Bulk Carrier Fleet News

A feasibility study has highlighted the potential for using clean ammonia to refuel ships, particularly iron ore carriers, visiting the Pilbara region of Western Australia.The study, commissioned by Yara Clean Ammonia (Yara) and Pilbara Ports, was undertaken by Lloyd's Register, and looked at key areas including the estimated demand and likely availability of ammonia as a replacement shipping fuel. The potential risks and regulatory requirements for ammonia bunkering at the ports…

Despite a steady increase in port state control detention rates following the pandemic in all regions, INTERCARGO-entered vessels consistently outdid industry performance indicators in both deficiencies and detentions, as shown by the latest edition of its annual Benchmarking Report.Deficiencies per inspection (DPI) rates remain unchanged and in line with previous years’ Benchmarking Reports, the 11 leading Class Societies (IACS Members), which class over 95% of the bulk carrier market…

U.K.-based shipowner Lomar Shipping announced it has acquired three Supramax bulk carriers as part of its ongoing bulker fleet expansion program.The company, a subsidiary of New York-based Libra Group, said it has taken delivery of the 57,038-dwt Oslo Trader (ex Ariadne, built in 2010), while the 2012-built 56,702-dwt Lima Trader (ex Universal Bangkok) and 57,075-dwt Rome Trader (ex Haut Brion), built in 2011, will be delivered later this month.All three Dolphin 57 vessels are Chinese-built, increasing Lomar's bulk carrier fleet to nine ships.

Japan's NYK is set to order two LNG-fueled large coal carriers from Oshima Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. The vessels are scheduled to be delivered in 2025."This ship order is a part of a bulk carrier fleet development aimed at achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the NYK Group's oceangoing businesses by 2050," NYK said.NYK says that compared to conventional heavy oil-fueled ships, the two new ships will emit zero sulfur oxides (SOx), 80% less nitrogen oxides (NOx), and 30% less carbon dioxide (CO2).

Offshore wind farm construction and services company Eneti Inc. announced it has sold its entire holding in Scorpio Tankers Inc.Eneti said it sold its 2,155,140 common shares in Scorpio Tankers for $38.65 per share, for gross proceeds of approximately $83.3 million.As part of the transaction, Scorpio Tankers purchased approximately 1.3 million shares for approximately $50 million.Eneti, formerly Scorpio Bulkers, in 2021 changed its name and began selling off its bulk carrier fleet in a pivot to offshore wind farm construction and services.

Greek shipowner Diana Shipping on Thursday announced it has acquired the bulk carrier fleet of U.S.-based Sea Trade Holdings in a $330 million cash and shares deal.The nine ultramax vessels, built between 2015 and 2018 with an average vessel age of approximately 5.4 years, are scheduled to be handed over during the fourth quarter of 2022, Diana said.The ships—STH Athens, STH London, STH New York, STH Sydney, STH Tokyo, STH Kure, STH Chiba, STH Oslo and STH Montreal—are all Japanese-built (Japan Marine United and Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding) and range from 60,309 dwt to 60,508 dwt.New York-listed Diana said it will pay for the deal using $220 million in cash and $110 million in the form of 18…

Synergy Marine Germany GmbH, a subsidiary of the Synergy Group, signed an agreement to manage part of the bulk carrier fleet owned by Oldendorff Carriers, one of Germany’s foremost shipowners and one of the world’s leading dry bulk operators."When we place our vessels with a third-party manager we only do so when we are confident they will deliver the benchmarked technical excellence that both Oldendorff and our customers expect," said Dexter Jeremiah, Managing Director Operations of Oldendorff Carriers. "Synergy is renowned as a quality manager with a great safety and operations record.

The Panama Ship Registry is the largest in the world since 1993. This year, most of the vessels that entered the Panamanian registry were bulk carrier vessels. Panama-flagged bulk carriers represent 22% of the world´s bulk carrier fleet, with 2,725 vessels and 112.1 million gross tons (GT), according to Clarksons Research.Between January and August 2021, Panama has incorporated 218 newly-built ships to its fleet, contributing 6.6 million GT, of which 61 vessels are from the bulk carrier segment.Additionally…

Forward freight agreement (FFA) trades for a basket of 38,000-dwt handysize time charter rates will help operators take longer-term cover with less risk, says shipbroker Simpson Spence Young.Following an ever-strengthening charter market, SGX have confirmed a launch date for the new offering as April 19, 2021, with EEX aiming for early May pending regulatory approval. Both exchanges are keen to promote clearing of the new contract.The handysize futures market was previously based on the Baltic Exchange's old 28…

Dry bulk shipping firm Castor Maritime has struck a deal to buy a 2010 Korean-built Kamsarmax dry bulk carrier from an unaffiliated third-party for $14.8 million. It did not reveal the identity of the seller.The acquisition is expected to be consummated by taking delivery of the vessel sometime in the end of the first quarter or beginning of the second quarter of this year and is subject to the satisfaction of certain customary closing conditions. Castor Maritime said.Petros Panagiotidis…

ABB enters new market segment with order to install Azipod electric propulsion on board two dry bulk carriers from Germany’s largest bulk carrier company Oldendorff Carriers.Two self-unloading dry cargo transshipment units will be the first bulk carriers in the industry to feature ABB’s Azipod electric propulsion. Both vessels, due for delivery to Oldendorff Carriers in 2021 from the Chengxi Shipyard in China, will be equipped with a complete power and propulsion solution from ABB.Each 21,500 DWT vessel will feature two 1.9MW Azipod units.

Norway-based Wilhelmsen Ship Management (WSM) announced that we have been selected as the technical manager for the Stove Shipping AS (Stove) vessels, Stove Friend and Stove Tide.The two supramaxes are the newest addition to the Stove fleet built in 2016 by Tsuneishi shipbuilding Co, Ltd. Eastern Bulk Carriers will be the commercial manager of both vessels and technically managed by WSM in Singapore, said a press note from the third-party ship manager with a portfolio of more than 450 vessels and 9 200 active seafarers.“We thank Stove Shipping’s trust in us and this award further seals our long-term relationship. Stove Shipping and WSM have worked hand in hand like partners for the past 10 years."We have been through the market volatilities together and as the market improves…

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, registered its first gain in 10 sessions on Friday, buoyed by higher rates for capesize vessels. The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels, rose 5 points, or 0.45 percent, to 1,122 points but was down 1.8 percent for the week. The capesize index gained 28 points, or 2.48 percent, to 1,157 points. "It's a very tight market, so just a few incremental cargoes will prop up rates.

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, crept higher on Wednesday on firmer capesize rates. The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize shipping vessels, inched up 2 points, or 0.18 percent, to end at 1,097 points. "Following seasonal weakness in the dry bulk sector resulting from the Chinese New Year, we believe the outlook for the dry bulk shipping market is both clear and bright," analysts at Jefferies said in a note on Tuesday. The analysts noted "...

Pioneer Marine, a leading shipowner and global drybulk handysize transportation service provider enters into cooperation with BaltNav A/S, Copenhagen. The owner of 16 handy size bulk carriers commenced as of October 3rd, a cooperation with the Danish operator BaltNav. Part of Pioneer Marine's bulk carrier fleet will thereafter be commercially operated by BaltNav who already operates a fleet of about 15 handysize vessels. Dimitris Papoulis, S.V. Pioneer Marine is a leading ship owner and global drybulk handysize transportation service provider. Pioneer Marine currently owns fourteen Handysize, one Handymax and one Supramax drybulk carriers.

Bergen headquartered Grieg Star has chosen Marlink’s Sealink VSAT Premium for its entire General Cargo Open Hatch fleet of 33 vessels. Operating on multiple routes worldwide, Grieg Star’s ships will benefit from seamless, high bandwidth global VSAT services with unlimited L-band back up included in the fixed monthly fee, ensuring continuous availability of vessel and fleet efficiency enhancing applications. Grieg Star’s decision to enable its digital operations with Sealink VSAT Premium…

In view of the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee upcoming meeting (MEPC 71 during 3-7 July 2017), Intercargo re-iterates its welcoming the entry into force of the Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention in September. Aspiring to the Convention’s effective implementation, our Association will be making MEPC 71 Committee aware of the critical challenges faced by the bulk carrier segment of the industry. The world bulk carrier fleet is by far the largest single sector by deadweight tonnage and a significant proportion of it utilizes the highly energy efficient gravity discharge system for the topside ballast water tanks. Topside tanks are an integral part of bulk carriers.

Active Shipping is teaming up with Marlink and its regional partner Ozsay Satellite Communications to move into the world of high-speed maritime broadband and ship digitalization. By installing Marlink’s Sealink Global VSAT service combined with the XChange digital solutions platform, the Istanbul, Turkey-based ship manager will experience a significant boost to its operational capabilities on its vessels, which comprise oil tankers and bulk carriers. Active shipping will run…

The winter repair season is in full swing at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding (FBS) in Sturgeon Bay, Wis., where 16 vessels of various sizes from the Great Lakes bulk carrier fleet are in for winter repair, including five 1,000-foot bulk carriers, eight medium sized ships 600-700 feet long and three tugs. The scope of the repairs is as wide as the variety of ships at dock and include vessel repowering from steam propulsion to diesel, steel and piping repairs, bulkhead renewals, machinery inspection and repairs, exhaust scrubber installation, painting and regulatory inspections.

The board members of China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES) has approved of a plan to order an additional 10 eco-friendly VLCCs. These vessels will be operated by CMES’ Hong Kong-based subsidiary, China VLCC Company Limited,  a tanker JV between CMES and Sinotrans & CSC Group. China VLCC  was set up in early September, will be in charge of vessel operation. CMES added that it would disclose more details on the announcement once the contracts on construction of the energy saving tankers are signed. Potential value of the deal is expected to reach around USD 920 million. China VLCC currently operates a fleet of 34 VLCCs, with an additional nine on order. In October, it sold VLCCs New Medal (297,600 dwt, built 2009) and New Founder (297,400 dwt, built 2008) to Greece’s Navios for $133m.

The Immediasea Shipping Debate Forum ‘Fuel Efficiency - The Way Forward’ was held in connection with the Nor-Shipping event in Oslo, Norway, in June. Leading the panel was Mark Fuhrmann from Blue-C who invited leading maritime executives to share their views on the future of shipping fuel-efficiency. Below are select quotes. “Our goal is clear, zero emissions. It will though take a while getting there.” He reminded the audience that “by 2050 we have to cut off CO2 production completely…

Japan's third-biggest shipping company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha ('K' Line) plans to beef up its LNG and bulker vessels over the next four years, while downsizing its container shipping fleet. The group plans to reduce its fleet of container ships from 70 to 61; however, the TEU capacity will increase with the sale and scrapping of the smaller ships, and the introduction of 10 14,000 TEU boxships currently on order. It also has revealed a new five-year plan to raise profit to more than JPY 60bn ($500.58m) as it readies a big new bond issue. The company has registered to issue bonds worth JPY 100bn in a shelf filing valid for two years. The dry bulk carrier fleet will increase from 218 to 239 by 2019, as the group plans for this sector to bring 50% of all the revenue.

Classification society ClassNK announced that it will join a new European Joint R&D project to ensure bulk carrier safety. The project, called LiquefAction, aims to better understand the physical properties of cargo liquefaction in order to prevent bulk carrier casualties and is being carried out by a consortium of Europe’s top research institutions, including Germany’s Hamburgische Schiffbau-Versuchsanstalt (HSVA) and Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), as well as France’s  Ecole Central de Nantes (ECN) and the Institute of Science and Technology for Transport…