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Clarence Fernandez News

14 Mar 2024

Taiwan and China Launch Rescue Operation After Boat Capsizes Near Sensitive Islands

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Taiwan dispatched coast guard boats on Thursday to join a rescue mission at China's request after a fishing vessel capsized near the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen islands, amid heightened tension in the sensitive Taiwan Strait.China claims democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, over the island's strong objections, and has stepped up military activities near it in recent years, with almost daily incursions into air defence identification zones.Authorities on both sides sent the rescue boats after a Chinese fishing vessel capsized in the early hours, Taiwan's coast guard said in a state

05 Mar 2024

Singapore's Temasek Shortlists Saudi Aramco, Shell in Sale of Pavilion Energy Assets

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Singapore's Temasek Holdings has shortlisted energy giants Shell and Saudi Aramco among a handful of companies to purchase most of the assets of liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading firm Pavilion Energy, sources with knowledge of the matter said.The sale process comes a decade after the state investment firm set up Pavilion Energy to focus on LNG-related investments, and takes place as spot Asian LNG prices LNG-AS have fallen more than 40% since mid-August, potentially weighing on the deal's valuation.Temasek is evaluating bids for the sale of Pavilion Energy's assets…

16 Jan 2024

Qatari LNG Tankers Resume Course Via Red Sea

© moofushi / Adobe Stock

Four tankers used for shipments of Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) have resumed course after pausing for several days amid maritime attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis in the Red Sea, LSEG shiptracking data showed on Tuesday.The Houthi attacks, in what they call a bid to support Palestinians in the war with Israel, have disrupted trade on the main East-West route that makes up about 12% of global shipping traffic.On Monday, the Houthi movement vowed to widen its targets in the Red Sea region to U.S. ships, following U.S.

30 Nov 2023

Japan Urged to Scale up Offshore Wind Auctions

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International energy companies, from Germany's RWE to Spain's Iberdrola, are urging Japan to beef up offshore wind power auctions and make investments more attractive, amid soaring installation costs as competition for suppliers grows worldwide.Although desperate to ease its heavy dependence on energy imports from the Middle East and Russia, Japan is coming late to offshore wind, but some industry players say it is taking a more cautious approach that puts it at a disadvantage."It's a global race and we can't look at it in isolation…

04 Oct 2023

Exxon Mobil Finds Buyer for Adriatic LNG Terminal Stake

Credit: Adriatic LNG

Exxon Mobil Corp chose BlackRock as the potential buyer for its majority stake in Italy's main liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal, the U.S. oil producer said in a statement.The stake sale drew interest from infrastructure funds and international groups as Italy is expected to increase its LNG imports to partly replace the gas it used to get via pipeline from Russia.In March, Exxon said it was considering selling its 70.68% interest in the offshore Adriatic LNG Terminal…

14 Sep 2023

China's 'Teapot' Refiners Mop Up Swelling Iranian Crude, Defying US Curbs

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Appetite for Iranian crude is growing in China, the world's biggest oil importer, after the extension of supply cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia boosted global prices, while Tehran is stepping up output and exports despite U.S. sanctions.Although China's "teapots", or small independent refiners, are stocking up on Iran's discounted oil as they exploit robust margins to fill strong seasonal demand, big state refiners are still keeping away.Iran's crude exports of about 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) stand at their highest in more than four years…

11 Jul 2023

Indonesia Seizes Iranian-Flagged Supertanker Suspected of Illegal Oil Transfer

Indonesia's coast guard said on Tuesday it seized an Iranian-flagged supertanker suspected of involvement in the illegal transshipment of crude oil, and vowed to toughen maritime patrols.The MT Arman 114 was carrying 272,569 metric tons of light crude oil, valued at 4.6 trillion rupiah ($304 million), when it was seized last week, the Indonesian authorities said.The Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) was suspected of transferring oil to another vessel without a permit on Friday, the Southeast Asian nation's maritime security agency said.The vessel was captured after being spotted in Indonesia's North Natuna Sea, carrying out a ship-to-ship oil transfer with the Cameroon-flagged MT S Tinos, the agency's chief, Aan Kurnia, said.

03 Jul 2023

EU Weighs Concession to Russian Bank over Black Sea Grain Deal

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The European Union is considering a proposal for the Russian Agricultural Bank to set up a subsidiary to reconnect to the global financial network as a sop to Moscow, the Financial Times said on Monday.With the bank under sanctions, the move aims to safeguard the Black Sea grain deal that allows Ukraine to export food to global markets, the newspaper said.The European Commission had no comment while the Kremlin on Monday, in response to a question about the report, said it had…

15 Jun 2023

Shipwreck Off Greece Claims the Lives of at Least 78 Migrants. Search Underway for Survivors

©Hellenic Coast Guard

Rescuers scoured seas off Greece on Thursday in a massive search operation, as hopes dwindled of finding survivors of a shipwreck that killed at least 78 migrants in one of Europe's deadliest such disasters in recent years.Reports suggested hundreds of people had packed the fishing boat that capsized and sank early on Wednesday in deep waters about 50 miles (80 km) from the southern coastal town of Pylos, while being shadowed by the Greek coast guard. As dawn broke on Thursday, a coast guard vessel sailed into the nearby port city of Kalamata, transferring victims.

24 May 2023

China Scales Down Rescue Effort as Hope Fades for Missing Crew of Capsized Fishing Vessel

Credit: Sri Lanka Navy

China scaled down a rescue effort for crew missing from a capsized fishing vessel, after concluding that very few air pockets remained to keep alive any trapped survivors, state media said on Tuesday.Seven bodies were retrieved from the fishing vessel, the "Lupeng Yuanyu 028", after it capsized last week in a central area of the Indian Ocean with a crew of 39 aboard, state media have said.The ministries of transport and agriculture, along with authorities in eastern Shandong province…

15 May 2023

Philippines Places Buoys to Assert Sovereignty in South China Sea

The Philippines has placed navigational buoys within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) to assert sovereignty over the disputed Spratly islands in the South China Sea, a coast guard spokesperson said on Sunday.The step comes amid China's increasingly aggressive actions in the South China Sea as Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr pursues warmer ties with treaty ally the United States.The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said it set up five buoys carrying the national flag from May 10 to 12 in five areas within the 200-mile (322-km) zone, including the Whitsun Reef, where hundreds of Chinese m

10 May 2023

India Eyes Green Hydrogen Bunkering at Major Ports by 2035

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India has set a deadline of 2035 to establish green hydrogen bunkering and refuelling facilities at major ports in the drive to cut its carbon footprint, the shipping ministry said in guidelines issued on Wednesday.One of the world's biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, India aims to cut emissions to net zero by 2070, and the shipping minister said three of its ports would initially have bunker facilities for green hydrogen and ammonia."Our target is to cover all 12 major parts with a green hydrogen bunkering facility by 2035," Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal told Reuters.The initial por

04 May 2023

How Will China's Clampdown on Mislabelled Cargoes Affect Sanctioned Oil?

Illustration only - ©Igor Kardasov

Chinese customs authorities are stepping up inspection checks on cargoes of heavy crude oil after uncovering several Iranian shipments that were mislabelled as diluted bitumen in an effort to bypass import quotas.The checks, begun a month ago, are delaying oil discharges into the eastern refining hub of Shandong province.They are also adding to uncertainty over the risk of disruption to shipments from Iran and Venezuela, while cutting into refining operations just as fuel demand recovers.

28 Apr 2023

Shots Fired in "Incident" Involving Vessel Off Yemen

Britain's Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said on Friday a vessel off Yemen's southern coast was involved in an "incident" with a government boat, downgrading the event from its initial assessment of an attack.The agency had previously said the vessel was under attack and that shots were fired, adding that three boats, each with three or four people aboard, were also sighted.UKMTO later said it had confirmed the event by authorities as government agency activity, terming the event incident rather than an attack.Yemen's coast guard, when contacted by Reuters, confirmed a report in Yeme

22 Mar 2023

China Firm Wins Solomon Islands Port Project as Australia Watches On

The Solomon Islands has awarded a multi-million-dollar contract to a Chinese state company to upgrade an international port in Honiara in a project funded by the Asian Development Bank, an official of the island nation said on Wednesday.The United States and its allies, including Australia, New Zealand and Japan, have held concerns that China has ambitions to build a naval base in the region since the Solomon Islands struck a security pact with Beijing last year."This will be upgrading the old international port in Honiara and two domestic wharves in the provinces…

16 Jan 2023

Indonesia Dispatches Warship to Monitor Chinese Coast Guard Vessel Near Offshore Fields

©Harbour Energy

Indonesia has deployed a warship to its North Natuna Sea to monitor a Chinese coast guard vessel that has been active in a resource-rich maritime area, the country's naval chief said on Saturday of an area that both countries claim as their own.Ship tracking data shows the vessel, CCG 5901, has been sailing in the Natuna Sea, particularly near the Tuna Bloc gas field and the Vietnamese Chim Sao oil and gas field since Dec. 30, the Indonesian Ocean Justice Initiative told Reuters.A warship…

13 Dec 2022

Turkey Strikes Deal on New Crude Tanker Insurance Regulations

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Turkey welcomed an agreement reached with its counterparts on Tuesday that allows the continuation of a new regulation requiring crude oil tankers to present an insurance confirmation letter before transiting Turkish straits.The Turkish measures, which came into effect on Dec. 1, require vessels to provide proof of insurance for the duration of transit through the Bosphorus or when calling at Turkish ports.The regulation has caused shipping delays, with up to 20 tankers waiting at the same time in the Black Sea last week, as they worked to present the necessary documents.

13 Dec 2022

Eight Oil Tankers Wait to Pass through Istanbul's Bosphorus Strait

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The number of tankers waiting to pass through Istanbul's Bosphorus Strait on the way to the Mediterranean fell to eight on Tuesday from 13 a day earlier, the Tribeca shipping agency said, in a further easing of the recent build-up in traffic.A Turkish measure in force since the start of the month has caused shipping delays. It requires vessels to provide proof of insurance for the duration of transit through the Bosphorus Strait or when calling at Turkish ports.Five tankers were set to go southbound through the Bosphorus on Tuesday, Tribeca said.

09 Dec 2022

Deepening Turkey Tanker Logjam Snarls Russia Oil Sanctions

Turkey emerged as a critical stumbling block to a complex international plan to deprive Russia of wartime oil revenues as the number of tankers waiting to exit the Black Sea through Turkish straits continued to rise on Friday.Ankara has declined to scrap a new insurance inspection rule it implemented at the beginning of the month despite days of pressure from Western officials frustrated by the policy.A total of 28 oil tankers are in a queue seeking to leave the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, the Tribeca shipping agency said on Friday.G7 wealthy countries, the European Union and Australia agreed to bar providers of shipping services…

09 Dec 2022

20 Oil Tankers Wait to Cross Istanbul's Bosphorus Strait

©Wilding/AdobeStock

One more tanker took to 20 on Friday the number of vessels waiting in the Black Sea to pass through Istanbul's Bosphorus Strait on the way to the Mediterranean, the Tribeca shipping agency said, amid talks to disperse the build-up.On Thursday, dismissing pressure from abroad over the lengthening queue, Turkey's maritime authority said it would continue to keep out of its waters oil tankers that lacked the appropriate insurance letters, and it needed time for checks.Eight tankers were also waiting for passage through the Dardanelles strait into the Mediterranean…

10 Nov 2022

Snam Confirms 2022 Guidance, aims to boost Italy's Gas Storage & Transport Facilities

Italian gas grid operator Snam confirmed on Thursday its guidance for full-year net profit after reporting a rise of 10% in nine-month revenue to 2.4 billion euros ($2.41 billion). The state-controlled group said it planned to boost Italy's gas storage and transport facilities after getting the go-ahead to set up two new LNG terminals. The new floating LNG terminals and investments in gas infrastructure are part of a broader effort by the Italian government to replace dwindling Russian gas supplies and keep a lid on energy costs. The gas grid operator reported a decline of 9% in gas consumption by the industrial sector between January and September, in a sign that companies in Italy have cut activity in the face of high commodity prices and supply difficulties.

21 Oct 2022

Europe's Largest Port Sees Throughput Nearly Flat in 2022; LNG, Coal Rise

©Port of Rotterdam

Throughput volumes for Europe's largest port of Rotterdam have risen 0.3% to 351 million tonnes in the first nine months of 2022, officials said on Friday, as strong rises in coal and LNG offset the loss of container traffic with Russia.Such traffic, which had made up around 8% of Rotterdam's total in recent years, had "practically stopped", they said, while LNG and coal replaced Russian energy sources such as natural gas that would have come to Europe by pipeline."The total volume makes it seem as if it is business as usual in the port…

05 Oct 2022

Cargill Seeks to Boost Ships' Use of Biofuel, Methanol to Cut Emissions

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Cargill seeks to boost its use of biofuels in a bunkering trial and plans to order methanol-fuelled ships as part of its plans to cut emissions, a senior executive of the global commodities trader said on Wednesday.One of the world's biggest ship charterers, Cargill has been testing the operational performance of biofuels in its vessels since the start of the year as it steps up efforts to go green. The trial aims to boost vessels' use of biofuels to 50,000 tonnes by mid- or end-2023…