Malacca Strait News

Every day, nearly 60 fully loaded very large crude-oil carriers sail between the Persian Gulf and Chinese ports, carrying about half of the oil that powers the world's second-largest economy.As the vessels enter the South China Sea, they ply waters increasingly controlled by China's growing military, from the missile batteries and airfields at its bases on disputed islands to its stealthy Type 055 destroyers.But when crossing the Indian Ocean, joined by others headed to China from Africa and Brazil…

As tankers, car-carriers and other merchant vessels pass through the Malacca Strait, unlit fishing boats criss-cross the shipping lanes at night, making it one of the most challenging sea areas of the world to transit, even during peacetime.Should a major war ever come to Asia, those challenges could be magnified spectacularly, with hundreds of vessels abruptly leaving the international waters in the middle of the Strait for what they hope might be the relative safety of the national territorial waters of nearby neutral nations.The Strait – between Thailand…

China’s saber-rattling around Taiwan underlines the need for Australia to be prepared for conflict in the South China Sea.With its growing navy and air force, and the bases it has built throughout the area, China is increasingly capable of disrupting shipping lanes crucial to Australia’s exports and imports.Chinese military bases across the South China Sea (© OpenStreetMap contributors)Of particular concern is our reliance on liquid fuels imported via South China Sea shipping routes. This reliance has become more pronounced over the past few decades as all but two local refineries have closed.

A new 255-seat passenger ferry Indomal Empire has entered service for operator Indomal Express on the Malacca Strait between Indonesia and Malaysia.The Incat Crowther 30 ferry was built by PT Cahaya Samudra Shipyard in Batam, Indonesia. Indomal Empire was specifically developed to cater to a segment of the market demanding lower ticket prices and subsequently less complex and yet still very capable vessels, according to designer Incat Corwther.Indomal Empire is powered by twin MAN D2862 LE483 main engines, propelling the vessel to a top speed of 30 knots.

Danish shipping company DFDS said its first newbuild vessel in 30 years has arrived in Europe following a long voyage from the Chinese shipyard Guangzhou Shipyard International (GSI).The new ship, Aura Seaways, is the first in a series of two new roll-on, roll-off passenger ferries built by GSI for DFDS. The 230-meter-long vessel, officially handed over to DFDS in China in December, is the first newbuild passenger vessel contracted by DFDS since Scandinavia was delivered in 1982.Last weekend…

Bureau Veritas (BV) said it has delivered an Approval in Principle (AIP) to LNG MARINE SDN BHD for its first liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering vessel concept, which is also the first of its kind ever developed by a Malaysian company.According to BV, the vessel design will reflect industry best practice, as well as the latest features for LNG bunkering operations to cater for all types and sizes of LNG-fueled ships.BV said it reviewed the design and confirmed that it meets the technical and regulatory requirements and safety standards.

Mining giant and commodity trader Glencore has via its subsidiary ST Shipping extended the charter for the 2020 Bulkers' 'Bulk Shanghai' bulk carriers.2020 Bulkers said Friday that the charter would be extended for a period of 6-8 months from October 4, 2020. According to the 2020 Bulkers, the vessel will from October 4, 2020, earn a fixed rate of $18,000 per day, gross, as well as a share of the fuel savings generated from the scrubber fitted on the vessel.According to AIS data…

The number of ships fueled by liquefied natural gas (LNG) is expected to more than double by 2030, driven by the shipping industry's desire to cut emissions, a senior executive at Malaysia's Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) said on Wednesday.Currently, less than 400 out of a total of more than 80,000 registered ships, run on LNG as fuel source. This number could increase to 1,000 vessels globally by 2030, said Mohd Rafe Mohamed Ramli, head of global LNG bunkering at Petronas Marine.The shipping industry has been under pressure to reduce carbon emissions…

Last year, China replaced the United States as the No. 1 importer of oil from Venezuela, yet another front in the heated rivalry between Washington and Beijing.The United States had imposed sanctions on Venezuela’s state-owned oil company as part of a bid to topple that country’s socialist president, Nicolas Maduro. U.S. refineries stopped buying Venezuelan crude. Caracas’ ally China, long a major customer, suddenly found itself the top purchaser. Through the first six months of 2019, it imported an average of 350,000 barrels per day of crude from Venezuela.But in August, Washington tightened its sanctions on Venezuela, warning that any foreign entity that continued to do business with the South American country’s government could find itself subject to sanctions.

Pirates attacked a South Korean-flagged cargo ship in the South China Sea early on Monday, stealing thousands of dollars in cash and even the sailors' shoes, South Korean authorities said.Two people sustained minor injuries when seven pirates boarded the CK Bluebell and made off with $13,000 and belongings including mobile phones, clothes and shoes from the 22-strong crew, officials from the oceans and fisheries ministry said.Tougher policing has made piracy less frequent on the strategic shipping route in recent years.The dry bulk vessel CK Bluebell had set sail from its anchorage off Singapore on Saturday afternoon, heading northeast for South Korea's port of Incheon, Refinitiv Eikon ship tracking data showed.Korean officials said the ship was sailing normally after the robbery.The incid

Indian warships escorting merchant vessels in the Persian Gulf will remain deployed for the longer term, officials with direct knowledge of the matter said, as tensions between Iran and Western powers rise.But the two ships, backed by surveillance aircraft, will not be part of a military coalition that the United States is assembling to safeguard the waters off Iran near the Straits of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil moves, the two officials said.Since June following attacks on tankers that the United States blamed on Iran and Iran-aligned fighters…

China's Ministry of Transport has raised its security recommendation for Chinese vessels in the Malacca Strait, a major potential bottleneck for global oil, to the highest level, according to a notice dated July 2 sent to shipping companies.The level for Chinese vessels passing through and going to the strait was raised to "3" as of 10 p.m. on July 2 (1400 GMT), according to the notice, whose authenticity was confirmed by an official at the ministry.It said shipping firms "should…

Indonesia and India pledged on Wednesday to step up defense and maritime cooperation, with plans to develop a strategic Indonesian naval port in the Indian Ocean, the leaders of the two countries said after meeting in Jakarta. Indonesian President Joko Widodo met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss, among other issues, developing infrastructure and an economic zone at Sabang, on the tip of Sumatra island and at the mouth of the Malacca Strait, one of the busiest shipping channels for global trade. "India is a strategic defence partner...and we will continue to advance our cooperation in developing infrastructure, including at Sabang Island and the Andaman Islands," Widodo told a news conference after the meeting at the presidential palace.

To demonstrate multilateral cooperation between littoral states and stakeholders to improve navigational safety in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore (SOMS), Phase Two of a Joint Hydrographic Survey was formally launched via a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed today at the 10th Co-operation Forum held from 2nd to 3rd October 2017 at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Besides the littoral states, the survey is supported by the Malacca Strait Council (MSC) of Japan. Phase Two, which is a continuation from Phase One, will cover the remaining areas of the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) within the SOMS which are shallower than 30m. The data obtained from the survey would be used to produce up-to-date…

Indian Naval Ships Shivalik, Sahyadri, Jyoti and Kamorta of the Eastern Fleet manouvering in the Andaman Sea. The task force is on a routine deployment to Malacca Strait, the Java Sea, Flores Sea, the Arafura Sea and Southern Indian Ocean under the command of Rear Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta, YSM, VSM, the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet. During the course of the deployment, as part of the ‘Act East Policy’, the ships would make port calls at Singapore, Kuantan (Malaysia), Jakarta and Surabaya (Indonesia), Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea) and Fremantle (Australia). INS Sahyadri and INS Kamorta would participate in the International Maritime Review at Singapore as part of RSN’s (Republic of Singapore Navy) 50th anniversary celebrations for which Admiral Sunil Lanba…

Indonesian Navy arrested six alleged pirates attempting to hijack a foreign-operated tanker near the Malacca Strait, one of the world’s busiest trade routes,  reports The Jakarta Post. Six suspected pirates operating in the Malacca Straits were caught by Western Fleet Quick Response Team of Tanjung Pinang base on Monday in Batam waters in Riau Islands. The group was suspected of plotting attacks on tankers passing through eastern Malaysia. The Tanjung Pinang Navy base commander, Comm. S. Irawan, said the arrest came about following a tip-off from an informant with information about criminal activities in the Malacca Straits. Irawan said that the team followed it up by intercepting the group at sea. The team managed to detain the boat, which had the six suspects on it.

Gulf of Aden (East Coast of Africa), Malacca Strait and West Coast of Africa are shipping routes which suffer  incidents of pirate attacks. (i)    Guidelines for anti-piracy measures issued through Merchant Shipping Notice No.1 of 2011 dated 14.1.2011 to be implemented by Indian Ships. The guidelines provide for elaborate anti-piracy measures (Best Management Practices), including safe house/citadel for vessels. (ii)   Banning of sailing vessels to ply in waters south or west of the line adjoining Salalah and Male through Merchant Shipping Notice No. 3/2010 dated 31.3.2010. (iii)  Naval escorts provided by Indian naval ships in the Gulf of Aden since 2008 for Indian flag merchant ships.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has released a training programme, produced by Videotel, a KVH company, to encourage safe navigation in the Singapore Strait. Carrying an estimated one third of the world’s traded goods, the Singapore Strait is one of  world’s busiest shipping lanes  the world’s busiest shipping lanes. Recent projections show that maritime traffic is set to increase significantly along this narrow waterway, which, together with the Malacca Strait, stretches for more than 400 miles, connecting the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. “Being chosen to produce this three-part training package was a great honour for us and reinforces the quality of our work and the ability to interpret a complex brief…

Berge Bulk Maritime confirms that an its VLOC (Very Large Ore Carrier)  “BERGE BUREYA” – (IMO/LR # 9297539) operated vessel was involved in an oil spill incident off Malaysia in the Malacca Strait earlier yesterday morning. There were no injuries to any crew-members and there was no grounding or involvement of any third parties. Whilst in transit between Singapore and Brazil, a quantity of oil was identified leaking from the vessel and the crew immediately enacted emergency procedures to halt the leakage and to start a prompt clean-up operation. A quantity of bunker fuel was spilled and Berge Bulk Maritime is cooperating closely with the Malaysian authorities in the management of the spill and the vessel was boomed following the incident. The oil leak was stemmed quickly.

Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines on Monday agreed to designate a transit corridor for commercial vessels crossing a maritime zone hit by a spate of hijackings by Islamist militants in the southern Philippines. Nearly 20 Indonesian and Malaysian tugboat crew have been kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf militants this year, with Jakarta airing fears that the problem could reach levels seen off the coast of Somalia. Alarmed at the frequency of attacks, port authorities in some areas of Indonesia, particularly Kalimantan on the island of Borneo, have stopped issuing permits to ships taking coal to the southern Philippines. Indonesia is the world's largest thermal coal exporter and supplies 70 percent of the Philippines' coal imports.

Commercial ships have been told to avoid shipping routes around Indonesia and Philippines amid fears that piracy could be reaching Somalian levels, according to Reuters. A spate of kidnappings and pirate attacks in the waterways between Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines has prompted the three countries to explore the option of having joint patrols. The waters form part of major shipping arteries that carry US$40 billion worth of cargo a year, analysts say, and the corridor is used by fully laden supertankers from the Indian Ocean that cannot use the crowded Malacca Strait waterway. A total of 18 Indonesians and Malaysians have been taken captive in three separate attacks on tugboats in Philippine waters along the route…

The Indonesian Navy has instructed all commercial vessels to avoid piracy-prone waters around the southern Philippines, a spokesman for the Indonesian military said on Thursday, following a spate of kidnappings and piracy in recent weeks. "The Indonesian Navy, through the Western Sea Security Cluster, is increasing the intensity of patrols up to the exclusive economic zone border with the Philippines and Malaysia to prevent acts of piracy and hijacking," Indonesian military spokesman Tatang Sulaiman told Reuters in a text message. The busy shipping route along Indonesia's maritime border with the Philippines carries $40 billion worth of cargo each year, notably fully laden supertankers from the Indian Ocean that cannot use the crowded Malacca Strait.

Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines ministers to meet in Jakarta as up to 18 Indonesians, Malaysians held captive in Philippines. Indonesia fears piracy on a busy shipping route along its maritime border with the Philippines could hit levels seen in Somalia unless security is tightened, its chief security minister said on Thursday, following a spate of kidnappings. The route lies on major shipping arteries that analysts say carry $40 billion worth of cargo each year. It is taken by fully laden supertankers from the Indian Ocean that cannot use the crowded Malacca Strait. For the first time, concerns over rising maritime attacks by suspected Islamist militants are disrupting coal trade between the Southeast Asian neighbours…