Mei News

Cereal and oilseed imports to China, the world's biggest buyer of farm goods, will remain near record highs this year despite a recent spate of cancellations as lower global prices and a domestic output shortfall prompt purchases.China's wheat imports from Australia in January and February this year have nearly quadrupled from the same time last year, the latest customs data show. That trend should continue even after Beijing cancelled or postponed 1 million metric tons of Australian wheat last week.The cancellations, along with those for about 500,000 tons of U.S.

Taiwan dispatched coast guard boats on Thursday to join a rescue mission at China's request after a fishing vessel capsized near the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen islands, amid heightened tension in the sensitive Taiwan Strait.China claims democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, over the island's strong objections, and has stepped up military activities near it in recent years, with almost daily incursions into air defence identification zones.Authorities on both sides sent the rescue boats after a Chinese fishing vessel capsized in the early hours, Taiwan's coast guard said in a state

China has set itself the goal of producing more than half of the world's ships powered by cleaner fuels by 2025, in guidelines published by the industry ministry on Thursday.It did not give any estimates of the number of ships involved.

Bureau Veritas (BV) has delivered an Approval in Principle (AiP) to Wah Kwong Maritime Transport Holdings, a Hong Kong shipowner, for a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project onboard two of its vessels.Partnering in the project is Qiyao Environmental Technology, a subsidiary of Shanghai Marine Diesel Engine Research Institute.The AiP follows a joint study which validated the technical feasibility of using CCS technology on existing vessels. Wah Kwong provided two vessels from its fleet for the study: a 53…

Malaysia's state energy firm Petronas said on Wednesday it has signed an agreement with Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K Lines (MOL) to explore opportunities in liquefied carbon dioxide (CO2) shipping in Asia Pacific and Oceania regions.Both parties will jointly study liquefied CO2 transportation for the carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) value chain, Petronas said in a statement.Liquefied CO2 transportation helps connect CCUS sites safely and efficiently over long distances where pipelines are not economically viable."This collaboration is important as long-haul liquefied C

Two crew of a Malaysian offshore support vessel died on Tuesday after their ship hit a [platform] operated by state oil firm Petronas off the state of Sarawak on Borneo island.The Dayang Topaz rammed into the Baram B oil platform after its anchor cable broke in bad weather, Petronas and marine authorities said in separate statements.The ship was carrying 187 crew, 125 of whom jumped into the sea when the accident happened, about 7.7 nautical miles (14.3 km) offshore, marine authorities said.

Malaysia's Petronas has delivered the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) import cargoes to Myanmar, the company said on Thursday, marking a new consumer for the super-chilled fuel.The state-owned company's subsidiary Petronas LNG delivered two LNG cargoes to Yangon, Myanmar, in May and June as part of a sales and purchase agreement it had signed with joint-venture company CNTIC VPower earlier this year, Petronas said.As part of the deal, the cargoes were sold on a free-on-board (FOB) basis from the Petronas LNG complex at Bintulu…

Taiwan reported 22 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, almost all of them sailors who were on a navy visit to the small Pacific islands state of Palau, which said there was “little chance” it was the source of the infection.Taiwan’s government on Sunday said 700 navy personnel were being quarantined and tested and there were 24 positive cases altogether. Of those, three cadets had been to Palau, one of only 15 countries to maintain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and one of the…

The White House is warning Chinese shipping companies against turning off their ships' transponders to hide Iranian oil shipments in violation of U.S. sanctions, two senior administration officials said."We've been messaging very heavily to the shipping companies, you don't want to do this, it's not worth it," said one official, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity. "It's incredibly dangerous and irresponsible behavior."China is the largest remaining buyer of Iranian oil after U.S. President Donald Trump reimposed sanctions on Tehran's main export. Trump tightened U.S.

Taiwanese liner Yang Ming Marine Transport Corporation has announced the launch of two new ultra-large container vessels (UCLVs), which were officially named at Imabari shipyard on March 6, 2019.The two ships, YM Warranty and YM Wellspring, have a container capacity of 14,000 TEU and will join the total of 20 UCLVs added to Yang Ming’s fleet since 2015.Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp. President Vincent Lin was invited to the naming ceremony. Ms. Wu Pao Chen, wife of Yang Ming Shanghai Office President T. S. Chia and Ms. Chen Mei Ching, wife of Yang Ming Chief Financial Officer & Executive Vice President Dannis Lee, acted as the Lady Sponsors.YM Warranty and YM Wellspring…

Global Maritime, a provider of marine warranty, dynamic positioning and engineering services to the offshore sector, has made two important hires to support its Asia Pacific (APAC) operations. Mei Ling Chan has been appointed as Regional Finance Manager for APAC where she will take responsibility for finance functions and reporting across the region; and Leong Weng Yoon has been named Global Maritime’s new HSEQ Manager for APAC. Leong Weng Yoon’s appointment reaffirms Global Maritime’s commitment to the highest health, safety, environmental and quality standards across its operations.

Until 2020, global refining will move toward lower utilization and margins as capacity growth exceeds demand, according to energy industry data and analytics specialist McKinsey Energy Insights (MEI). Post-2020, however, market conditions are expected to improve with higher demand for distillates due to marine pollution (MARPOL) regulations. MEI’s latest Global Downstream Outlook notes the last two years have seen major shifts as a result of falling crude price, a subsequent rise in global product demand and the fuel / oil balance.

COSCOCS, one of the largest container operators in the world, upgraded its service into the Port of Boston Sunday with a vessel that can carry more than 8,500 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units), Conley’s largest cargo ship to date. The Port is responsible for $4.6 billion of economic activity and 7,000 direct jobs. “This is an exciting time at Conley as we have seen double digit growth in both imports and exports this year,” said Massport’s Port Director Lisa Wieland. The ship, COSCOCS’s Xin Mei Zhou, arrived Sunday morning and departed Sunday evening. The ship is almost 1,100 feet long and will carry 8,530 TEUs. Conley currently services ships that carry 4,000 to 6,000 TEUs.

Playing an active role and making meaningful contributions to the workings and development of the Tripartite Maritime Manpower Taskforce initiatives for both seafaring and shore-based jobs will be one of the major priorities for the new Singapore Shipping Association (SSA) Council, its recently elected President has announced. Addressing a press briefing in Singapore yesterday, Esben Poulsson said the initiative, spearheaded by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA)…

The Port of Long Beach announced Tuesday, May 13, the award of education scholarships totaling $43,500 to 28 local high school and college students. At the same time, the Port introduced an expanded Education Outreach Plan at the “Celebrating Education Reception” held at the Museum of Latin American Art. The Education Outreach Plan, which was approved by the Board of Harbor Commissioners on Monday, May 12, will dedicate $150,000 in seed money for three key initiatives: a new online education portal, a maritime career exploration fair in the fall and a teacher externship program in summer 2015.

Evergreen Line's latest three L-type vessels, numbers 12, 13 and 14 in the series have been named 'Ever Legend', 'Ever Learned' and 'Ever Legion'. The christening ceremony was officiated by S.S. Lin, the Evergreen Group's First Vice Group Chairman, at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in Korea.The official rope-cuttings of the new 8,452-TEU vessels were performed by Ms. Chung, Teh-Mei, (Chief Executive Director of Chang Yung-Fa Foundation), Ms. Liou, Meng-Fen (Group Executive Officer, Secretariat, of Evergreen Group) and Ms.

An annual oil spill response joint exercise, this year code-named Oilex 2013, was held on October 17 off Ha Mei Wan, Lamma Island, to test responses in combating oil pollution in Hong Kong waters. Under the Maritime Oil Spill Response Plan, the Marine Department coordinated the exercise and other government departments including the Civil Aid Service, the Auxiliary Medical Service, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, the Government Flying Service (GFS) and the Hong Kong Police Force participated. Several oil companies and Hong Kong Response Limited also took part in the exercise.

U.S. Anti-corruption enforcement is on the rise in the United States and worldwide. International traders, as well as transportation and logistics companies, have been hit hard by enforcement actions. The speakers at the FTA seminar will discuss measures that companies can take to comply with these legal requirements and how to mitigate the risks associated with anti-corruption enforcement actions. The significance of Panalpina and associated cases and the UK Bribery Act will be discussed. Williams Mullen International partner, Trade Attorney Evelyn Suarez will speak on 'Mitigating Risk' and she states: "Prudent companies involved in international trade…

More than 600 artifacts have been recovered from the sunken vessels, which date back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), according to the Tianjin Cultural Heritage Protection Center. The wrecks first came to light in April, after workers dredged a section of the canal in the northern municipality of Tianjin, said Mei Pengyun, director of the center. After the month-long excavation, experts revealed fragments of one ship and the well-preserved structure of another. A large numbers of bricks, ceramic pieces, bone and wooden wares were found scattered around the site, Mei added. The second ship, measuring 13 meters long, is believed to have been a barge that once plied the 1,776-km canal, which stretches through several provinces in north and east China.

Ever Lambent Named in Korea. Ever Lambent, the first L-type containership in the Evergreen Line fleet, was christened by Evergreen Group Chairman and founder Dr. Chang Yung-fa at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard. The ceremonial rope cutting for the new 8,452-TEU vessel was performed by Mrs. Lee Yu-mei. The ceremony was attended by dignitaries from Taiwan and abroad. Ever Lambent, meaning shining or sparkling, is 334 meters in length, 45.8 meters wide, with 942 reefer plugs and a draft of 14.2 meters. The vessel can cruise at a speed up to 24.5 knots.

Naming ceremonies held at  Samsung Heavy Industries Shipyard for two 8,542 TEU L-class container ships built for Evergreen. Ever Laden, the second L-type containership of Evergreen Line, was christened by S.S. Lin, the Evergreen Group's First Vice Group Chairman, at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard. The ceremonial rope cutting for the new 8,452-TEU vessel was performed by Mrs. Mei-Sui Lin in a ceremony attended by dignitaries from Taiwan and abroad. Mr. Lin later also presided at the naming ceremony for Ever Lasting…

Evergreen Group held the naming ceremony for EVER LUNAR today, the seventh of its L-type vessels to be built by CSBC Corporation in Taiwan. The ceremony, which was officiated by Ms. Lee-Ching Ko, Second Vice Group Chairman of Evergreen Group, took place at CSBC's Kaohsiung shipyard. The official rope-cutting of the new 8,508 TEU vessel was performed by Mrs. Lin, Mei-Chun. EVER LUNAR is owned by Evergreen Marine Corporation (Taiwan) Ltd. The ship is 334.8 meters in length, 45.8 meters wide and has a draft of 14.2 meters. In common with its L-type sister ships, EVER LUNAR can cruise at speeds up to 24.5 knots. The ship will be delivered into service in January and join Evergreen Line's Far East - Arabian Persian Gulf (APG) Service.

The California Air Resources Board has fined four shipping companies a combined $146,719 for failing to switch from dirty diesel “bunker” fuel to cleaner, low-sulfur marine distillate fuel upon entering Regulated California Waters – within 24 nautical miles of the California coast. “State anti-pollution laws require shippers to do their part to protect air quality,” said ARB Enforcement Chief Jim Ryden. “Shippers who comply are helping to protect the health of those who live, work, and go to schools near ports and shipping lanes. Many Californians don’t realize that diesel soot and other pollutants can also travel far inland to impact communities nowhere near the sea.