Ard News

U.S. President Donald Trump called on allies over the weekend to help secure the Strait of Hormuz as Iranian forces continue attacks on the vital waterway amid the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, now in its third week.Trump said his administration has already contacted seven countries, but declined to identify them. In an earlier social media post, he said that he hoped China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain and others would participate.Iran has effectively shut the Strait, a narrow passage of water between Iran and Oman…

European Union foreign ministers will discuss on Monday bolstering a small naval mission in the Middle East but are not expected to decide on extending its role to the choked-off Strait of Hormuz, diplomats and officials say.The EU’s Aspides mission was established in 2024 to protect ships from attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebel group in the Red Sea. It currently has an Italian and a Greek ship under its direct command and can also call upon a French ship and another Italian vessel…

Volodymyr Z., a Ukrainian diver wanted by Germany over his alleged involvement in the Nord Stream explosions, has been detained in Poland, prosecutors and his lawyer said on Tuesday.Described by both Moscow and the West as an act of sabotage, the explosions in 2022 largely severed Russian gas supplies to Europe, marking a major escalation in the Ukraine conflict and squeezing energy supplies on the continent. No one has taken responsibility for the blasts and Ukraine has denied any role."This morning…

Dutch company KOTUG International has secured a contract from BP to provide marine services to the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) project offshore Mauritania and Senegal.KOTUG International and its local Senegalese partner Maritalia have been awarded   a long-term fixed-term contract, with extension options, to provide marine services to one of Africa’s deepest subsea development.KOTUG will deploy four RAstar 32m azimuthing stern drive (ASD), IMO Tier-III compliant tugboats to support the offshore Hub Terminal…

Dutch firm KOTUG has received an order from Rotterdam-based sand handling and transport specialist, ROS, for the delivery of a fully electric pusher tug, the E-Pusher.The E-Pusher, model M, will be deployed in combination with barges provided by Jansma Shipping to establish an emission-free sand transport chain between the Maasvlakte and Rotterdam.The fully electric E-Pusher, developed by KOTUG, is scheduled for completion in May 2025.The entire emission-free system - from transshipment…

KOTUG International, a marine services and towage provider based in the Netherlands, announced on Thursday it has concluded its acquisition of Kotug Seabulk Maritime (KSM), taking full ownership of the Caribbean marine towage business.KOTUG said it has acquired the interest of its joint venture partner, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based SEACOR Holdings via its Seabulk subsidiary KS Maritime Holdings, owner of the 50% share in KSM.Founded in 2017, KSM acts as the exclusive provider of maritime terminal support services for Buckeye Partners’ Bahamas Hub…

KOTUG said Tuesday it had, via its Guyanese subsidiary KOTUG Guyana strengthened its position in Guyana with the arrival of three additional Offshore Terminal Tugs to support ExxonMobil Guyana’s offshore operations.With the arrival of KOTUG-owned ‘SD Grace’, ‘Seaways 20’ and ‘Seaways 22’, KOTUG will operate a total of five offshore terminal tugs in Guyana.The vessels predominantly provide support (“tanker lifting operations”) to the large crude oil tankers that are loading crude oil from ExxonMobil's producing FPSOs in the Stabroek field…

Visualization of dredging is essential to gain insight into the dredging process. But this is only the beginning of the whole dredging story. To complete that story, we meet with Diederik van Halsema of DC Dredging. He is the fleet manager of the entire DC Dredging fleet, including the vessels DC Ostend, Margaret Ann and Rio. These vessels have a lot of things in common, including MSA-Service's VisuDREDGE dredge visualization system, which is installed on each of these three vessels.

Cargill will charter the world’s first fully electric pusher boat and barges to transport cocoa beans in the Netherlands.The company will use Kotug International’s zero emission E-Pusher and E-Barges to transport cocoa beans from the Port of Amsterdam, the largest cocoa import port in the world, to its cocoa factory in Zaandam. The fully electrified pusher and barges eliminate both emissions and noise pollution for inland shipping.The E-Pusher 1 was christened this week, marking the official start of the operations with the vessel for Cargill…

Danish police have searched for a yacht on a tiny Baltic Sea island near the Nord Stream pipeline blast sites, the local administrator said on Thursday.German authorities confirmed on Wednesday they had raided a ship in January that may have been used to transport explosives used to blow up the pipelines."The police was searching for a specific boat that had moored here in September," Soren Thiim Andersen, the highest authority on the island of Christiansö, told Reuters.The Sept.

Western allies on Wednesday warned against reaching premature conclusions on who was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines, with Germany suggesting the attack could also have been a "false flag" operation to blame Ukraine.A New York Times report, citing intelligence reviewed by U.S. officials, said on Tuesday a pro-Ukrainian group may be behind the blasts that became a flashpoint between the West and Russia after last year's Russian invasion of Ukraine.The report…

New intelligence reviewed by U.S. officials suggests that a pro-Ukraine group - likely comprised of Ukrainians or Russians - attacked the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September, but there are no firm conclusions, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.There was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy or other Ukrainian government officials were behind the attacks which spewed natural gas into the Baltic Sea, the newspaper reported, citing U.S. officials.Reuters could not independently verify the report.The Sept.

Dutch marine services and towage firm KOTUG has closed the acquisition of Seaways, first announced in April. The fee was not disclosed."The acquisition of Seaways brings together the assets, expertise and people of two leading companies that support the worldwide floating facility business such as FSO, FPSO, FLNG, FSRU and SPM Terminals. With all customary, governmental, and other required approvals, KOTUG will now focus on the integration of Seaways and strengthening its leading presence in the floating offshore market…

KOTUG's subsidiary KOTUG Guyana has been awarded a second contract by ExxonMobil affiliate Esso Exploration and Production Guyana to support operations in Guyana. KOTUG’s latest addition, the 120 tonnes bollard pull strong SD Honour, will join the fleet of dedicated offshore terminal tugs supporting the two floating production, storage and offloading vessels (FPSOs), Liza Destiny and Liza Unity, on the Stabroek Block, offshore Guyana with static tow, push-pull duties and general…

Dutch marine services and towage company KOTUG has agreed to buy offshore support vessel firm Seaways International, in what is the largest acquisition in KOTUG's history.KOTUG said the move, of an undisclosed value, was part of its strategy to expand its business in assisting worldwide floating facilities such as FSO, FPSO, FLNG, FSRU, and SPM Terminals. "In addition, it will further consolidate the position of KOTUG in this niche market that is expected to grow as new offshore floating projects emerge in response to rising energy demand…

KOTUG International B.V. and Shift Clean Energy announced the formation of a partnership to use Shift’s new PwrSwäp clean energy service—which uses swappable batteries on a pay-as-you-go basis—on KOTUG’s E-Pusher vessels.The signing of the MoU coincides with COP26 in Glasgow, where reducing global greenhouse gases (GHGs) is at the top of the agenda. The combined services support the maritime industry in reaching this goal today, without requiring any upfront capital costs and at competitive rates, the partners said.Shift’s technologies provide a ready to market pay-as-you-go service.

Australian mining giant BHP has taken two KOTUG's tugs on long-term charters to support bulk carrier loadings at Port Hedland, Australia.KOTUG, a Dutch marine services and towage company, said Thursday, its new build Rotortugs RT Imperieuse and RT Clerke had arrived in Port Hedland.Both 32m ART80-32 tugs, built at Cheoy Lee Shipyard, have three Caterpillar main engines, that deliver a total output of 5,295kW each, 13 knots sailing speed, and 80 tons bollard pull power. They are equipped with advanced DMT Escort Winches.

KOTUG International B.V. (KOTUG) established an inland shipping division to provide electric powered pusher tugs and smart AI-driven dispatch and route planning applications for the inland water transportation industry, aiming to support the worldwide energy transition and the modal shift from road transport to waterways while meeting the growing demand for electric-powered vessels. "The inland shipping market offers a great opportunity for sustainable logistical solutions," says Ard-Jan Kooren, CEO of KOTUG International B.V.

Dutch marine services and towage company KOTUG said it has been awarded a long-term contract by ExxonMobil affiliate Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) to provide offshore terminal towage support for operations in Guyana.KOTUG, through local entity KOTUG Guyana Inc., will employ a high-spec 130 tonnes bollard pull, DP-2 azimuth anchor-handling tug SD Power to provide support to the existing and upcoming floating production, storage and offloading units (FPSO) at the Liza Field in the prolific Stabroek Block offshore Guyana by providing towage assistance to export tankers…

KOTUG International B.V. has completed the 100% acquisition of Marsol International Ltd., an offshore and marine terminal service center, specialized in offshore single point mooring (SPM) buoy terminals and its related infrastructure.The core business of Marsol is integrity management based commercial and technical marine service solutions for SPM and offshore terminals. Over the years Marsol’s management has operated on 32 offshore marine terminals in more than 20 countries. Marsol’s operational headquarters are based in Dubai.

Dutch salvage and towage company Kotug said that its two tugs have helped to rescue a containership hit by fire while sailing off the coast of East Africa.The 2,503-teu Oinousses (built 2000) was sailing sailing from Maputo to Mombasa, off the coast of Mozambique after the vessel sustained an engine room fire.On the night of January 20, two Rotortugs of KOTUG International picked up the Mayday signal of the container vessel EM-Oinousses having a devastating fire in the engine room.Although the vessel’s crew adequately extinguished the fire, at approximately 50 miles off the coast of Nacala, Mozambique, the ship appeared to be uncontrollable.The salvage was carried out by KOTUG’S Rotortugs RT Spirit and RT Magic.

A containership lost steering off the coast of Mozambique on Monday after its crew put out an engine room fire on board the 680-foot vessel.Towage operator KOTUG International said two of its vessels responded after picking up a mayday call from the Marshall-Islands-flagged Em Oinousses, approximately 50 miles off the coast of Nacala, Mozambique, while en route from Maputo, Mozambique to Mombasa, Kenya.KOTUG said its Rotortugs RT Spirit and RT Magic carried out the salvage in high seas, making quick connections to the disabled vessel for tow into Nacala.

KOTUG Australia and Teekay Shipping Australia Pty Ltd. have reached a deal to reshape KT Maritime Services Australia Pty Ltd. (KTM) from a 50/50 joint venture to a full subsidiary of the KOTUG group. KTM was incorporated in 2012 to serve the Australian towage market. Now, after several years of working with KOTUG to establish this business, Teekay will exit KTM to focus on its Australian ship management, crewing and consultancy businesses. The deal received unanimous approval from the boards of both parent companies and was executed in the first week of April 2018.