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Steel Production News

01 Mar 2024

Ukraine Expands Ship War Insurance with Marsh & Lloyd's to Iron Ore, Steel

© glebzter / Adobe Stock

Insurance broker Marsh and Lloyd's of London underwriters have expanded a marine war insurance program backed by Ukraine from grain shipments to all non-military cargo, such as iron ore and steel, Marsh said on Friday.Marsh, Lloyd's and Ukrainian state banks launched an initial program in November to cut the cost of claims for damage to ships and crew transporting grain through the Black Sea corridor, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine two years ago."Expanding insurance to cover ships carrying all non-military cargo is extremely important for Ukraine…

23 Nov 2023

Coal Shipments to Advanced Economies Down 17%

Source: BIMCO

“In the first 10 months of 2023, coal shipments to advanced economies fell by 17% y/y, as demand for electricity declined and the share of electricity produced using renewable energy rose. Also slowed economic activity and high energy prices affected electricity demand,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.Between January and August, electricity production in advanced economies fell by 4% y/y, according to data from the International Energy Agency. In 2023, measures against high inflation slowed economic growth in advanced economies.

10 Aug 2023

Baltic Index Falls on Weakness in Capesize Rates

Credit:  cloudvisual/AdobeStock

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index edged lower on Thursday as a decline in capesize rates overshadowed advances in the panamax segment.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax, and supramax shipping vessels carrying dry bulk commodities, ticked down by 7 points, or 0.6%, to 1,137.The capesize index fell 78 points, or 4.5%, to 1,674, declining for the third straight session.Average daily earnings for capesizes .BATCA, which typically transport 150,000-ton cargoes carrying commodities such as iron ore and coal, decreased by $643 to $13,883.Dalian iron ore futures

21 Jul 2023

Baltic Index Logs 10% Weekly Drop as Demand for Larger Vessel Wilts Away

Credit:debjit

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index closed the trading week at a 10% decline, pressured by lower demand in the larger vessel segments.The overall index that factors in rates for capesize, panamax, and supramax shipping vessels carrying dry bulk commodities, however, edged up by 1 point to 978 on Friday.The capesize index gained 21 points, or about 1.5%, to 1,442, but has fallen nearly 13% this week.Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-ton cargoes such as iron ore and coal, increased by $171 to $11,958 on Friday.

28 Jun 2023

China's Coal Seaborne Imports Surge 73%

“Despite China’s strategy of pursuing increased domestic coal production, which has meant that year-to-date production stands 5.8% higher than last year, its seaborne imports of coal have nevertheless surged 73% y/y so far,” said Niels Rasmussen, Chief Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.The Chinese government target for domestic coal production is 4.6 billion tonnes in 2025, which is 2.5% higher than in 2022. As production year-to-date has already increased by 5.8% compared to 2022, Chinese…

19 May 2023

Austal USA Awarded US Navy TAGOS-25 Contract

(Image: Austal USA)

Mobile, Ala. shipbuilder Austal USA announced it has been awarded a contract potentially worth more than $3 billion for the detail design and construction of new TAGOS-25 class ocean surveillance ships for the U.S. Navy.The $113.9 million fixed-price incentive (firm target) and firm-fixed-price contract includes options for detail design and construction of up to seven T-AGOS 25 class ships which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of the contract to $3.195 billion.Austal…

30 Mar 2023

Japan’s Dry Bulk Imports Fall 4%, says BIMCO

Source: BIMCO

“Having narrowly avoided a recession in the fourth quarter of 2022, the Japanese economy appears to be recovering. However, Japan’s demand for steel remains weak and as a result, the country’s bulk imports are estimated to have fallen by 4% y/y in the first quarter of 2023,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.The steel industry in Japan relies on iron ore and coking coal imports, which combined account for 41% of the country’s bulk imports. Due to lower steel production in Japan…

28 Mar 2023

New Monopile and Tower Fabrication Facility to Open in Maryland

(Image: US Wind)

Baltimore-based offshore wind energy development company US Wind, Inc. announced its plan to form a long-term partnership with Haizea Wind Group Management S.L. to manage and operate Sparrows Point Steel, Maryland’s first permanent offshore wind factory in Baltimore County, Maryland. The facility will be available to manufacture steel components for the U.S. offshore wind industry, including monopiles and towers.“The partnership between US Wind and Haizea to lead Sparrows Point Steel will create one of the premier offshore wind industrial facilities in the world…

28 Mar 2023

Baltic Index Drops to a Near 3-week Low on Lower Vessel Demand

©cloudvisual/AdobeStock

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, fell to its lowest level in nearly three weeks on Tuesday, weighed down by dwindling demand across all vessel segments. The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax, and supramax shipping vessels, fell 54 points, or about 3.7%, to 1,402, its lowest since March 9. "The markets may be hit by a curveball, with the potential threat of a cut in China's steel production looming…

17 Mar 2023

LR Awards AIP for Rotoboost’s Pre-combustion Carbon Capture System

Andy McKeran, LR Chief Commercial Officer presents the AIP certificate to Kaisa Nikulainen, Rotoboost CEO. (Photo: Lloyd’s Register)

Classification society Lloyd’s Register (LR) said it has awarded approval in principle (AIP) to Rotoboost, a Nordic hydrogen production company, for its pre-combustion Carbon Capture System (CCS) Rotobox. Rotobox uses thermocatalytic decomposition process (TCD) onboard marine vessels, where part of the natural gas fuel supply is converted into hydrogen and graphite with a liquid catalyst.The TCD process significantly reduces CO2 emissions, particulate matter and methane slip by producing hydrogen while capturing carbon in its solid form.

01 Mar 2023

India Coal is Back in Business

Copyright Parilov/AdobeStock

India's coal industry celebrated the return of its major conference after a three-year pandemic hiatus by presenting a bullish view of demand, rising supply from new mines and strong demand for imports."King coal is coming back and coming with a big bang," Anil Kumar Jha, the chairman of Jindal Power Ltd., told the Coaltrans India conference, held this week for the first time since February 2020.The sentiment was echoed by virtually every speaker at the event, although there was a wide variety of views as to how successful India will be at ramping up coal domestic coal output…

21 Feb 2023

China Boosts Australian Coal Imports

© Michael Evans / Adobe Stock

Chinese utilities and traders have stepped up purchases of Australian coal in February, encouraged by signs of further policy relaxation after trade partially resumed last month following a two-year hiatus.In early January, Beijing gave permission to four government-backed firms, comprising steel giant Baowu Group and three state utilities, to ship in Australian coal, the first sign of an easing of the unofficial import ban in place since late 2020. The ban was imposed after relations…

01 Feb 2023

Dalian Coking Coal Slumps as Traders Eye Australian Supply

 ©travelview/AdobeStock

Chinese coking coal futures extended losses to hit their lowest in four weeks on Wednesday, as traders kept an eye on a batch of Australian coal cargoes expected to arrive soon in top steel producer China.Rising Chinese steel inventories also weighed on overall market sentiment, analysts said.China is seen gradually resuming Australian coal imports, having eased an unofficial trade ban imposed in 2020, as signs of warming ties between the two countries have emerged.Prices of the steelmaking ingredient have dropped nearly 5% since the start of the year.The most-traded coking coal…

06 Jan 2023

China Eases Australian Coal Ban

Copyright Parilov/AdobeStock

The increasing need to secure energy supplies after easing COVID-19 restrictions has pushed China to gradually resume Australian coal imports and urge domestic miners to boost their already record output.The lifting of the unofficial ban on Australian coal imports, which were halted in 2020 in a fit of Chinese pique over questions on COVID's origins, is the clearest sign yet of the renewed ties between them. The resumption is also a reminder of their economic interdependence as Australia's raw materials play a crucial role in fuelling the export-oriented economy of China…

21 Oct 2022

New Lock at the Soo: Unlocking the Great Lakes

(Image: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District works on unlocking the Great Lakes by providing a much-needed resiliency at the Soo Locks with the construction of the New Lock at the Soo. The New Lock at the Soo will be the same dimensions as the Poe Lock, 1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 30 feet deep.Often called the “linchpin” of the Great Lakes navigation system, the Soo Locks are located in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan between the upper Peninsula of Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario. The Soo Locks enable bulk carrier vessels to safely bypass the swift-moving St.

26 Sep 2022

Alfa Laval to Use Fossil-free Steel in Heat Exchangers

Alfa Laval's concept zero plate heat exchange (Image: Alfa Laval)

Alfa Laval on Monday announced it has signed an agreement with Swedish steel company SSAB to develop the first plate heat exchanger made using fossil-free steel.Alfa Laval’s heat exchanger portfolio includes plate heat exchangers that are suitable for both traditional and alternative fuels. The partners aim to have the first unit made with hydrogen-reduced steel ready for 2023.“Our marine plate heat exchangers are already key to decarbonizing on board, thanks to their superior level of energy efficiency,” said Peter Nielsen, President, Alfa Laval Marine Separation & Heat Transfer Equipment.

08 Aug 2022

Shipyards Adapt to help Navy, Coast Guard Recapitalize Fleets

The first Offshore Patrol Cutter, USCGC Argus (WMSM 915) takes shape at Eastern Shipbuilding Group’s Panama City, Fla., shipyard.  The Coast Guard plans to build 25 OPCs. (ESG photo)

U.S. shipyards are making improvements to building ships for the Navy and Coast Guard today and in the future. In some cases, it means phasing out one class of ship and getting ready for the next. Or, it can be a drastic make-over.The yards include mid-tier yards all the way up to very large facilities devoted exclusively to warships. The ships range from the 353-ton Fast Response Cutter to the 100,000-ton nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. Fincantieri Marinette Marine in Wisconsin…

05 Aug 2022

Baltic Dry Index Slips to Six-month Low

© Victor Ketal / Adobe Stock

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index dipped to a near six-month trough on Friday and registered its worst week in more than two months, hit by weakness across vessel segments.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, fell 43 points to 1,560, its lowest since Feb. 8.Neils Rasmussen, chief shipping analyst at BIMCO, attributed recent declines to uncertainty around global economic growth and lower iron ore demand in China.Iron ore futures trended lower this week amid worries about China's ailing property sector…

28 Jul 2022

US Navy: Building Small Combatants to Create Force Structure and Capability

The Littoral Combat Ship has been made more lethal with the addition of the Naval Strike Mis-sile, seen here installed on USS Charleston (LCS 18).   (U.S. Navy photo by Ensign James French)

The U.S. Navy needs more ships. And that means the Navy has to build more ships than it is decommissioning.The sea service has a stated a goal of 355 ships, and as many as 500 and more when unmanned platforms are counted. There are 298 ships in the fleet today. For surface ships, this number includes a high-low mix of highly capable large surface combatants, and smaller ships such as littoral combat ships LCS).The Navy’s smallest combatants are the 330-ton, 197-foot coastal patrol boats (PCs). Up until recently, ten of them have been serving in the Middle East with the U.S.

11 Jul 2022

Austal USA Begins Building Its First Steel Ship

The start of construction of the T-ATS 11 on the new steel line at Austal USA in Mobile, Ala. (Photo: Austal USA)

Mobile, Ala. shipbuilder Austal USA on Monday said it celebrated the start of construction on the company’s first steel ship, a U.S. Navy Navajo Class Towing, Salvage and Rescue Ship (T-ATS 11).“It seems like only yesterday we were breaking ground on our steel shipbuilding facility and here we are, a little over a year later, beginning construction on our first steel ship,” said Austal USA Vice President of New Construction, Dave Growden.Austal USA, which has built a number of aluminum vessels for government and commercial customers…

13 Jun 2022

CTO in Focus: Henrik Stiesdal, Wind Power Pioneer

Henrik - 1978: Stiesdal’s 1978 turbine was made with wooden blades and a control system, both of which he built from scratch. It was only retired in 1991 when the wood had rotted. Henrik: Henrik Stiesdal. Photo from Stiesdal A/S.

Wind power pioneer Henrik Stiesdal built his first wind turbine in 1978. It was one of Denmark’s first step towards becoming a wind energy powerhouse, with Stiesdal regularly at the helm. He’s now got wider climate initiatives in his sights, including industrializing floating offshore wind. He reflected with OE’s Elaine Maslin.By 2021, a total of 35 GW of offshore wind had been installed across the world. To meet global climate targets, the International Energy Agency (IEA) says that another 80 GW of it needs to be built per year by 2030.

27 Apr 2022

BW Offshore Says Fatal Incident in Indian Yard Not Related to Its FPSOs

BW Cidade de São Vicente ©BW Offshore

Oslo-listed FPSO leasing company BW Offshore said Wednesday a fatal incident had occurred in the Priya Blue shipyard in India, but that it was not related to ongoing recycling of former BW Offshore FPSOs at the yard.BW Offshore said in February it had signed an agreement with Priya Blue Industries yard in India to recycle the Cidade de São Vicente FPSO in compliance with Hong Kong Convention. The convention, adopted in 2009, is aimed at ensuring that ships when being recycled after reaching the end of their operational lives…

21 Apr 2022

Baltic Dry Index Rises to Over Two-week Peak

© Caner / Adobe Stock

The Baltic Exchange's dry bulk sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships ferrying dry bulk commodities, rose to a more than two-week high on Thursday, driven by gains in the capesize segment.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, rose 97 points, or 4.53%, to 2,239 points, the highest since April 4.The capesize index jumped 273 points, or 20%, to 1,636 points, also a peak since April 4.Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000 tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, increased by $2,266 to $13,571.Dalian

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