premiums edged up for Red Sea voyages after three vessels were attacked in the area on Sunday and fears grow over worsening perils for commercial shipping, maritime and insurance sources said on Monday.The incidents are the latest in a series of attacks in Middle Eastern waters since a brutal war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas broke out on Oct. 7.The three commercial vessels came under attack in international waters in the southern Red Sea, the U.S.

Ukraine's alternative Black Sea export corridor is working despite a recent Russian attack on a civilian vessel, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Thursday.Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday a Russian missile damaged a Liberia-flagged civilian ship entering a Black Sea port in the Odesa region, killing one person and injuring four others. The vessel was supposed to transport iron ore to China."#Ukrainian_Corridor: vessel traffic continues both to and from the ports of Big Odesa (region)…

One body has been recovered and two people have been rescued in a search and rescue mission after two freighters collided in the North Sea off the coast of Germany, the maritime emergency authority said on Tuesday. The Verity, which the Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said had sunk, had been on its way from Bremen to the English town of Immingham. The Polesie was sailing from Hamburg to La Coruna in Spain. It was not immediately clear what the vessels were carrying, if anything.

Dutch shipbuilder Damen Shipyards has sued the Dutch government over damages it says it has suffered due to European sanctions against Russia.Damen, which produces a wide-ranging fleet of industrial and military vessels and luxury yachts, is seeking compensation for business lost due to the sanctions, company spokesman Rick van de Weg said, confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg.Damen had delivery contracts for a number of vessels across the company's portfolio that were scrapped by the sanctions invoked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Van de Weg said.Damen had an engineer

Ukrainian officials said Russia struck Ukrainian port infrastructure and grain storage facilities on Tuesday, but also reported some progress on the front lines in the three-month old counteroffensive by its forces.President Volodymyr Zelenskiy spoke of "good details" from the front without further explanation and said Ukraine clearly understood where to apply pressure to make it felt in Moscow."Sanctions are not enough. There will also be more of our own Ukrainian actions against the terrorist state," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.

A small number of people were injured on Sunday during a "weather-related incident" involving P&O Cruises Britannia ship moored in the Spanish island of Mallorca, a spokesperson for the company said.Port authorities in the capital Palma said the ship collided with a petrol tanker because of high winds. The BBC said it broken free of its moorings in a storm."P&O Cruises Britannia was involved in a weather-related incident while alongside in Palma de Mallorca. A small number of individuals sustained minor injuries and are being cared for by the onboard medical centre…

Two U.S. Navy sailors have been arrested on charges of handing over sensitive national security material to China, U.S. officials said Thursday.Petty Officer Wenheng Zhao, 26, was charged with conspiracy and bribetaking in connection with taking nearly $15,000 in exchange for photographs and videos of sensitive U.S. military information, the officials said. U.S. Navy sailor, Jinchao Wei, whose age was not disclosed, was charged with conspiring to send national defense information…

Fashion brands are a key driver of demand for green shipping fuels, according to shipping group Maersk MAERSKb.CO, as the sector faces pressure from consumers and regulators to reduce their climate footprint.Retailers ship huge volumes of clothes from production centres in countries such as China, Vietnam and Bangladesh to consumers around the world, causing carbon dioxide emissions.Overall, the textile industry is estimated to be responsible for between 2% and 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions…

Tunisia's coastguard has recovered 15 more bodies of migrants, bringing the death toll from a shipwreck off Tunisia to 25, a security official told Reuters on Thursday.A wooden boat packed with about 110 migrants sank on Wednesday off the coast of the city of Sfax. Seventy-six people were rescued while the rest are still missing.Drowning accidents off Tunisia have dramatically increased in recent weeks, leaving dozens dead and missing, amid a sharp rise in migrant boats heading towards Italy from the Tunisian coast.The coastguard recovered the bodies of 14 migrants…

A fire that engulfed hundreds of shipping containers at Turkey's Iskenderun Port after massive earthquakes in the region has been extinguished, the defense ministry said on Tuesday, but it was not clear when operations would resume at the port.Turkey's maritime authority said on Monday that the port, located on the Mediterranean coast in the southern province of Hatay, was damaged due to the earthquake that struck Turkey and neighboring Syria.Drone footage showed fierce flames blackening hundreds of containers on the dock…

Yemen's Houthi group is piling on pressure to extract economic gains in U.N.-led talks for an extended truce deal with attacks on oil ports in government-held areas, which officials say have disrupted crude exports, choking state revenues.Yemen's foreign ministry said in a statement that the Houthis launched a drone attack on the southern Qena port in Shabwa on Wednesday. The group's military spokesman said on Twitter that the operation "foiled an attempt to loot" Yemen's oil by preventing a vessel from docking.A joint statement by the U.S.…

London’s marine insurance market added Sudan to its of areas deemed high risk this week amid further fighting in the conflict-ridden African country, according to an advisory note.The addition of Sudan to the high risk list will mean that any ships sailing into the country will need to pay an additional war risk premium and also seek approval from their insurer.Advisory notes from the Joint War Committee, which comprises syndicate members from the Lloyd’s Market Association and representatives from the London insurance company market…

Hundreds of shipping containers were ablaze at Turkey's Iskenderun Port on Tuesday, shutting down operations and forcing freight liners to divert vessels to other ports.Turkey's maritime authority said on Monday that the port, located on the Mediterranean coast in the southern province of Hatay, was damaged due to the earthquake that struck Turkey and neighbouring Syria.Drone footage showed fierce flames blackening hundreds of containers on the dock, with water jets from a fire truck dwarfed by the scale of the blaze that broke out on Monday.