Stainless Steel Tanks News

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has, through its subsidiary MOL Chemical Tankers, completed the acquisition of Fairfield Chemical Carriers, creating one of the world’s largest multi-segregated chemical tanker fleets.The acquisition, valued at $400 million, is based on a share transfer agreement signed at the end of September 2023, which has been approved by the relevant authorities under competition law.The transaction is in line with MOL’s plan to proactively invest in chemical tanker business…

Protective tank coatings manufacturer Advanced Polymer Coatings (APC) announced an expansion of its factory, an investment central to its plans to increase its market share of the chemical and product tanker markets.APC President David Keehan said the renovation of its Avon, Ohio factory will almost double its size to 42,000 sq. ft., and a new automated manufacturing system will start production later this year, quadrupling manufacturing capacity of its MarineLINE protective cargo…

The NYK Group, Stolt Tankers, and ENEOS Ocean launched a chemical ship pool business in the Asia-Pacific region in October.Shipowners and operators pool their vessels and undertake transportation services at the request of shippers. The pool business allows more flexible transportation services that utilize economies of scale, NYK said.The project started with 13 vessels, comprising two chemical tankers owned by ENEOS Ocean and 11 chemical tankers owned by a joint venture between…

In the first four months of 2021, the amount of oil product tanker capacity that has been sent for demolition has already reached the total amount of demolished capacity in each of 2019 and 2020 due to unfavourable freight rates. If that pace continues for the rest of the year, an 11-year record is set to be broken.This according to a report out today from BIMCO, which shows that so far this year, 10 crude oil and 38 oil product tankers have left the active trading fleet and the…

Stolt Tankers said it has been commissioned by chemicals company BASF to help design and build a unique new tanker capable of operating when extremely low water levels hamper river shipping on the Rhine.The Rhine, which starts in Switzerland and flows through Germany and the Netherlands before emptying into the North Sea, is a key waterway for transportation in Europe. During dry weather, barges are often unable to fully load, increasing transport costs and delaying products.Stolt…

ABS released new guidance and software to assist chemical tanker owners, operators and shipyards: the ABS Guide for Materials and Welding for Stainless Steels and ABS CHEM software.The ABS Guide for Materials and Welding for Stainless Steels provides minimum requirements for properties, manufacturing processes and fabrication techniques applicable to common types of stainless steels used in the marine and offshore industries. This new guidance is particularly relevant to construction…

SkimOil Inc. has introduced their next generation electric MarineVAP evaporators for automatically evaporating away bilge water, gray water and even treated black water with no emissions. With far greater control and monitoring of the whole process, the new MarineVAP with improved safety features: the materials, and controls technology and capabilities have caught up with the times, just in time for Subchapter M. No discharge is a good discharge. Roscoe McWilliams, SkimOil’s general manager, says since hiring the new controls engineer Steve Hohman at the beginning of the year, special design considerations have been given to safety, performance and operation of the MarineVAP…

Odfjell SE informs it has signed a term sheet with Chemical Transportation Group, Inc (CTG) whereby Odfjell will acquire the last five of a total newbuilding order of 10 25,000 dwt vessels with 24 stainless steel tanks from Chinese ship builder AVIC Dingheng. CTG will continue to own five vessels which will be placed in a pool commercially managed by Odfjell Tankers AS. The vessels will, together with Odfjell's current fleet of five 25,000 dwt vessels and the five vessels acquired by Odfjell, form a pool for 15 25,000 dwt chemical tankers. The vessels acquired by Odfjell will be bought at $40 million per vessel upon delivery from yard, and are scheduled for delivery from June 2017 through May 2018.

Oslo listed shipping firm Odfjell SE said it has purchased a secondhand stainless steel chemical tanker for $25.5 million.   The M/T Argent Eyebright, built in 2009 by Kitanihon Shipbuilding in Japan, has 16 stainless steel tanks.   On short term time charter to Odfjell Tankers since January 2017, Argent Eyebright will be renamed and put under NIS flag after closing the transaction end of June.

Construction of the first of two liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered, combination container – Roll-On/Roll-Off (ConRo) ships for Crowley Maritime Corporation’s liner services group reached another milestone, with the installation of three LNG fuel tanks. The double-walled, stainless steel tanks – which are 110 feet in length and 20.6 feet in diameter – weigh 225 metric tons and will hold more than enough LNG fuel for two round-trip voyages between the vessel’s future ports of call, Jacksonville, Fla., and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Stolt Tankers B.V. has agreed to acquire three 5,800 dwt fully stainless steel parcel tankers from Odfjell Tankers AS. The ships, which were built in 1997-1998 and are sister ships of three tankers currently operated by Stolt Tankers, are expected to join the Stolt-Nielsen Inter-Europe Service by the end of August 2015. Further terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Commenting on the purchase, Hans P. Feringa, President of Stolt Tankers, said, "We are pleased to have acquired these well priced, high quality assets, which enhance the scale efficiency of our fleet of European regional parcel tankers. The three ships are highly specialised, with 20 duplex stainless steel tanks, ICE class 1A and fitted with nitrogen generators.

Stolt-Nielsen Limited (Oslo Bors: SNI) announced  that Stolt Tankers B.V. has agreed to acquire three 5,800 dwt fully stainless steel parcel tankers from Odfjell Tankers AS. The ships, which were built in 1997-1998 and are sister ships of three tankers currently operated by Stolt Tankers, are expected to join the Stolt-Nielsen Inter-Europe Service by the end of August 2015. Further terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Commenting on the purchase, Hans P. Feringa, President of Stolt Tankers…

MAN Diesel & Turbo’s Propeller & Aft Ship organization has won an order to retrofit and upgrade a series of 11 × 37,500 dwt vessels from the Odfjell chemical tanker fleet. The vessels are of the Kværner Class and are due to dock during 2015-17, at which time the upgrades will be implemented. The first vessel, M/T Bow Clipper, will dock and be upgraded in August 2015. Each vessel has an MAN B&W two-stroke engine powering a four-bladed, controllable-pitch propeller and a PTO-driven shaft alternator.

MAN Diesel & Turbo’s Propeller & Aft Ship organisation has won an order to retrofit and upgrade a series of 11 × 37,500 dwt vessels from the Odfjell chemical tanker fleet. The vessels are of the Kværner Class and are due to dock during 2015-17, at which time the upgrades will be implemented. The first vessel, ‘M/T Bow Clipper’, will dock and be upgraded in August 2015. Each vessel has an MAN B&W two-stroke engine powering a four-bladed, controllable-pitch propeller and a PTO-driven shaft alternator. The vessels’ new service speed at reduced main-engine output – combined with the implementation of MAN’s highly-efficient Kappel propeller blades, a fairing cone and a pre-fabricated rudder bulb kit – will all contribute to power savings and reduced exhaust-gas emissions.

The Port of Rotterdam and the independent storage company LBC Tank Terminals have reached a long term agreement for the construction of a new jetty at the LBC terminal in Botlek, Rotterdam. ‘This new jetty is the first and a very important step in the expansion of our terminal in Rotterdam. The growing import of liquid chemicals into Europe results in an increasing demand for liquid storage tanks in hubs such as Rotterdam. This investment will enable us to offer additional capacity and to respond even better to the storage requests of existing and new customers’, explains Luc Jorissen, Business President at LBC. The new jetty will have four berths, two for seagoing vessels and two for barges. This will quadruple the jetty capacity of the LBC terminal.

VOS Pace, the first of six PX121-type platform supply vessels designed by ULSTEIN, was delivered to Netherlands based shipowner Vroon Offshore Services on February 5, 2015. The vessel, built at China’s Cosco Guangdong Shipyard, is destined for work in European waters along with the remainder of the ordered vessels scheduled to be delivered to Vroon during 2015 and 2016. The ULSTEIN PX121 design was first introduced to the market in 2010, when two vessels were contracted for construction at Ulstein Verft, Norway.

Ulstein Design & Solutions has entered into a contract with Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Co., Ltd, China, for the delivery of ship design and equipment for four PX121 type platform supply vessels. The shipowner is the Singapore based Otto Offshore Ltd., who will receive all vessels in 2016. The contract also includes an option for four additional vessels. These PX121 vessels are capable of supporting offshore activities which are being carried out further from shore and in deeper waters. The vessels can carry flexible loads.

COSCO (Guang Dong) Shipyard Co. Ltd is going to build a further two platform supply vessels of the ULSTEIN PX121 design for Vroon Offshore Services, the Netherlands. Ulstein has entered into an agreement with COSCO on delivering ship design, power & control equipment and on-site follow-up services.The first of totally six vessels in this series, VOS Pace, was launched on 30 June. “The PX121 design is becoming increasingly attractive to oil companies as it offers a competitive combination of fuel-efficiency and cargo capacities/deadweight,” comments Sigurd Viseth, Managing Director of Ulstein Design & Solutions. “This translates to a performance level that is usually expected from larger PSVs, but at a medium-sized PSV cost - delivering excellent value-for-money for the owner and operator.

Wärtsilä received an order to supply complete main propulsion systems for six new chemical tankers. The ships are being built at the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group yard in China on behalf of Stolt Tankers B.V., the operator of one of the world's largest chemical tanker fleets and a unit of Stolt-Nielsen Limited. There is an option for a further two vessels. The Wärtsilä propulsion packages include Wärtsilä RT-flex50 two-stroke engines, controllable pitch propellers with a tunnel gearbox and shaft generator and oily water separators.

Ulstein has entered into an agreement with COSCO (Guang Dong) Shipyard Co. Ltd, China, on deliveries of ship design, power and control equipment and onsite follow-up services of two platform supply vessels of the PX121 design. The vessels are ordered by Vroon Offshore Services of the Netherlands. “These two vessels are part of the Vroon commitment to our business partners and will support us in meeting their service requirements in the best possible way. All at Vroon are excited to welcome these new vessels to our fleet in 2015…

The platform supply vessel Blue Protector was delivered from Ulstein Verft on September 23, 2013. The vessel is owned by Blue Ship Invest and managed by Atlantic Offshore. The vessel is going to the spot market in the North Sea. Blue Protector is the final newbuild in a series of six platform supply vessels (PSV) of the PX121 design, and Atlantic Offshore already has the management for two vessels in this series. The latest vessels in the series have been adapted to requirements for work in the Norwegian sector.

The boom in U.S. natural-gas supplies is boosting chemical exports to Asia, driving up demand for specialized ships that carry the products and sending freight rates to a five-year high, reports Bloomberg. Earnings for tankers carrying 20,000 metric-ton cargoes in stainless-steel tanks will rise 12 percent to an average of $14,500 a day next year, the most since 2009, according to Bloomberg, citing RS Platou Markets AS, the investment-banking unit of Norway’s largest shipbroking group. China, the largest importer, is on course to buy more than ever, pushing fleet use to 87.2 percent of available transportation capacity this year and 89.8 percent in 2014, the highest since 2008, Platou estimates. Source: Bloomberg

The platform supply vessel Blue Guardian was delivered from Ulstein to Blue Ship Invest on June 28, 2013. The vessel is contracted to work in the North Sea. Blue Guardian is the fifth in a series of six platform supply vessels (PSV) of the PX121 design from Ulstein Verft, and the vessel is under the management of Remøy Shipping. From mid-July, the ship has been contracted by Det Norske Oljeselskap ASA and Repsol Exploration respectively, to support the jack-up rig Maersk Giant in its work on two subsea wells on the Norwegian continental shelf in the North Sea.