Red Sea News

Naval forces from the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen on Sunday foiled an "imminent terrorist" attack by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in the southern Red Sea, a major commercial shipping channel, the coalition said.The forces destroyed an unmanned boat laden with explosives that was launched from Hodeidah province in western Yemen, coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki said in a statement on Saudi state news agency SPA, without identifying the targets.There was no immediate confirmation from the Houthi movement…

Singapore shipping company Pacific International Lines (PIL) has announced that it is quitting the Transpacific market as part of an optimization strategy. The shipping line has been participating in a half-dozen trans-Pacific services, mostly in slot-charter arrangements.PIL’s last Transpacific sailing will be in March 2020.The company said it has taken the decision as part of a wider strategic review of its business. Henceforth, PIL will focus on further strengthening its position in the North-South Trade such as Africa…

The global port operator DP World has been awarded a 30-year Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) concession by the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani), for the management and development of the Jeddah South Container Terminal at the multi-purpose Jeddah Islamic Port.According to a press release from the UAE-based world leader in global supply chain solutions, under the agreement, DP World will invest up to $500 million to improve and modernize the Jeddah Islamic Port, including major infrastructure development to enable the Port to serve the ultra-large container carriers (ULCC’s)…

The environment in oil patches onshore and offshore alike has been challenging throughout 2019; worries about an economic slowdown – whether cyclical or induced by a trade war – have weighed heavily on oil prices, even in the face of reduced production by the big producers. Though storm clouds persist, there appears a clearing on the horizon.The fate of Offshore Service Vessels (OSVs) is, naturally, closely tied to the price of oil. Seacor Marine’s John Gellert, in reviewing its Q2 results, said: “Activity levels in the U.S.

Dutch dredging and heavylift company Royal Boskalis Westminster has acquired the remaining 37.5% in the United Arab Emirates’s Horizon Group, a company specializing in the provision of marine geophysical surveys and geotechnical services.Earlier this year, Boskalis already acquired 62.5% of the shares. The 2019 revenue is expected to exceed USD 100 million and the activities will be consolidated as of 2020.Following this transaction, Boskalis will be able to optimize its successful…

World growth and trade volumes under pressure, but still positive. A continued slowdown in global growth, as well as a lower trade multiplier will reduce overall demand for shipping for the rest of this year and through 2020.Expectations for global trade growth have also been lowered for 2020; this is now forecast at 2.7%, down from 3%. The WTO cautions that risks to these forecasts are weighted to the downside, with these risks including a potential deepening of trade tensions…

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement released three vessels and 16 people it had seized, South Korea's Foreign Ministry and a Houthi military source in Yemen said on Wednesday.The seizure on Sunday was the latest incident at sea around Yemen, where Saudi Arabia is leading a Western-backed coalition of Arab states against the Houthis, who control the capital and most population centres and have been accused of attacking shipping.Of the vessels freed on Tuesday, two were South Korean and one was Saudi Arabia-flagged, the South Korean ministry said in a statement, adding that the families of two South Koreans among the crew had been notified."The three ships were released after the necessary legal measures…

Yemeni Houthi forces seized a "suspect vessel" in the Red Sea but will release it if it proves to belong to South Korea after legal procedures are completed, a senior Houthi official said on Monday.The official spoke after the Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen since 2015 accused the group of "hijacking" a vessel that had been towing a South Korean drilling rig.The senior Houthi official, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi told Reuters: "Yemeni coast guards...are checking to see whether (the vessel) belongs to the countries of aggression or to South Korea, in which case it will be released after completing legal procedures. The crews are being well treated."(Reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Virgin Hyperloop One (VHO) is anticipated to pile in a potential US$4 billion into Saudi Arabia as it strives to make hyperloop transportation a reality.A 35-kilometer test and certification track will be built 100 kilometers north of the Red Sea port of Jeddah, in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) by US tech transport company VHO, which commissioned the study.The study said that a Center of Excellence, if approved, would drive domestic growth by adding to the creation of more than 124…

The Regional Clean Sea Organization (RECSO), an oil industry co-operative organisation in the Middle East, has hosted First RECSO Enviro Spill Conference and Exhibition.In delivering the keynote speech at the opening ceremony, Abdulhakim A. Al-Gouhi, vice president of Industrial Services with Saudi Aramco, called on members to collaborate to protect the pristine Gulf environment through prevention, preparedness, and response.“We come together to demonstrate our unlimited commitment toward protecting the marine environment from any harmful effects of pollution…

An Iranian tanker damaged in the Red Sea two weeks ago has entered Iranian territorial waters, the official IRNA news agency reported on Monday, citing information from the National Iranian Tanker Company.The tanker will dock at Kharg Island in two days, the report said.Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said last week that the tanker, the Sabiti, had been hit by at least two rockets, and there is video footage of the incident.The attack was undoubtedly carried out by a government and there would be consequences…

Iran on Monday urged regional powers to use diplomacy to reduce tensions including Yemen's war, but cautioned that an Iranian tanker damaged in the Red Sea last week had been hit by rockets and there would have to be consequences.Addressing a news conference, President Hassan Rouhani reiterated policy towards the Trump administration, ruling out bilateral talks unless Washington returns to a landmark nuclear deal and lifts crippling U.S. economic sanctions.Tensions in the Gulf have risen to new highs since May 2018…

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said an Iranian tanker damaged in the Red Sea on Friday had been hit by at least two rockets, and there is video footage of the incident.Iranian authorities reported that the Iranian-owned oil tanker, the Sabiti, was struck off Saudi Arabia's coast. There has been no independent report on the cause of the damage.Iran's rival Saudi Arabia has said it was not behind any attack on the tanker.

Oil prices jumped more than 2% on Friday, October 11, 2019, after Iranian media said a state-owned oil tanker had been struck by missiles in the Red Sea near Saudi Arabia, raising the prospect of supply disruptions weeks after attacks on Saudi oil plants.The Suezmax crude tanker Sabiti was ablaze and suffered heavy damage after being hit by two missiles, Iranian media reported.Both oil benchmarks recorded their biggest daily rise since Sept. 16, the first trading day after the…

Measures for preventing air pollution from ships as well as energy efficiency requirements for ships are in the spotlight at a training event for eight countries in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Gulf.The participating countries are Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan and United Arb Emirates.The regional workshop in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (17-19 September) has covered International Maritime Organization (IMO) 's MARPOL Annex VI treaty, which limits the main air pollutants contained in ships exhaust gas…

The Saudi-led coalition intercepted and destroyed an explosives-laden boat launched by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement from Yemen's main port of Hodeidah, Al Arabiya TV said on Thursday.It said the Western-backed, Sunni Muslim coalition foiled "an imminent terrorist act by the Houthi militia south of the Red Sea" but gave no further details.There was no immediate confirmation by the Houthi group which had claimed responsibility for last weekend's attacks on Saudi oil facilities. Riyadh has rejected the claim and said those strikes did not come from Yemen. (Reporting by Maher Chmaytelli and Ghaida Ghantous Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

This revised advisory cancels U.S. Maritime Advisories 2019-004 and 2019-008.1. References: U.S. Maritime Alerts 2019-004A, 2019-003A, 2019-002A, and 2019-001A.2. Issue: Heightened military activity and increased political tensions in this region continue to pose serious threats to commercial vessels. Associated with these threats is a potential for miscalculation or misidentification that could lead to aggressive actions. Vessels operating in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, and Gulf of Oman may also encounter GPS interference, bridge-to-bridge communications spoofing, and/or other communications jamming with little to no warning.Since May 2019, the following maritime incidents have occurred in this region:Six attacks against commercial vessels (see U.S.

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…

Total oil flows through the Suez Canal and the SUMED pipeline accounted for about 9% of total seaborne traded petroleum in 2017, and LNG flows through the Suez Canal and the SUMED pipeline accounted for about 8% of global LNG trade."The Suez Canal and the SUMED Pipeline are strategic routes for Persian Gulf crude oil, petroleum products, and LNG shipments to Europe and North America," U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said.Located in Egypt, the Suez Canal connects the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea…

The United States is struggling to win its allies' support for an initiative to heighten surveillance of vital Middle East oil shipping lanes because of fears it will increase tension with Iran, six sources familiar with the matter said.Washington proposed on July 9 stepping up efforts to safeguard strategic waters off Iran and Yemen where it blames Iran and its proxies for tanker attacks. Iran denies the charges.But with Washington's allies reluctant to commit new weaponry or fighting forces…

The United States hopes to enlist allies over the next two weeks or so in a military coalition to safeguard strategic waters off Iran and Yemen, where Washington blames Iran and Iran-aligned fighters for attacks, the top U.S. general said on Tuesday.Under the plan, which has only been finalized in recent days, the United States would provide command ships and lead surveillance efforts for the military coalition. Allies would patrol waters near those U.S. command ships and escort commercial vessels with their nation's flags.Marine General Joseph Dunford…

Shipping companies are hiring unarmed security guards for voyages through the Middle East Gulf as an extra safeguard after a wave of attacks in the region, security companies involved said.Relations between Iran and the West are increasingly strained after Britain seized an Iranian tanker in Gibraltar this month. Britain also said last week that one of its warships had to fend off Iranian vessels seeking to block a UK-owned tanker from passing through the Strait of Hormuz.As the risk of escalation grows…

U.S. Central Command chief General Kenneth McKenzie said on Thursday it was talking to other countries about freedom of navigation in the Gulf and would work "aggressively" to find a solution to enable free passage.The United States has beefed up its military presence in the Middle East over a perceived Iranian threat and is asking allies to help protect strategic waters off Iran and Yemen, following attacks on oil tankers in Gulf waters in recent months."We are currently talking…