Marine Link
Friday, March 29, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Us Gulf Coast News

01 Mar 2024

US Gulf Coast Fuel Oil Imports Hit Five-year Low

© scandamerican / Adobe Stock

Imports of fuel oil bound for the U.S. Gulf Coast fell to a five-year low last month as refiners ran more cheap, heavy Canadian crude and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East pressured fuel oil flows.Fuel oil deliveries to the Gulf Coast dwindled in February to just 318,000 barrels per day (bpd), a 20% drop from the prior month and marking their lowest level since February 2019, data from tanker tracking firm, Kpler showed.Heavy fuel oil feedstocks like high sulfur fuel oil…

24 Jan 2024

Seaside LNG Performs US Gulf Coast's First Ship-to-ship LNG Bunkering

Seaside LNG's bunkering barge Clean Jacksonville is now operating in Galveston, Texas. (Photo: Seaside LNG)

Seaside LNG announced its liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering barge Clean Jacksonville delivered fuel to Carnival cruise ship Carnival Jubilee in Galveston, Texas, marking the first ship-to-ship LNG bunkering delivery along the U.S. Gulf Coast.The bunkering operation took place on December 30, 2023, after months of careful coordination with all parties involved, including the Port of Galveston, Seaside LNG said.The 2,200 cubic meter bunkering barge Clean Jacksonville, previously stationed in Florida…

10 Jan 2024

Surging VLCC Rates Impact US Crude Oil Shipments to Asia

© Andriy Sharpilo / Adobe Stock

The economic incentive to import oil from the U.S. Gulf Coast to Asia has closed as the cost of booking supertankers on the route has surged amid a jump in bookings for the vessels, traders said this week.With the arbitrage for U.S. shipments closed, Asian refiners may make up some of the difference with similar Middle Eastern crude oil after top regional producer Saudi Arabia cut their sales prices for February, which is expected to carry over to other regional crudes. The spur…

26 Dec 2023

Crowley's All-electric Tug eWolf Starts Sea Trials

Video screen capture from video shared by Crowley on social media.

The first all-electric tugboat built in the United States, Crowley's eWolf, has started sea trials along the U.S. Gulf Coast.The 82-foot ship assist tug, built by Coden, Ala. shipbuilder Master Boat Builders, is expected to enter service at the Port of San Diego in 2024. Video footage of the vessel on sea trials was shared by Crowley on social media.The eWolf is designed to operate on full electric power, producing zero carbon emissions and expected 70 ton bollard pull strength.

18 Dec 2023

Record Output, Tax Dodge Pushes Up Crude Exports from US Gulf Coast

© scandamerican / Adobe Stock

Oil is flooding out of Texas in the final weeks of 2023, as traders find outlets abroad for record U.S. production and dodge a hefty year-end tax bill on their inventories.U.S. crude exports, nearly all of which leave from the U.S. Gulf coast, averaged about 4 million barrels per day (bpd) so far this year, according to U.S. government data, about 500,000 more than last year's record as oil production climbed to 13.2 million barrels per day.U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude's wider discount to the global benchmark Brent , currently at about $4.50 per barrel, is making U.S.

11 Dec 2023

Panama Canal Woes to Delay Grain Ships well into '24

Copyright searagen/AdobeStock

Bulk grain shippers hauling crops from the U.S. Gulf Coast export hub to Asia are sailing longer routes and paying higher freight costs to avoid vessel congestion and record-high transit fees in the drought-hit Panama Canal, traders and analysts said.The shipping snarl through one of the world's main maritime trade routes comes at the peak season for U.S. crop exports, and the higher costs are threatening to dent demand for U.S. corn and soy suppliers that have already ceded market share to Brazil in recent years.

25 Oct 2023

Proman Stena Bulk Names Methanol-fueled Tanker

Stena Pro Marine (Photo: Proman Stena Bulk)

Proman Stena Bulk, the joint venture between tanker company Stena Bulk and methanol producer Proman, formally christened its methanol-fueled tanker Stena Pro Marine during a ceremony at the Port of New Orleans.Delivered in mid-2022, the newbuild is a 49,990 DWT dual-fuel mid-range (MR) tanker constructed at Guangzhou Shipyard International Co Ltd (GSI) in China. The ship has been in full-time operation since its delivery and consumes 12,500 tonnes of methanol annually.Burning methanol onboard eliminates local pollutants like SOx and particulate matter (PM)…

23 Oct 2023

US Gulf Coast Oil Patch Gets Lucky, So Far, in Busy Hurricane Season

© Michael Rolands / Adobe Stock

A very active Atlantic hurricane season so far this year has not sent storms across U.S. oil and natural gas fields in the northern Gulf of Mexico, sparing energy companies billions of dollars of losses and consumers higher fuel costs.The 2023 Atlantic hurricane season has been another in a string with above average activity producing three major hurricanes with winds above 111 mph (179 kph) out of six hurricanes among 20 named tropical storms.So far this year, only one storm, Tropical Storm Harold, on Aug.

05 Oct 2023

How Serious is Russia's Fuel Export Ban and Who Will be Hit?

Credit: borissos/AdobeStock

Russia said on Sept. 21 that it had temporarily banned gasoline and diesel exports to all but four ex-Soviet states in response to domestic shortages, a move that will disrupt global trade that has already had to adjust to Western sanctions on Russian fuel exports.Russia eased some of the restrictions on Sept. 25, saying it would allow the export of bunkering fuel for some vessels and diesel with high sulphur content. The government has yet to give a timeline for any further easing…

20 Sep 2023

Tanker Involved in US Seizure of Iran Oil Cargo Changes Name

An oil tanker confiscated by the United States for carrying Iranian oil and diverted to the U.S. Gulf Coast, was headed to the Bahamas on Wednesday under a new name, ship tracking data showed.The tanker Suez Rajan was the subject of attention this year for carrying more than 980,000 barrels of contraband Iranian crude oil, which was confiscated by the U.S. in a sanctions enforcement operation.It was unable to unload the Iranian crude for nearly two and half months over fears of secondary sanctions on vessels used to unload it. It was renamed the St Nikolas after unloading the cargoes.The vessel fully unloaded the Iranian crude this month and the Suez Rajan Ltd company pleaded guilty in April.

30 Aug 2023

US Offshore Wind Sector Faces Key Test After Weak Gulf Auction

© Fokke Baarssen / Adobe Stock

The low interest in the first-ever auction of offshore wind farm development rights in the Gulf of Mexico marks a potentially serious setback for U.S. President Joe Biden’s green energy agenda, and the U.S. offshore wind sector in general.U.S. officials had touted the auction as a key milestone in Biden’s agenda to make offshore wind a cornerstone of U.S. efforts to fight fossil-fuel-driven climate change.But with only a single bid of $5.6 million emerging for the rights to 102…

28 Aug 2023

First US Gulf Offshore Wind Auction to Fuel Green Hydrogen Push

© Ian Dyball / Adobe Stock

The U.S. Gulf Coast region, the nation's primary offshore source of oil and gas, has cheap electricity and lacks state mandates for renewable energy procurement, making it an unlikely place to expand one of the most expensive forms of clean energy.That is why players in the nascent U.S. offshore wind industry are looking beyond the grid when the Biden administration holds the first-ever offshore wind auction in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday, eyeing the sale instead as a way to…

21 Aug 2023

Shipowners, Port Operators Ramp Up Methanol-fueling Projects

(Photo: A.P. Moller-Maersk)

Interest in methanol as an alternative fuel has grown in the shipping industry, which seeks to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.Below is a list of upcoming methanol bunkering-related projects by companies and ports:COMPANIES:A.P. Moller-MaerskMaersk received the world's first methanol-enabled container ship in July. It has 24 more such vessels on order to help it to achieve its goal of using low-emission fuels to transport a quarter of its volumes by 2030.HD Hyundai Heavy Industries expects to build a dozen more such vessels…

12 Jul 2023

Bunker Fuel Contamination Hits US Gulf Coast

© Irina Starikova / Adobe Stock

Contaminated marine fuels from several suppliers led to fouled engines on about a dozen vessels operating from the U.S. Gulf Coast this spring, according to Lloyd's Register and marine fuel testing service VPS.The tainted fuel was the first major occurrence along the U.S.

11 Jul 2023

Cheniere Shunning Panama Canal for Longer LNG Routes to Asia

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

Top U.S. LNG exporter Cheniere Energy LNG.A is shunning the Panama Canal to transport liquefied natural gas to Asia because the market is not supporting use of the waterway, said Chief Operating Officer Corey Grindal on Monday.The Panama Canal historically has been used by U.S Gulf Coast LNG exporters to send LNG to Asian customers via the Pacific Ocean. But a months-long drought has led to delays and depth restrictions for the largest ships accessing the canal."We use the canal when it is economical to do so, right now it is not.

21 Jun 2023

Cheniere, Equinor ink Long-term LNG Deal

Arctic Voyager leaving Hammerfest LNG.
(Photo: Rino Engdal / Equinor)

Equinor and Cheniere announced a new 15-year purchase agreement of around 1.75 million tons of LNG per year, with half of the volume starting from 2027. This agreement brings the total volumes that Equinor has contracted with Cheniere up to around 3.5 million tonnes per year.This new Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Cheniere will double the volumes of LNG that Equinor will export out of Cheniere’s LNG terminals on the U.S. Gulf coast.

15 Jun 2023

Supertanker Freight Rates Jump as Mideast Crude Exports to Asia Rise

©Carabay/AdobeStock

The costs of chartering supertankers to move crude oil from the Middle East to Asia have jumped to the highest since April as more cargoes are being booked in June, according to industry sources and data on Refinitiv Eikon.The rate for a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) from the Middle East to China, Japan and Singapore is assessed at just above worldscale 80 on Thursday, according to shipbroking firm Meiwa International, the highest levels since April. Worldscale (W) is an industry…

13 Jun 2023

Methanol Bunkering Gaining Interest Among Global Players

(Image: Maersk)

Denmark's Maersk said on Monday it has secured fuel for the world's first container vessel able to run on carbon-neutral methanol for its inaugural journey.Interest in methanol as an alternative fuel for bunkering has grown in the shipping industry, which seeks to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.Below is a list of key upcoming methanol bunkering-related projects by companies and ports:COMPANIES:*A.P. Moller-MaerskMaersk has ordered 19 methanol-enabled ships to work towards a goal of transporting 25% of its ocean cargo using green fuels by 2030.

13 Apr 2023

Chevron and Angelicoussis Group Exploring Maritime Ammonia Transport

© momentscatcher / Adobe Stock

Chevron and the Angelicoussis Group have come together to explore how tankers can be used to transport ammonia, a potential lower carbon marine fuel.Under a newly announced Joint Study Agreement (JSA), Chevron, through its subsidiary Chevron Shipping Company, and the Angelicoussis Group, through its Energy Transition division, Green Ships, will initially evaluate the ammonia transportation market, existing infrastructure, the safety aspects of ammonia, potential next generation vessel requirements and a preliminary system to transport ammonia between the U.S. Gulf Coast and Europe.

01 May 2023

US Gulf Coast’s First Barge-to-ship Methanol Bunkering Completed

Stena Prosperous (Photo: Proman Stena Bulk)

Proman Stena Bulk, the joint venture between tanker company Stena Bulk and methanol producer Proman, announced the successful completion of the first ever barge-to-ship methanol bunkering on the U.S. Gulf Coast.The JV tankers Stena Pro Marine and Stena Prosperous were refueled with methanol via barge while discharging clean petroleum products at a terminal in the Port of Houston in the first week of April.Stena Pro Marine was bunkered with 1,408MT of methanol, and Stena Prosperous was refueled with 1,203MT during the operation.

25 May 2023

Ørsted Breaks Ground on FlagshipONE E-Methanol Project

Source: Ørsted

Ørsted broke ground on Europe’s largest e-methanol project, FlagshipONE, on May 24.FlagshipONE will start production in 2025 and will produce 50,000 tonnes of e-methanol annually. The maritime sector is a key target for the methanol. Currently, over 110 e-methanol vessels have been ordered or are in operation, up from 80 vessels at the end of 2022.Originally developed by the Swedish e-fuels company Liquid Wind, FlagshipONE will be located next to Övik Energi’s combined heat and power plant Hörneborgsverket in Örnsköldsvik…

12 May 2023

Record US Crude Exports, Rising Shale Output Boosts Oil Flow to Houston

Oil pipelines from the top U.S. shale field to Houston that have run half empty are filling again as rising output has absorbed most of the space on lines to the main south Texas export hub in Corpus Christi.U.S. crude exports climbed to a record of about 4.5 million barrels per day (bpd) in March, spurred by recovering Chinese demand and competitive pricing for U.S. oil. Sanctions on Russian crude purchases by the European Union and Britain also have boosted demand.Pipelines…

18 Oct 2023

'Hydrogen Hubs' to the Fore

Image courtesy ABS

The path to decarbonization is defined by partnership and fueled by government funding. This month we examine the players, partnerships, and evolution of Hydrogen Hubs in the Gulf of Mexico.The Green Shipping Challenge, organized by the United States and Norway at COP 27 held in late 2022, brought about dozens of announcements on maritime decarbonization. Among these was a joint statement from the Blue Sky Maritime Coalition (BSMC) – a consortium of North American shipowners and…