Guinea News

Oslo-listed dry bulk operator Western Bulk reported a marked earnings recovery in the second half of 2025, capitalizing on a broad-based rebound in freight markets and tighter effective vessel supply.According to the company’s Second Half Year Report 2025, Western Bulk generated a net profit after tax of USD 7.4 million in 2H 2025, compared with a net loss of USD 5.2 million in the same period a year earlier. For the full year, the group posted a net profit of USD 5.4 million…

Tsuneishi Shipbuilding’s Philippines-based yard Tsuneishi Heavy Industries has delivered the world’s first methanol dual-fuel KAMSARMAX bulk carrier, Brave Pioneer.By adopting methanol as a propulsion fuel, the vessel achieves a reduction of approximately 10% in carbon dioxide emissions, 80% in NOx and 99% in SOx compared with conventional vessels. The use of green methanol further enhances the vessel’s potential to reduce environmental impact.The vessel features both a shallow draft and low air draft, enabling access to a wide range of ports worldwide.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has detained the Australian flagged vessel Coral Adventurer, that grounded on December 27 off the coast in Papua New Guinea (PNG).The Coral Adventurer was carrying 80 passengers and 44 staff when it ran aground on a coral reef about 90 kilometers from Lae.No injuries have been reported, and the vessel has been refloated.AMSA detained the vessel based on the “reasonable suspicion that it is not seaworthy due to potential damage sustained…

After several years of volatility, 2025 became the year the global shipping markets began to reset. Not collapse—but recalibrate.According to Veson Nautical’s 2025 End-of-Year Market Report, the past year was defined by persistent geopolitical disruption, tightening environmental regulation and growing uncertainty over future fuel pathways. Red Sea instability continued to distort global trade flows, FuelEU Maritime and EU ETS added cost and complexity, and owners across nearly every sector adopted a more cautious stance toward fleet expansion.As the industry enters 2026…

Ivory Coast, the world's biggest cocoa producer, has sold 1.3 million tons of cocoa contracts for the 2025/26 October to March main crop, down from 1.4 million tons last year, amid concerns over declining harvests and production, two Coffee and Cocoa Council (CCC) sources told Reuters on Thursday.Despite what they said would be an expected 30% year-on-year drop in cocoa bean arrivals at the country's two main ports between January and March 2026, the CCC sources said no risk of…

Global trade flows have adjusted to new geopolitical developments last week, with Red Sea diversions maintaining their grip on vessel demand patterns. Against this backdrop, timecharter earnings hit their highest levels since October 2024, with Capesize rates leading the rally while smaller segments lagged behind. The S&P market saw continued interest in modern tonnage as owners position for tightening supply fundamentals. Values for 5YO Capesizes of 180,000 DWT have rallied impressively this year…

The Australian Border Force (ABF), Australian Federal Police, Queensland Police Service, and Papua New Guinea (PNG) authorities have successfully completed the latest Joint Cross Border Patrol in the Torres Strait.Running from September 22 to 27, officers visited communities in Daru, Sigabadaru and Ture Ture in PNG, and Saibai and Boigu Islands in the Torres Strait.The joint activity forms part of Australia and PNG's shared mission to protect the border from threats such as drugs and firearms trafficking…

Danish Shipping has launched an initiative to help build maritime competence and create opportunities for talented African cadets.Danish shipping companies and Danish authorities have a long history of cooperating closely with African partners, especially in the maritime sector.Building on successful partnerships between Danish shipping companies and African maritime institutions, the African Maritime Training Initiative aims to strengthen cooperation and create opportunities…

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met his Papua New Guinea counterpart James Marape in the capital of the largest Pacific Island nation on Wednesday for defense talks after plans to sign a landmark mutual defense treaty stalled.The two leaders instead signed a defense communique.Marape told reporters it was in the two countries' mutual interest to work side by side on defense."I made a conscious choice that Australia remains our security partner of choice," he said, adding Papua New Guinea could not defend its land and ocean space alone…

Between January and August 2025, Brazilian iron ore shipments are expected to rise 4% y/y, supported by stronger mining activity. Shipments to China have increased despite weaker demand, replacing shipments from Australia, Peru and India, says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.Brazil is the world’s second-largest exporter of iron ore, accounting for 23% of global shipments, while Australia leads with 54% of cargoes. Out of global shipments, 73% are destined for China while an additional 11% go to other East Asian countries.

There is an estimated 3.5 million square miles of ocean space suitable for finfish mariculture and about five times that suitable for seaweed production. It’s a potential that is being realized around the world as new projects generate benefits for rural communities, cities and the environment.In Papua New Guinea, the UN Sustainable Development Group is focusing on creating meaningful, sustainable livelihoods for women and youth in Kimbe Bay, a biodiversity hotspot that is home…

Current global economic and geopolitical landscapes are shaped by several key uncertainties. Tensions between Israel and Iran, particularly regarding the Strait of Hormuz, pose risks to regional stability and energy supply routes. Similarly, Houthi activity in the Red Sea threatens shipping through the Suez Canal. Oil sanctions continue to disrupt global energy markets, while evolving U.S. import tariffs add further complexity to international trade dynamics. Additionally, uncertainties…

Leaders of the four biggest Pacific Islands nations have delayed adopting a joint security strategy that could provide an opening for Beijing, against a backdrop of increasing rivalry between China, Australia and the United States in the Pacific Ocean.The Melanesian Spearhead Group, which includes Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Fiji, had been negotiating its first joint security framework, focused on maritime security.A meeting of the group's leaders on Monday in Fiji delayed a decision…

Anti-piracy equipment company Palaemon reports that security threats occurred over the past week in the Singapore Straits, Gulf of Guinea and Red Sea. The incidents include:• 32 pirates used eight boats to attack a tug boat in the Singapore Strait, stealing a large quantity of scrap metal. The crew remained unharmed. The pirates had three boats on the port side, four on the starboard side, and one boat in the rear. Each had 3-4 perpetrators onboard, with14 boarding the barge to steal the metal.• An armed assailants targeted multiple passenger boats on the Bonny River in Nigeria…

The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) is backing the US Federal Maritime Commission’s (FMC) domestic investigation into vessel flagging laws, including the long-abused practice of ‘Flags of Convenience’ (FOCs).The FMC announced its probe last week, citing serious concerns that states operating FOCs are enabling a “race to the bottom” in global maritime regulations."The FMC is absolutely right in its assessment of Flags of Convenience and the permissive environments they create for unscrupulous shipowners and operators…

By May this year, 158 cases of vessel abandonment had been recorded, up from 119 at the same point in 2024.These cases represent more than 1,501 seafarers who have reached out to the ITF for assistance, many of whom were left unpaid, without food, water or access to ports, often for months at a time.“Abandonment is a growing, systemic problem,” said Stephen Cotton, ITF General Secretary. “Behind every number is a human being who has been failed by the industry and the governments responsible for regulating it.

Emirates Global Aluminium's (EGA) subsidiary in Guinea has accumulated a stockpile of nearly two million metric tonnes of bauxite since the suspension of its operations last year, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday.EGA, equally owned by Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, and Dubai sovereign wealth fund the Investment Corporation of Dubai, operates one of the largest bauxite mines in Guinea through its Guinea Alumina Corporation (GAC) subsidiary.The standoff with Guinea's government highlights the aggressive push by the military authorities to increase benefit

Winward’s latest report, focused on Q1 2025, indicates a major change in how vessels experiencing GPS jamming are appearing on tracking maps.The average distance vessels “jump” to when their AIS is jammed grew from 600km in Q4 2024 to 6,300km in Q1 2025. “This distance completely disrupts trade and safety measures at sea, making it nearly impossible to track vessels within any realistic or relevant geographical vicinity,” says Windward.“The main GPS jamming patterns we saw in Q4 were dense areas and smaller circles.

A U.S. Coast Guard cutter crossing the Tasman Sea as part of maritime security cooperation with Australia and New Zealand knew Chinese naval ships were in the area but had no interaction with them, its commanding officer said on Tuesday.China's navy held live-fire exercises on Friday and Saturday in international waters between Australia and New Zealand that Australian officials have described as unprecedented. The drills forced airlines to change the paths of 49 commercial flights for safety reasons.The movements of the People's Liberation Army Navy frigate…

The term gamechanger is often over used enough to be rendered meaningless, but the huge Simandou mine in the West African country of Guinea is going to be just that as its start up is set to rock the seaborne iron ore market.The first cargoes from the project may arrive by the end of this year and it's expected that it will ramp up to its full capacity of 120 million metric tons per annum fairly quickly.The four blocks of Simandou are impressive in their scale and infrastructure challenges…

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has issued its annual Flag State Performance Table for 2024/25, voicing concerns about four newcomers.The Table provides an analysis of the extent to which flag State administrations adhere to their responsibilities to follow global standards and regulations governing safety, environmental protection and the employment conditions of seafarers – as adopted by the IMO and ILO.The latest ICS Table confirms that the vast majority of the global shipping industry is registered with flag States that strictly enforce global regulations…

The ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has reported an increase in the number of crew taken hostage or kidnapped in 2024.The IMB annual Piracy and Armed Robbery Report recorded 116 incidents against ships in 2024 compared to 120 in 2023 and 115 in 2022. It reveals that 94 vessels were boarded, 13 attempted attacks, six vessels hijacked and three fired upon.While the number of reported incidents in 2024 remains similar to those reported in 2023 and 2022, the number of crew taken hostage or kidnapped increased to 126 taken hostage in 2024 compared to 73 in 2023 and 41 in 2022.

At least five cargoes of LNG have diverted from Asia to Europe in the past few days, drawn by higher gas prices on the continent after Russia's Gazprom halted supplies to Austria's OMV, data from analytics firm Kpler showed.On Saturday Gazprom halted supplies to top Austrian gas importer OMV after OMV threatened to impound some of the Russian state firm's gas as compensation for an arbitration it had won over a contractual dispute.Gazprom notified OMV of the planned halt on Friday…