Marine Link
Friday, March 29, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Oil Tanker Fleet News

20 Mar 2024

Shipping Companies Turn to Longer-Term Leases as Tanker Supply Tightens

© Vladimir / Adobe Stock

Rising oil tanker chartering rates due to global shipping disruption are forcing oil shippers to take on longer-term shipping charters, executives said this week at an energy conference in Houston.The global oil tanker fleet must now travel further to get crude to refineries and fuel to consumers. European sanctions have forced Russian exporters to send oil to Asia that would have otherwise gone to Europe. Attacks on vessels in the Red Sea have forced some shippers to sail around…

12 Feb 2024

Euronav Concludes Billion-Dollar Acquisition of CMB.TECH

(Credit: Euronav)

Belgian tanker operator Euronav has concluded the acquisition of 100% shares in cleantech maritime group CMB.TECH for $1.15 billion in cash.The transaction is part of Euronav’s renewed strategy of diversification, decarbonization and accelerated optimization of the its current crude oil tanker fleet, driven by CMB.TECH’s ‘future-proof’ fleet of 106 low carbon vessels, of which 46 are under construction.It was first announced in December 2023, and also entails Euronav’s proposal change its corporate name to CMB.TECH following completion of the transaction and the offer.

12 Feb 2024

Euronav to Buy CMB.TECH for $1.15 Billion

(Credit: Euronav)

Belgian tanker operator Euronav and its controlling shareholder CMB have entered into a share purchase agreement for the acquisition of 100% of the shares in cleantech maritime group CMB.TECH for $1.15 billion in cash.Euronav said the transaction is part of its renewed strategy of diversification, decarbonization and accelerated optimization of the its current crude oil tanker fleet, driven by CMB.TECH’s ‘future-proof’ fleet of 106 low carbon vessels, of which 46 are under construction.CMB.TECH builds…

18 Sep 2023

US Government Boosts Oil Tanker Fleet in National Shipping Overhaul

The United States is boosting access to commercial products tankers as part of a security drive to safeguard oil shipping for its armed forces in times of crisis, a top Department of Transportation (DOT) official said.The U.S. flagged commercial fleet comprises a few dozen tankers with the majority involved in domestic trade and there has been concern over possible disruptions to the U.S. economy if those vessels were sought for use by the military, according to a Department of Defense study.The Tanker Security Program has aimed to charter 10 internationally trading vessels for 2023 that can move oil products. Each would receive an annual payment of up to $6 million and had to be U.S. operated and have U.S.

31 May 2023

Shadow Tanker Fleet Poses New Safety Challenges

© momentscatcher / Adobe Stock

Ongoing and new threats posed by the ripple effects of the Ukraine conflict will create challenges to the shipping sector over the next 12 months and beyond, according to insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE’s (AGCS) Safety & Shipping Review 2023.Every year AGCS analyzes reported shipping losses and casualties involving vessels over 100 gross tons. During 2022, 38 total losses were reported globally, compared with 59 a year earlier. This represents a 65% decline in…

23 Mar 2023

Oil Spills and Near Misses: More Ghost Tankers Ship Sanctioned Fuel

© komi$ar / Adobe Stock

An oil tanker runs aground off eastern China, leaking fuel into the water. Another is caught in a collision near Cuba. A third is seized in Spain for drifting out of control.These vessels were part of a "shadow" fleet of tankers carrying oil last year from countries hit by Western sanctions, according to a Reuters analysis of ship tracking and accident data and interviews with more than a dozen industry specialists.Hundreds of extra ships have joined this opaque parallel trade…

17 Feb 2023

Cyprus Rallies EU Partners to Get Shipping Sector Support

© Art N More / Adobe Stock

Cyprus is speaking to other European Union member states to shore up support for the shipping industry hit by sanctions on Russia, its shipping minister said on Friday.Cyprus has the third-largest shipping fleet in the EU after Malta and Greece. It has seen defections, or itself deflagged, about a fifth of its oil tanker fleet in recent months, connected one way or another to sanctions on Russia.The island's proposals include automatic extensions of so-called tonnage tax systems…

23 Nov 2022

Russia's Tanker Fleet Too Small to Bypass Oil Price Cap

© AUUSanAKUL / Adobe Stock

Russia's oil tanker fleet is too small to fully circumvent a plan by the European Union, G7 countries and Australia to enforce a price cap on its maritime crude exports starting on Dec. 5, analysts and market watchers say.The amount Russia would be unable to export is expected to increase when EU sanctions on Russian refined product shipments take effect on Feb. 5.In all the shortfall could mean Russia halts exports of around 1 million barrels per day (bpd), compared with current flows to the world market of around 3.5 million bpd.

08 Sep 2021

Profitability Still a Way Off for Tanker Shipping -BIMCO

© momentscatcher / Adobe Stock

New virus mutations and outbreaks have slowed the recovery in global oil demand as some countries lock down again and international travel remains complicated.Drivers of demand and freight ratesTo say that the summer has not been kind to the crude oil shipping industry would be an understatement. Average earnings have dropped below $10,000 per day since June for all crude oil tankers, with many trades offering negative earnings; freight rates are not high enough to cover voyage expenses, let alone operating and financing costs.

29 Apr 2021

HSFO Sales Rebound After Pre-IMO 2020 Correction -BIMCO

© Rex Wholster / Adobe Stock

In the first quarter of 2021 high-sulpfr fuel oil (HSFO) has been the only bunker fuel to experience year-on-year growth in Singapore, the world's largest bunkering hub. HSFO sales are up 47.2% from Q1 2020, reaching 3.1 million tonnes. This is however still less than a third of high-sulfur fuel sales in Q1 2019, before the IMO 2020 Sulphur Cap came into force.The 1 million tonne increase in HSFO sales exceeded the fall in low-sulfur fuel oil (LSFO) and marine gas oil (MGO) sales, though only marginally, with total bunker sales in Singapore up by 0.8% in Q1.

25 Feb 2021

Tanker Shipping Facing a Tough Year Ahead, Says BIMCO

© aerial-drone/AdobeStock

After a turbulent year, low demand looks set to plague the market in the coming months combined with too many ships fighting for too few cargoes in both the crude oil and oil product segments, says the oil tanker shipping overview and outlook released today by BIMCO.Demand drivers and freight ratesThe realities of the pandemic are setting in for the tanker market. The record-breaking Q2 2020 is a distant memory and, instead, the market faces a slow recovery with low demand, stock…

13 Aug 2020

Containerships Overtake Tankers as Most Scrubber-fitted Sector -BIMCO

© aerial-drone / Adobe Stock

Containerships with a collective cargo carrying capacity of 5.3 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEU) are now fitted with an exhaust gas cleaning system (scrubber) to remove sulphur oxides (SOx) from the exhaust gasses generated by the combustion processes in marine engines and thereby comply with the IMO 2020 global sulphur regulation which came into force on January 1, 2020.By the start of July, the share of the containership fleet with scrubbers installed exceeded that of the crude oil tanker fleet.

24 Jun 2020

Geopolitics Dominate the Oil Tanker Market -BIMCO

© Björn Wylezich / Adobe Stock

Developments in the oil tanker market in the past decade dominated by geopolitics, says shipping association BIMCO.Crude oil and product tanker markets alike have faced high volatility in recent weeks and months, largely due to geopolitics and the constantly evolving situation in the global oil markets. The first major disturbance since the fall in the oil price between the fourth quarter of 2104 and first quarter of 2016 came in the fourth quarter of 2019, after which freight rates have bounced back despite a collapse in demand.In these extraordinary times…

25 May 2020

BIMCO Tanker Rate Analysis: Reality Kicks In, Rates Fall

Source: BIMCO, Clarksons

Tanker shipping: sky high freight rates replaced by reality of falling global oil demandGeopolitical tensions have now eased, leaving freight rates to feel the full effects of the weak underlying market and falling demand. Tanker shipping looks set to be under pressure for the rest of the year.Demand drivers and freight ratesThe tanker shipping industry was once again caught in a whirlwind, as freight rates skyrocketed with little regard to the poor market fundamentals before the latter once again caught up with rates.

17 Oct 2019

Tanker Deliveries Up 37%: BIMCO

Delivered tonnage of crude oil tankers have grown by +37%, whereas total fleet demolitions for 2019 have slumped to the lowest in a decade with a reduction of 52% from the year before, says BIMCO, the largest of the international shipping associations representing shipowners.Newbuilding orders have remained low through the year with contracted tonnage down by 48%, it said.Amidst a market filled with uncertainty and geopolitical unrest, BIMCO maintains its bearings and turns to the market fundamentals to cut through the mist of market speculation and uncertainty-driven hype. “Through the first nine months of 2019, delivery activity has picked up substantially from last year, particularly in the crude oil tanker segment where deliveries are up 37% year-on-year.

11 Oct 2019

U.S. Sanctions Bite; Traders Shun 300 Tankers

AdobeStock / © Jose Gill

Nearly 300 oil tankers globally have been placed off limits as companies fear violating U.S. sanctions against Iran and Venezuela, driving freight rates to new highs, industry sources said.The move has taken roughly 3% of the global oil tanker fleet out of the market, according to industry sources and data on Refinitiv Eikon, sending rates soaring to secure tankers to ship oil, particularly to Asia."Freight rates are going through the roof and people are getting very nervous with the cost of shipping…

28 Aug 2019

Frontline Sees Opportunity in Tanker Market

So far in 2019, 41 VLCCs have been added to the global fleet compared to three vessel demolitions, said  the world's largest oil tanker shipping company Frontline Ltd.An additional 33 VLCCs are scheduled to be delivered in 2019 with 43 more to follow in 2020 before the order-book declines sharply.It is important to note that both the VLCC and Suezmax tanker order book as a percentage of the total fleet are at the lowest levels seen in over 20 years.The order book has been the biggest challenge for the tanker markets over the last 24 months. The removal of this overhang is positive, but a surge in new orders can of course quickly change this.Despite continued deliveries of newbuilding vessels in the short term…

13 Mar 2019

Iran's Oil Tanker Fleet Being Squeezed as Sanctions Bite

© alexyz3d / Adobe Stock

Iran is running short of options to replace its ageing fleet of tankers and keep oil exports flowing because renewed U.S. sanctions are making potential sellers and flag registries wary of doing business with Tehran, Western and Iranian sources said.Since U.S. President Donald Trump reimposed sanctions in November, exploratory talks with South Korea for up to 10 new supertankers have stalled and Panama has also removed at least 21 Iranian tankers from its registry forcing Tehran to put the vessels under its own flag…

28 Feb 2019

Frontline Predicts Tanker Market Volatility

The tanker market improved significantly in the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2018 driven by continued strong oil demand, said Bermuda-based tanker shipping company Frontline Ltd.According to the world's largest oil tanker shipping company, crude inventory draws reversed in the quarter, after having fallen below five-year levels and reduced the demand for crude tankers in the process.There is a historical correlation between inventory cycles and tanker rates, it said. Crude oil supply / demand forecasts from the IEA imply that inventories will remain relatively stable over the next several quarters, which in turn should create a…

30 May 2018

Tanker Market Grappling with More Uncertainty

© Thor Jorgen Udvang / Adobe Stock

Tanker shipping: Added uncertainty is not helpful to the struggling tankersDemandJust when you thought it could not get any worse for the tanker shipping industry, the U.S. is reimposing sanctions on Iran coming into force after a six months wind-down period ending on November 4, 2018. The immediate effects are less tangible but sure to add more uncertainty to the whole shipping industry that has plenty of uncertainty to deal with already.At the same time, freight rates for both crude oil tankers and oil product tankers are mostly in loss making territory.

22 Nov 2017

Frontline Posts Q3 Loss as Tanker Rates Hit 4-year Low

Frontline q3 net loss $‍24.1​ million. The current crude oil tanker rate environment does not presently reflect that strong demand. Shares down 4.8 pct at 0840 GMT vs fall of 0.3 pct in Oslo's benchmark share index.

31 Aug 2017

DVB Bank Losses on Shipping

DVB, the specialist in international shipping finance, reported a consolidated net loss before taxes of EUR 506.3 million in the first six months of 2017 (previous year: net income of EUR 14.1 million). Given persistent oil price uncertainty, oil and gas companies have continued to reduce their exploration and production spending, which has further curtailed demand for offshore vessels and equipment. Shipowners remain under pressure from low charter rates and competition for employment. Against this background, owners of vessels and drilling rigs adjusted their capacities, through lay-ups, restructuring or consolidation. Excess capacity remained a major challenge on shipping markets throughout the first half of 2017.

30 Aug 2017

Frontline Hopes to Sail through Weak Tanker Market

Frontline Management said tanker markets are likely to remain weak for the next few quarters due to overcapacity. The market for Frontline's tankers will likely begin to improve in 2018, it said, as the pace of deliveries of new vessels slows and older ships are retired from the global fleet. While the weak market naturally affects our earnings in the short term, the company's strategy is not altered. "We continue to take proactive steps to increase the earnings potential of our fleet through the ongoing renewal of our fleet and by pursuing an opportunistic approach in the resale and newbuilding markets," he said. Over the last several quarters…