Impairment News

Jennifer Carpenter joined The American Waterways Operators (AWO), the national trade association representing the inland and coastal tugboat, towboat and barge industry, in August 1990 and became its president and CEO in January 2020. She highlights some of the greatest focus areas for the 80-year-old trade group—simultaneously looking at both the present day and the road ahead.The towboat, tug and barge industry is in a period of rapid evolution. How is AWO—now in its 80th year…

ZIM Integrated Shipping Services has announced consolidated results for the three and 12 months ended December 31, 2023, noting a net loss for the fourth quarter of $147 million (compared to a net profit of $417 million in the fourth quarter of 2022).The net loss for the full year, including a $2.06 billion non-cash impairment loss, was $2.69 billion (compared to a net profit of $4.63 billion for the full year of 2022).Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was $190 million, a year-over-year decrease of 80%.

Norway's Equinor said on Thursday it had entered an agreement with BP BP.L to independently pursue separate wind projects under its bid for New York's offshore wind auctions.As part of the agreement, BP would take over full control of the Beacon Wind project, while Equinor takes over the Empire Wind project, the Norwegian firm said."The agreement provides Equinor and BP with the flexibility to pursue their respective priorities under their corporate strategies," Equinor said.New…

European energy companies, including Denmark's Orsted, will likely write down more of their U.S. offshore wind investments this week after BP and Equinor booked $840 million in impairments in recent days.Orsted, the world's largest offshore wind developer, said in August it may see impairments of 16 billion Danish crowns ($2.3 billion) on its U.S. offshore developments due to supply chain problems, soaring interest rates and a lack of new tax credits.Orsted, which was not immediately available for comment…

A Louisiana towboat struck and damaged a bridge in 2021, but the vessel’s pilot never reported it to authorities, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said.In the early morning hours of Dec. 23, 2021, the 86-foot-long Miss Mollye D, then operated by Deloach Marine Services (DMS), was pushing six hopper barges on the Intracoastal Waterway to New Orleans, when the pilot lost control of the tow. While navigating the channel, the 676 foot long tow, began to swing to port. When the pilot realized the tow was not positioned well, he put the engines in reverse.

February will be a month of contrasts for U.S. offshore wind industry. On the positive side, BOEM is moving forward with lease negotiations for an East Coast floating wind pilot array, and six developers submitted over 100 proposals in response to New York’s third offshore wind solicitation. To support bids, local supply chain development commitments have been presented, which include plans to construct two wind turbine component factories.At the same time, inflation rates have eased and key commodity indicators, such as U.S.

Maersk has found possible buyers for its stake in Global Ports Investments, which operates ports in Russia as it withdraws from the country following a final cargo shipment this week, the Danish shipping group said on Wednesday.Maersk put its 30.75% share of Global Ports up for sale as it decided to quit Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine.It said talks were taking place with several potential buyers without giving names and that it did not expect to have to give the stake…

Shipping group Maersk made its last cargo shipment to a Russian port this week and took impairment losses and writedowns of $718 because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Danish firm said on Wednesday.Maersk, which has decided to withdraw completely from Russia, carried out its last cargo operation in a Russian port on Monday, but still has 20,000 containers stranded in Russia.Maersk said in March it would sell all its assets in Russia, including its 30.75% stake in Russian port operator Global Ports Investments…

Oslo-listed FPSO leasing company BW Offshore said Wednesday a fatal incident had occurred in the Priya Blue shipyard in India, but that it was not related to ongoing recycling of former BW Offshore FPSOs at the yard.BW Offshore said in February it had signed an agreement with Priya Blue Industries yard in India to recycle the Cidade de São Vicente FPSO in compliance with Hong Kong Convention. The convention, adopted in 2009, is aimed at ensuring that ships when being recycled after reaching the end of their operational lives…

A captain assuming a watch immediately after waking led to a tow striking a lock gate in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said in its Marine Investigation Report released Tuesday.On March 22, 2021, the towing vessel Ava Claire was transiting westbound pushing two fully loaded tank barges in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway near Intracoastal City, La. After entering the Leland Bowman Lock, the bow of the lead barge struck a closed lock gate, damaging and disabling the gate. No injuries or pollution were reported.

Oslo-listed GC Rieber Shipping has agreed to sell its SURF / Construction Vessel Polar Onyx to Taiwan-based offshore wind service conglomerate Dong Fang Offshore and Hung Hua Construction.The delivery of the vessel, built at Ulstein Verft in 2014, is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2022. The sale includes the VLS tower onboard the vessel. "Polar Onyx has since delivery proven herself as a solid and valuable asset in the SURF market. Starting out in Brazil in 2014, the vessel has performed robust operations on three continents on great depths.

Norwegian shipowner Odfjell SE said it has sold off the last of its short-sea chemical tankers as it sharpens its focus on larger ships in the deep sea segment.The company announced Tuesday it has entered into a sales agreement for the last three 9,000 dwt short-sea vessels—Bow Fuling, Bow Dalian and Bow Nangang—that have operated in the company’s regional Asian trade. The sale marks an exit from Odfjell’s short-sea regional trade in Asia as the remaining vessel on a time charter to Odfjell will also be redelivered to its owners in January 2022."These vessels have not been able to deliver satisfactory results and we have consequently taken the decision to exit this niche market," the company said in a press release.

The National Transportation Safety Board found that the erratic steering of a supply vessel led to a 2019 collision resulting in more than 6,000 gallons of diesel oil being dumped into the Sabine Pass, a busy waterway between Texas and Louisiana.On Thursday, April 8, 2021, NTSB released Marine Accident Brief 21/08 detailing its investigation of the collision between offshore supply vessel Cheramie Bo Truc No 22 and the Mariya Moran/Texas on Nov. 14, 2019, in the Sabine Pass Jetty Channel…

In early 2021, the somber news from the cruise sector continued. For some cruise brands, their own version of “lockdowns” will have spanned an entire year. By late January, 2021, Carnival and others were hesitantly pegging their restarts for April/May 2021, and for some markets, late summer, under a Conditional Sail Order promulgated late last year by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).What else to do but look ahead?In preliminary earnings guidance, Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL)…

Cruise operator Royal Caribbean Group said on Tuesday it reached a deal to sell its Azamara brand to private-equity firm Sycamore Partners for $201 million in cash, as it grapples with biting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.Sycamore Partners will acquire the entire Azamara brand, including its three-ship fleet—Azamara Quest, Azamara Journey and Azamara Pursuit—and associated intellectual property. In conjunction with the transaction, Azamara Chief Operating Officer Carol Cabezas has been appointed President of the brand.Royal Caribbean said it will incur a one-time, non-cash impairment charge of approximately $170 million, but claimed…

Carnival Corp said on Tuesday it expects to post a loss of $2.9 billion in the third quarter, hurt by the suspension of cruises due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sending the cruise operator's shares down 3% in premarket trade.The cruise business is one of the worst affected from the health crisis and has forced operators, including Japan’s Luminous Cruise, to file for bankruptcy, or to raise money even at the cost of pledging ships.Carnival, which has already raised billions in debt…

Oslo-listed offshore vessel owner GC Rieber Shipping said Tuesday it had delivered the Polar King inspection, maintenance, and repair vessel to its new owners.The delivery to new owners, who are yet to be named, comes following last week's announcement by GC Rieber that the vessel would be sold and that the proceeds would be used to repay the vessel's outstanding debt in full.The 110.6 meters long Polar King is on a charter (until September) with marine cable supplier Nexans.

Oslo-listed offshore vessel owner GC Rieber Shipping has agreed to sell the Polar King inspection maintenance and repair vessel to an unnamed buyer.Due to the sale, an impairment of approximately USD 5 million for Polar King is expected to be recognized as per 30.06.2020. The Bergen-based company said that the proceeds from the sale would be used to repay the vessel's outstanding debt in full. GC Rieber did not provide the financial details of the sale.According to info on GC Rieber Shipping's website…

The ongoing oil pollution incident from the grounded 203,000 DWT bulk carrier MV Wakashio is threatening an ecological catastrophe around the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius, endangering corals, fish and other marine life already under threat from climate change (IPCC 2018).In addition, it risks bringing devastating consequences for the economy, food security, health and tourism industry. Tourism in Mauritius - a popular destination for its pristine beaches - reportedly contributed about $1.6 billion to its economy during the last year…

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd swung to a quarterly loss on a $1.6 billion impairment charge as the COVID-19 pandemic brought the global cruise industry to a virtual standstill.Cruise operators have been hammered by the curbs to contain the spread of the virus, with extended port quarantines in Japan and California due to deadly outbreaks on some cruise ships adding to the worries.The company said on Thursday it posted a net loss of $1.88 billion, or $8.80 per share, for the three months ended March 31…

Offshore drilling contactor Valaris, which is exploring a bankruptcy restructuring, on Thursday said it could take up to two years to reactivate idle equipment as contracts dry up during a historic rout in oil prices.Global oil markets have collapsed since the beginning of March as the coronavirus pandemic has crushed fuel demand. Expensive offshore drilling projects have been halted or delayed, creating an uncertain outlook for service firms that had hardly recovered from the last oil price crash.London-based Valaris, the result of the 2019 merger of Ensco Plc and Rowan Companies, posted a $2.81 billion asset impairment charge in the first quarter.

The international ship-owning company Top Ships announced that its 50% subsidiaries which own M/T Holmby Hills and M/T Palm Springs entered into agreements to sell both vessels to unaffiliated third parties.According to the owner and operator of modern, fuel efficient "ECO" tanker vessels, the vessel sales are subject to customary closing conditions and are anticipated to be concluded during March 2020.The two MR2 tankers are owned by Evangelos Pistiolis-led Top Ships  in a 50-50 joint venture with Gunvor’s Clearlake Shipping.Depending on when the closing of the sales take place and on prevailing USD Swap rates at the time of closing…

Oil prices edged higher on Thursday as investors focused on the possibility of deeper supply cuts from the world's biggest producers, whilst largely shrugging off reports which cut demand forecasts after the coronavirus outbreak in China, the biggest oil importer.Brent crude was up 32 cents, or 0.6%, at $56.11 a barrel by 10:52 a.m. ET (1552 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was up 14 cents at $51.31 a barrel.The energy complex was led higher by U.S. gasoline futures…