Seaport News

Drive into Corpus Christi and you can feel the paradox that defines many port cities: the waterfront is everywhere, yet the maritime business that powers the place is easy to miss — until you look past the horizon of tanks, docks, and ship traffic and realize you’re staring at one of the world’s most consequential energy gateways.By volume, the Port of Corpus Christi has become a central export valve for U.S. crude oil and a fast-rising platform for LNG — an industrial ecosystem that has grown at a pace few ports can match.

Port Tampa Bay welcomed a container vessel Thursday that set a new record for carrying capacity at the port. The ZIM Canada docked with 11,900 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), nearly 2,000 more than any vessel previously handled at the port. The arrival underscores the port’s growing role in handling larger, high-capacity container ships and highlights the importance of ongoing infrastructure investments.The ship, stretching 1,083 feet and measuring 158 feet wide, carries enough containers that…

The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) reports that February 2026 total container volume (international and domestic) reached 207,725 TEUs, down 19.4% compared to February 2025, when shippers were frontloading cargo ahead of expected tariffs.While full imports decreased 29.5%, full exports were up 4.9%. YTD volumes at 435,890 TEUs are down 16.6%, with full imports declining 22.6% and full exports increasing 2.2%.Alongside terminal operator partner SSA Terminals, the NWSA has celebrated…

The busiest U.S. container seaport in Los Angeles is mostly insulated from supply chain upheaval sparked by U.S.-Israel attacks on Iran that have spiraled into a regional conflict, its executive director Gene Seroka said on Thursday.The Iran war has snarled container shipping in the Middle East, sending up costs, stranding ships and cargoes, threatening fuel shortages and endangering vessels and the lives of seafarers."We, right now, don't see any of that congestion happening" on the lucrative transpacific ocean trade that is the lifeblood of the Port of Los Angeles…

At this year’s annual Legislative Summit, the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) proudly named U.S. Representative Mike Ezell (MS-04) as the 2026 Port Person of the Year for his commitment to the seaport and maritime industry. AAPA celebrates his leadership as a champion of many port industry priorities, including his advocacy for the Water Resources Development Act of 2026 and his efforts to incentivize the reshoring of port crane manufacturing to the U.S."It is…

MSC, the world's largest carrier of ocean container cargo, said on Tuesday all cargo bound for ports in the Gulf will be offloaded at the nearest safe seaport due to ongoing hostilities in the Middle East following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran.The move, known as an "End of Voyage" declaration, also applies to empty containers that have been released for loading with cargo and are intended for export to the ports in the Gulf, Geneva-based MSC said in a customer advisory.A mandatory surcharge of $800 per container will apply to all affected shipments…

NOAA has installed a Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System (PORTS®) in Boston Harbor. The system includes observational equipment at MassPort’s Conley Terminal and on the Tobin Memorial Bridge.The Boston Harbor PORTS, established in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, is the 41st installation in a broad, public-private partnership program, providing commercial and other vessel operators with accurate and reliable real-time information about…

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) began icebreaking operations in the Southern Ocean in support of Operation Deep Freeze 2026 and marked its 50th year of commissioned service Saturday by freeing and escorting a cruise ship trapped in pack ice.The Australian-owned cruise ship Scenic Eclipse II contacted Polar Star at approximately 11 p.m., local time Friday after becoming beset in pack ice roughly eight nautical miles from McMurdo Sound. Polar Star’s crew conducted two close passes to break the vessel free…

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Transportation and Construction Engineering, Ltd. (MHI-TC), a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, has built and completed delivery to Yokohama City of the Mitsubishi Marine Bridge (MMB), a self-propelled mobile seaport passenger boarding bridge (SPBB). Manufactured at MHI's Mihara Machinery Works in Hiroshima Prefecture, the MMB was put into service at Osanbashi Yokohama International Passenger Terminal on January 13. Capable of connecting to the large cruise ships that dock at Osanbashi…

Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), a top-ranked public university with undergraduate degree programs focusing on science, engineering, technology, math, and business that blend academics and experiential learning, announced the reappointment of Elizabeth B. Simmons, vice president of external affairs, to the reconstituted Seaport Economic Council.Named to the Council by Governor Maura Healey, Simmons serves on the newly reconstituted 15-member body, which is updating its mission and membership to better advance economic growth…

Russia has attacked two foreign-flagged civilian vessels with drones in the southern Odesa region, killing a Syrian national and injuring another, Ukrainian officials said on Friday.Moscow has stepped up attacks on Ukraine's maritime export arteries over the last two months as retaliation for attacks on "shadow fleet" tankers heading to Russia to export its oil.Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said in a statement that one ship had been sailing along Ukraine's maritime export corridor to pick up a grain cargo at the port of Chornomorsk, and was under the flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis.The ot

As the global shipping industry grapples with a plethora of regulatory, technological and sustainability shifts, few sectors embody both the challenges and opportunities as acutely as the ferry industry.Interferry leads the charge to ensure there is balance, rationalizing legislative mandate with market, technical and economic reality. Interferry is the trade association representing the worldwide ferry sector, an at the helm is Mike Corrigan, CEO, who has spent the past several…

A civilian bulk carrier flying the flag of Belize has sustained minor damage after hitting an unknown explosive device near the Ukrainian seaport of Chornomorsk, two sources told Reuters on Sunday.Chornomorsk is a large and strategically important seaport in Ukraine's southern Odesa region, one of three Ukrainian ports operating in a maritime transport corridor linking the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.Sources reported that the crew of the NS PRIDE were unharmed and that the ship continued on its way.

The Pasha Group, together with The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), announced Pasha Logistics LLC’s acquisition of certain assets of MacMillan-Piper LLC and Tacoma Transload LLC. The expansion follows the successful completion of an asset purchase agreement with the court-appointed Receiver for GSC Enterprises, Inc., which included certain assets of MacMillan-Piper LLC—a Pacific Northwest specialty transloader—and Tacoma Transload LLC. This milestone marks an expansion of the company’s West Coast footprint with a robust network of proprietary rail transload facilities…

Ukraine on Wednesday reopened its Bystre Canal at the mouth of the Danube, which had been closed since a dredger exploded in late July, the Ukrainian state Seaport Authority said.Ukraine had been transporting grain on the Bystre and the Danube as an alternative route for its exports while access to its Black Sea ports was limited in the first year after Russia's invasion in 2022.Since the ports were unblocked in 2023, Ukraine's use of the Danube has declined sharply."Shipping is permitted for vessels with a draught of up to 4.5 metres…

Starting with a few training sessions back in 2015, the EU Seaport Cooperation Project (SEACOP) has led to enhanced maritime security by combating illicit trafficking at sea in the region.Deployed across three strategic regions affected by maritime trafficking, Latin America, the Caribbean and West Africa, SEACOP, it is now a cornerstone of the region’s maritime security efforts, helping national authorities from 13 countries tackle transnational illicit trafficking through intelligence sharing…

The U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services, through the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025, tasked the U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) with assessing how reduced dredging capacity may have impacted designated strategic seaports. In response, USTRANSCOM submitted a report titled Dredging and the Strategic Seaport Program, which has recently been declassified and made available to the public. The report outlines operational impacts, identifies root causes of dredging challenges…

A Mexican Navy sailing ship festooned with lights and a giant flag crashed into the landmark Brooklyn Bridge on Saturday night, shearing the top of its masts, killing two people and injuring several others, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said.Videos online showed the training vessel Cuauhtémoc as it approached the bridge over the East River, close to the Brooklyn side of the span, which connects the borough with Manhattan.Its 147 foot (45 metre) masts were too tall to clear the arched bridge at that point and toppled when the vessel…

British maritime security firm Ambrey reported on Tuesday that the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) had launched a drone attack on facilities at Port Sudan, targeting the container terminal and escalating a two-year-long conflict.Ambrey said it had obtained video footage showing damage to the terminal and civilian infrastructure, reportedly leaving the city without power.No damage to merchant vessels was reported, but Ambrey noted significant GPS disruptions in the area.Explosions and fires rocked Sudan's main port city and wartime capital Port Sudan on Tuesday…

The U.S. Trade office will this week announce its plan for levying port fees on China-linked ships as part of President Donald Trump's effort to revive domestic shipbuilding and counter China's dominance on the high seas.The proposed fees on China-built ships could hit $1.5 million per U.S. port call. Few vessels would be exempt, making U.S. export prices unattractive and foisting billions of dollars in annual import costs on American consumers.The final plan is widely expected to be announced as early as April 17…

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) and crew returned to the United States, arriving in San Francisco Sunday, following a 128-day deployment to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze (ODF) 2025.Polar Star completed its 28th voyage to Antarctica in support of the joint military service mission to resupply and maintain the United States Antarctic Stations. Every year, a joint total force team works together to complete a successful Operation Deep Freeze in support of the U.S.

U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) and crew departed the Antarctic region Tuesday after 65 days south of the Antarctic Circle in support of Operation Deep Freeze 2025.Operation Deep Freeze is an annual event, led by the U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) in conjunction with the Department of Defense, to support the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). The USAP advances the nation’s goals to support the Antarctic Treaty, fosters cooperative research with other nations, protects Antarctic resources…

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in collaboration with Royal Caribbean, conducted the first biometric debarkation for Royal Caribbean cruise passengers on Feb. 2 when Rhapsody of the Seas was the first Royal Caribbean vessel to utilize this technology at the San Juan Seaport’s Pier 4 in Puerto Rico.CBP’s biometric facial comparison technology streamlines the debarkation process, reducing clearance times by up to 30% and allowing passengers to transition smoothly from ship to shore.At debarkation, guests pause at a kiosk equipped with a camera and take a photo.