Port Of Bandar Abbas News

Iran's use of a swarm of small, fast boats to seize two container ships near the Strait of Hormuz could undermine suggestions U.S. forces have disabled its naval threat and reveals the challenges facing reopening one of the world's most important oil export routes.U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday acknowledged that while Iran’s conventional navy had been largely destroyed, its "fast-attack ships" had not been considered much of a threat.He said any such vessels coming near a U.S.

Two container ships seized by Iran near the Strait of Hormuz with about 40 crew aboard have been taken toward the port of Bandar Abbas, sources said on Thursday, Tehran having vowed to retaliate after U.S. forces seized an Iranian vessel three days earlier.Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized the ships on Wednesday, one operated by MSC, the world's biggest container shipping group, and according to three sources, the other chartered by the firm."Some 20 Iranians armed to the teeth stormed the ship.

Dozens of commercial ships have dropped anchor at a distance outside Iran's port limits in recent days, according to data and shipping sources, as tensions with the United States grow.Such movements were precautionary given the tensions amid ongoing protests in Iran, the shipping sources said. Port limits are significant because they run a higher risk of collateral damage in the event of air strikes on nearby infrastructure.The U.S. is withdrawing some personnel from bases in the Middle East, a U.S.

Two oil tankers collided and caught fire on Tuesday near the Strait of Hormuz, where electronic interference has surged during conflict between Iran and Israel, but there were no injuries to crew or spillage reported.With Iran and Israel firing missiles at each other since Friday, interference has disrupted navigation systems near the vital sea route between Iran and Oman which handles about a fifth of the world's oil.The United Arab Emirates coast guard said it had evacuated 24 people from one of the ships…

The death toll from a powerful explosion at Iran's biggest port of Bandar Abbas has risen to at least 40, with more than 1,200 people injured, state media reported on Sunday, as firefighters worked to fully extinguish the fire.Saturday's blast took place in the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, Iran's biggest container hub, shattering windows for several kilometres around, tearing metal strips off shipping containers and badly damaging goods inside, state media said.The incident…

The Iranian Navy frigate Sahand entirely sank in shallow waters on Tuesday in the southern port of Bandar Abbas, Nournews agency said, after it was briefly repositioned following its initial capsizing on Sunday."The Sahand warship, which was rebalanced on the water with great difficulty on Monday, has now sunk after the rope holding the ship broke," said Nournews, a news agency affiliated to the Supreme National Security Council.On Sunday, state media said the ship had capsized during repairs at a wharf due to water ingress and that efforts were being made to rebalance it.The Iranian-built ste

The Iranian navy frigate Sahand capsized during repairs in the southern port of Bandar Abbas, Iranian state media reported on Sunday."As Sahand was being repaired at the wharf, it lost its balance due to water ingress. Fortunately ...the vessel is being returned to balance quickly," the official news agency IRNA reported, citing a navy statement.It did not specify when the accident occurred. State media carried a picture of a capsized ship and said several people were taken to hospital with minor injuries.(Reuters - Reporting by Dubai Newsroom)

Greece issued a series of warnings to shipowners to avoid sailing close to Iranian waters days before Tehran seized two tankers amid heightening tensions in the region, according to documents and industry sources.Iran seized a second oil tanker in a week on Wednesday in Gulf waters, the U.S.

Iran could send two to three cargoes a month in regular gasoline sales to ally Venezuela, sources say, helping offload domestic oversupply but risking retaliation from U.S. President Donald Trump who has sanctions on both nations.Iran has since April sent five tankers totalling about 1.5 million barrels to the leftist government of fuel-starved Venezuela, though the shipments have done little to alleviate hours-long lines at gas stations.The Trump administration, which is seeking both to block Iran's energy trade and bring down Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, has threatened reprisals and warned ports, shipping companies and insurers against facilitating the tankers.But Tehran plans to keep up the shipments…

Two Iranian tankers that delivered fuel to Venezuela as part of a five-vessel flotilla have begun to sail back, according to Refinitiv Eikon, as the government of the South American nation prepares stations to begin charging for the gasoline.The supply is meant to ease fuel shortages that have plagued the country. After three months of fuel rationing, Venezuelans began lining up on Saturday to wait for the Iranian gasoline to be sold at stations from Monday under a new system combining subsidies and internationally-indexed prices.The model will put an end to over two decades of Venezuelans filling up their tanks for next to nothing.The two first Iranian tankers that discharged fuel last week departed over the weekend from state-run PDVSA's ports.

Somewhere on its journey from the waters off Iran, around Africa's southern tip and into the Mediterranean, the Grace 1 oil tanker lost the flag under which it sailed and ceased to be registered to Panama. Iran later claimed it as its own.The ship carrying 2 million barrels of Iranian crude was seized by British Royal Marines off Gibraltar, raising tensions in the Gulf where Iran detained a UK-flagged ship in retaliation.Grace 1 remains impounded, not because of its flag but because it was suspected of taking oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions, an allegation that Iran denies.Yet Panama's move on May 29 to strike it from its register…

The British operator of the tanker seized by Tehran, Stena Bulk, made a request on Sunday, July 21st, to visit the 23 crew members of the seized tanker Stena Impero, and is expecting a response from the Iranian government.A statement from the tanker operator quoted President and Chief Executive of Stena Bulk, Erik Hanell, as saying: “I can confirm a formal request for permission to visit the 23 crew members of the Stena Impero has been made to the authorities at the Port of Bandar Abbas.“The request has been acknowledged, but we await a formal response. In the meantime, we will continue to co-operate and liaise with all appropriate authorities.Hanell…

Italian police discovered 270 kg (600 lb) of heroin hidden in a container that arrived aboard a ship from Iran, the biggest such haul for at least 20 years in Italy, police said on Thursday.The freighter had set sail from the Iranian Gulf port of Bandar Abbas and stopped off in Hamburg, Germany and Valencia, Spain before reaching the Italian port of Genoa on Oct. 17, where police discovered the heroin stashed away in a consignment of Bentonite clay.A police spokesman said investigators were not sure when or where the drugs were brought onto the ship.Police allowed a small portion of the illicit cargo to continue its planned journey by truck to the Netherlands.They tracked the vehicle as it crossed Switzerland…

Danish container shipping company Maersk Line has added Iranian Port of Bushehr to its services, expanding its presence in this Middle-Eastern country. The new port specializes in feeder transport facilities. From Jebel Ali in the United Arab Emirates, the first sailing on a direct and weekly feeder connection to Bushehr commenced on January 4, 2017. Bushehr is the largest and most important port for transportation of commercial goods within the Bushehr province in Iran. With a total throughput of 7 million tons, this port is capable of offering services for all containerized cargos, and most significantly refrigerated products. The firm has deployed Inter Sydney, a 3,400 TEU containership, in the service.

Last week Antwerp Port Authority signed a collaboration agreement with Shahid Rajaee Port Authority which controls the port of Bandar Abbas in Iran. Bandar Abbas accounts for 90% of the in- and outgoing containers of Iran and for nearly half of the 200 million tonnes of freight handled by the 11 Iranian ports put together. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed at the headquarters of the Ports & Maritime Organisation in Teheran which is responsible for managing these 11 ports. The agreement runs for a period of five years, after which it can be renewed. Eddy Bruyninckx, who signed the agreement on behalf of Antwerp Port Authority…

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) has signed a business agreement with the Iranian government on operation and technology instruction for Iranian state-run shipbuilder Iran Shipbuilding & Offshore Industries Complex Co. (ISOICO), reports the Pulse. Under the agreement, the South Korea’s shipbuilder will transfer technology and conduct consignment management on the Iranian shipbuilder. The deal is expected to help DSME and other domestic shipbuilders win orders from refiners and other companies in Iran. ISOICO is currently capable of constructing up to four 80,000-dwt vessels per year and is able to build bulk carriers, containerships and product tankers, but has ambitions to build larger and more sophisticated vessels.

The Iranian shipping company Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) called at the port of Antwerp with one of its ships this week, for the first time since economic sanctions were lifted. The honour of being the “first” Iranian ship in Antwerp’s waters fell to the container carrier Azargoun which moored at the Antwerp Gateway terminal in the Deurganck dock. A deputation of representatives from the Port Authority, the ship’s agent PWL and the terminal operator went on board to welcome the ship’s master and crew. Up until 2010 Antwerp was the main European port destination for Iranian cargo. Now that sanctions against Iran have been lifted, the Port Authority is eager to restore economic relations with that country.

Oman aims to expand shipping and trade links with Iran and get ahead of rivals after the lifting of international sanctions on Tehran, leading port officials involved say. Measures were lifted last month as part of a nuclear deal with world powers, ending years of isolation which saw the international shipping sector cut ties and disrupt supplies to import-dependent Iran. The United Arab Emirates previously enjoyed greater shipping activity with Iran but Oman's nearby Sohar port is looking at expanding ties. Oman could also benefit from a spat between rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran which saw Riyadh cut ties last month and others like the UAE to downgrade relations. Annual UAE-Iran container trade pre-sanctions was estimated at 1.5 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units).

A delegation from the port of Antwerp headed by port alderman and Port Authority chairman Marc Van Peel paid a visit to Iran last week. The delegation which was made up of petrochemical and shipping experts met in Tehran with various ministries, petrochemical organisations and private companies. With this mission Antwerp Port Authority seeks to open the doors of Iran for the Antwerp port community once more. The exploratory mission was mainly aimed at making contacts with official bodies. It included meetings with among others Mr. Saeednejad, head of the Ports and Maritime Organization, Dr. Saeidi, head of the Islamic Republic Shipping Line, Mr. Masoud Karbasian, head of the Iranian Customs service and Mr. Seyed Jamal Hosseini, vice-chairman of the Iranian Investment Organisation.

U.S. Navy warships have begun accompanying British-flagged commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz as a result of Iran's detention of a Marshall Islands-flagged cargo ship last week, the Pentagon said on Monday. Army Colonel Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman, said the U.S. Navy had accompanied one British ship through the strait, one of the world's most important oil shipping channels, following talks between Washington and London. "They've asked if we would accompany their flagged vessels through the strait," Warren told reporters. The Navy has been accompanying U.S.-flagged ships traversing the strait for several days in response to last week's detention of the MV Maersk Tigris by Iranian Revolutionary Guard patrol boats.

U.S. Navy ships started accompanying U.S.-flagged commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, seeking to ensure freedom of navigation two days after Iran seized a cargo ship, U.S. defense officials said. The officials, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, described the decision as incremental, saying it was a precautionary move expected to be for a limited time involving Navy ships already deployed to the area. They also stressed that the Navy would not be "escorting" ships, which would involve moving in much closer proximity. One noted the Navy ships would be in communication with the U.S.-flagged vessels and somewhat nearby but not necessarily closely trailing them.

Denmark's Maersk shipping said on Thursday it insisted on the release of a vessel and crew seized by Iran, adding it assumed the incident was related to a 2005 court case over uncollected cargo. The Marshall-Islands flagged Maersk Tigris container ship was detained by Iranian forces in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, spurring the United States to send military vessels to monitor the situation. Maersk had chartered the ship, which is owned by undisclosed private investors. The firm met with Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization on Wednesday and said the company "must presume" the seizure was related to the long-running cargo dispute. "We have however not received any written or formal confirmation that the seizure and the cargo case are connected," the company said in a statement.

Iran's foreign minister told an audience in New York City on Wednesday that Tehran respects freedom of navigation in the Gulf, a day after Iranian patrol boats seized a Danish container ship in one of the world's busiest oil shipping lanes. "The Persian Gulf is our lifeline ... We will respect international navigation," Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said during a discussion hosted by the New York University Center on International Cooperation and the think tank New America. Danish shipping company Maersk said the crew of the Maersk Tigris was safe and "in good spirits." Iranian authorities seized the vessel in the Straight of Hormuz on Tuesday, spurring the United States to send military vessels to monitor the situation.