Chennai News

Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has announced that the State of Maryland has reached a final settlement of $2.25 billion with Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Pte Ltd., the owner and operator of the M/V Dali, resolving the State’s claims against those parties arising from the cargo ship’s March 26, 2024 allision with the Francis Scott Key Bridge. On the morning of March 26, 2024, the M/V Dali crashed into a supporting column of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing its catastrophic collapse.

The U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday a grand jury indicted two foreign operators and a shoreside superintendent in the March 2024 collision of the 984-foot cargo ship Dali that destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and killed six construction workers.The Justice Department said the collision caused at least $5 billion in damage and significant environmental damage. The National Transportation Safety Board found a single loose wire in the electrical system caused a breaker to unexpectedly open…

DP World has acquired a 5,000+ TEU container vessel, DP World Chennai, integrating it into its Red Sea Gulf–India service to strengthen trade links between India and the Middle East.The vessel has been deployed on the route with its maiden call at Jebel Ali, lifting DP Wordl Shipping Solutions’ owned capacity to over 6 million TEU and aimed at enhancing schedule reliability across key regional markets."The acquisition of DP World Chennai enhances our capability to offer consistent…

Indian state-owned Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders said it would buy a controlling stake in Sri Lankan peer Colombo Dockyard in a deal not exceeding $52.96 million to grow its shipbuilding and repair business.The transaction, involving the acquisition of at least 51% equity in Colombo Dockyard, will close within six months, after which the Sri Lankan shipbuilder will become a part of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, according to a regulatory filing on Friday.Colombo Dockyard was not immediately available for comment outside business hours.Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders also builds warships and submarines, and

Authorities in the southern Indian state of Kerala are racing to contain an oil spill in the Arabian Sea after the Liberia-flagged container vessel MSC ELSA3 sank over the weekend, releasing fuel and more than 100 cargo containers into the water.The vessel was en route from Vizhinjam to Kochi when it capsized approximately 38 nautical miles off the Kerala coast on Saturday. All 24 crew members were safely rescued, according to local officials. The cause of the incident has not yet been disclosed.The Kerala chief minister’s office confirmed Sunday that the entire ship is now submerged.

DP World’s ports and terminals handled a record 88.3 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2024, up 8.3% year-on-year, despite macroeconomic headwinds and concerns over the outlook for global trade.The global logistics business, which now can handle over 100 million TEU across operations in 78 countries, benefitted from long-term infrastructure investment, contributing to strong growth and new services calling at its terminals.While the Red Sea crisis posed a significant challenge to global shipping in 2024…

Nearly 20,000 workers across major Indian ports, who had threatened to go on an indefinite strike from Wednesday, called off their walkout late on Tuesday, after agreeing to a new five-year deal.The agreement averted further issues in an already-strained global supply chain, which is struggling with higher freight costs and congestion at major Asian and European ports.The workers' unions agreed to an 8.5% pay increase over a period of five years, according to a document signed by union leaders…

India and Russia will explore the possibility of using new transport corridors such as the Northern Sea Route and Eastern Maritime Corridor between Vladivostok and Chennai to widen maritime cooperation, the Indian government said on Wednesday.A decision to work towards this was made during a meeting between India's Ports, Shipping and Waterways minister, Sarbananda Sonowal, and Russia's Development of the Far East and Arctic minister, A.O.

Classification society the Indian Register of Shipping said it has opened a new office in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. The premises were recently inaugurated and has been operational since February 1, 2022.Coimbatore is one of the most industrialized cities in Tamil Nadu with a diversified manufacturing sector including more than 25,000 small, medium and large-scale industries. IRS has serviced this region through its Cochin office in the past, however with increase in business opportunities…

Indian Oil Corp (IOC) , the country's top refiner, has loaded its first cargo of Iraq's newly introduced Basra Medium crude grade, according to ship-tracking data from Refinitiv Eikon and a source with knowledge of the matter.IOC loaded the cargo onto Minerva Kalypso, a Suezmax-sized vessel, which left Iraq's southern port of Basra on Jan. 4, the data showed.The ship is expected to arrive at Chennai port in southeastern India for IOC's subsidiary Chennai Petroleum Corp (CPCL) around Jan. 14.Iraq's state oil marketing company (SOMO) launched the new sour crude grade in January by splitting existing Basra Light production into two grades to provide better quality stability."From this year IOC will get all three grades - Basra Light…

Synergy Group and D.S. Norden have formed a new 50/50 joint venture to handle the technical management of Norden’s owned tanker vessels. Norden Synergy Ship Management (NSSM) will be headed by Henrik Christensen who previously managed Norden’s Technical Department.“We see great alignment when we have partnered previously and we expect that to lead to more mutual wins in the future through NSSM,” said Captain Rajesh Unni, CEO & Founder of Synergy Group.The formation of NSSM further cements the partnership between Synergy Group…

Customs officials at Chennai, one of India’s biggest ports, have held shipments originating from China for extra checks, sources aware of the delays told Reuters, amid a backlash against China over a border clash in which 20 Indian soldiers died.The increased scrutiny on shipments from China at Chennai Port, which handles various cargo including automobiles, auto components, fertilizers and petroleum products, could disrupt supply chains.While there is no official order from the government yet…

Norwegian technology enterprise Kongsberg Maritime announced that contracts have been signed for the sale of a HUGIN AUV System to the Indian National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), located in Chennai, India.According to a statement from Kongsberg Maritime India, the HUGIN AUV System ordered by NIOT is rated to a depth of 6,000 metres and will be equipped with a Kongsberg HISAS 1032 synthetic aperture sonar and EM2040 multibeam echosounder, designed for hydrographic and seabed classification applications.It will also carry a high-resolution colour still image camera, plus a range of environmental sensors for oceanographic surveys, including a magnetometer.

Doha-based liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer Qatargas has supplied a commissioning LNG cargo for India's newest LNG receiving terminal, Mundra.The cargo was loaded in Ras Laffan on 17 January 2020 on the Q-Flex LNG vessel, Murwab, with an overall cargo carrying capacity of 216,000 cubic meters. It arrived at Mundra terminal on 22 January 2020.Mundra is the second LNG terminal that Qatargas helped commission in India within the past year. It followed an earlier commissioning cargo which was delivered by the Company to the Ennore LNG receiving terminal, near the southern Indian city of Chennai, in February 2019.The Mundra terminal is located in Adani Ports and Special Economic zone in the Kutch district of the western Indian state of Gujarat.

State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC) said it has commenced delivery of Low Sulfur Furnace Oil (LSFO) for ships that is compliant with International Maritime Organisation's (IMO) mandate.The largest commercial oil company in India said in a press release that it commenced deliveries of LSFO with 0.5 per cent sulfur as marine fuel at ports in the country.The first such supply was made on 26th October 2019 to the LPG tanker Berlian Ekuator at Kandla port.ICO has made available LSFO 0.5% S grade marine fuel for immediate deliveries at Kandla and Kochi ports. Bunker fuel deliveries at other Indian ports Mumbai, Mangalore, Tuticorin, Chennai…

In the 2019 first half, 106,000 TEU - 20-ft standard containers - were handled in Hamburg on direct services with Indian ports, a gain of 17 percent. This brought India up into tenth place in Hamburg’s ranking of its trading partners for container transport.With Hapag Lloyd and its partner shipowners ONE, YML and COSCO offering an additional weekly sailing from Hamburg on the IEX - South-East India–Europe Express service from November onwards, the prospects for further growth are good.Ten liner services link the Port of Hamburg with India. Of these, four are container liner services, three are Ro-Ro services transporting vehicles, and three are general cargo services…

Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), the largest shipbuilding and maintenance facility in India, announced the Keel Laying ceremony of Marine Ambulance boats being built for the Department of Fisheries, Government of Kerala.Mrs. J Mercykutty Amma,  Minister of Fisheries, Government of Kerala did the honours in a function held at CSL.The formal start of construction of the first of the series of three marine ambulance boats was carried out in the presence of senior officials from State Fisheries Department, BPCL and Indian Register of Shipping. The directors and employees of CSL were also present during the ceremony. The Minister appreciated…

India has become the first country in the world to issue Bio-metric Seafarer Identity Document (BSID), capturing the facial bio-metric data of seafarers.Mansukh Mandaviya, the Minister of Shipping launched the project in New Delhi yesterday (August 28). He also handed over the new BSID cards to five Indian seafarers.The new facial biometric technology is a marked improvement over the two finger or iris based bio-metric data, with modern security features. It will make the identification of the SID holder more reliable and efficient, while protecting their dignity and privacy. India had made a presentation on this technology at International Labour Organization (ILO).Mandaviya said that the country is moving ahead rapidly under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Ocean Network Express (ONE)  announced the launch of a new direct service, the Indian Ocean Service 3 (IO3), which covers South East India, Mediterranean, and North Europe.The new product will offer new port coverage and boost reliability to a wider range of direct port call options to ONE’s valued customers, the Japanese container shipping company said in a press release.It will also further expand ONE’s already comprehensive service offerings and allow its clients to enjoy greater choice while bringing efficiency and additional values to the supply chain, the release added.The first sailing of the loop is now expected to start from…

India's navy has deployed two ships in the Gulf of Oman to ensure safe passage for Indian-flagged vessels, the country's defense ministry said late on Thursday, a week after two oil tankers were attacked in the region.The United States has blamed Iran for the attacks on a Norwegian-owned and a Japanese-owned tanker, raising concerns about further U.S.-Iranian confrontation. Tehran has denied the allegation.Indian naval ships named Chennai and Sunayna have been "deployed in the Gulf of Oman and Persian Gulf to undertake maritime security operations…

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), India’s largest private multi-port operator, reported a 41.45 percent surge in its consolidated net profit to INR 1,314.19 crore (USD 188.4million) for the quarter ended on March 31, 2019.However, its revenue fell 3.15 percent to INR 31 billion, said a stock exchange annoucement. Its coal volumes rose 30 percent year-on-year during the quarter, while the cargo volume increased 19 percent.The company also reported a record cargo throughput of 54 million metric tonnes in the three months ended March, according to the filing. Adani Ports in March had said it became the first Indian port operator to record a 200 MMT cargo movement.The Press Trust of India quoted Karan Adani…

GAC has handled the first tanker to berth at the newly constructed Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal inside Kamarajar Port, Ennore in Chennai, India. The Marshall Islands-flagged LNG carrier ‘LNG/C Golar Snow’ was carrying the first consignment of 78,037m³ of LNG from Ras Laffan in Qatar for the commissioning of the terminal.Agency operations were overseen by Captain Srinivasan Sethumadhavan, General Manager of Shipping Services at GAC’s Chennai Office, who is optimistic about…

Qatargas, the world’s largest LNG producer, supplied a commissioning cargo for India’s Ennore LNG receiving terminal, near the southern Indian city of Chennai.The commissioning LNG cargo was delivered onboard the vessel ‘Golar Snow’ on 25th February 2019 by the Swiss commodity trader, Gunvor, to the state-owned Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), which owns and operates the five million tonnes per annum (MTPA) terminal. Qatargas sold the cargo Free On Board (FOB) basis to Gunvor.Ennore will be India’s fifth operational LNG terminal and the first LNG terminal on the East Coast of India. Once fully commissioned, Ennore will provide regasified LNG to anchor customers…