Tanker News

The fatal explosion in the pump room on the Brazilian FPSO Cidade de São Mateus in February 2015, demonstrated the potential for major accidents on this type of unit. Although there has never been an explosion in the oil storage tanks of an FPSO, there is a potential for such an event and offshore operators should assess the risks of such events to design against them. It is therefore imperative that risk assessments of FPSOs address this type of event. For this, they need to estimate its annual likelihood of occurring.

One of the main contributors to the low tanker rates experienced during 2017 has been high fleet growth, particularly in the large crude tanker sectors, says a report from Teekay. This is partly due to a heavy delivery schedule as a result of orders placed in 2015, but it also due to very low levels of tanker scrapping. However, it appears as though the tide my be turning. Tanker scrapping was virtually non-existent in 2015 and 2016 with around 2.5 mdwt of tankers scrapped in each year.

Clean Marine, developer of Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems (EGCS), has secured a multi-vessel contract from Inventor Chemical Tankers AS (ICT). The agreement, covering seven 19,900 DWT chemical tankers, marks the launch of the firm’s CleanSOx Compact Hybrid Allstream scrubber to the marketplace. According to Clean Marine CEO Nils Høy-Petersen, the company has been exclusively dedicated to EGCS solutions since its inception in 2006. “Our latest product has been designed to ensure ship owners can achieve simple, cost and space efficient compliance with the IMO’s SOx regulations, coming into force in 2020,” he said. ICT has partnered with Clean Marine and technical manager Diamond Shipmanagement Pte Ltd…

BP said it will take delivery of six new, state-of-the-art liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers in 2018 and 2019 to support its expanding global LNG portfolio. BP’s finance partners KMarin and ICBC Leasing are investing more than $1 billion in the tankers. The vessels will join BP’s exixting fleet to help service a 20-year liquefaction contract with the Freeport LNG facility in Texas, as well as other international LNG projects in BP’s global portfolio. “These vessels will significantly increase BP’s ability to safely transport LNG to anywhere in the world, directly supporting BP’s global natural gas strategy,” said BP Shipping CEO Susan Dio. The new ships are designed to be about 25 percent more fuel efficient than their predecessors, BP said.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has announced that on October 16, a naming ceremony for a newbuilding LNG carrier, jointly owned by MOL and Tokyo LNG Tanker, was held at the Tsu Shipyard of Japan Marine United Corporation. Among the crowd of well-wishers on hand for the ceremony were Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. President Michiaki Hirose, who gave the name Energy Liberty to the vessel, after which his wife cut the rope. The Energy Liberty will be the eighth LNG carrier owned and managed by Tokyo LNG Tanker. MOL will directly manage six of those vessels, including this newbuilding vessel.

The Belgian gas tanker company Exmar has sold its liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker Excel for $ 23 million. "Exmar is pleased to announce the sale of the LNG carrier Excel (138,107 m³). The 2003 built Excel has been delivered to its new owners on 6th of October 2017," said a press statement from the company. The net cash proceeds realized by Exmar  for its 50% share in the joint venture will be approximately USD 23 million, it added. Exmar Shipmanagement NV provides management services for a range of ships such as gas carriers…

The 2017 SHIPPINGInsight Award was presented to Maersk Tankers and ShipNet at the 6th Fleet Optimization Conference & Exhibition in Stamford, Conn. The award is presented annually to honor a shipping company and its technology partners for the successful implementation of an innovative technology or initiative that advanced the state of the art in fleet optimization. The award winners each received a binnacled captain’s clock in a polished wooden case as well as framed certificates.

AkzoNobel said it scooped two honors at the recent ICIS Innovation Awards for the Interline 9001 ultra-performance cargo tank coating supplied through its International brand. As well as being awarded with the overall Innovation Award, Interline 9001 also received the Best Product Innovation Award from ICIS, the trusted information provider for the global chemical and energy industries. The awards recognize the impact the new coating has had on the chemical tanker industry, specifically how it tackles the issue of absorption from aggressive cargoes…

Scorpio Tankers has agreed to sell and leaseback five 2012 built MR product tankers (STI Amber, STI Topaz, STI Ruby, STI Garnet, and STI Onyx) to Bank of Communications Financial Leasing  (Bocomm Leasing). As of today, three of the five transactions have been completed, which has increased the Company’s liquidity by approximately $21 million in aggregate after the repayment of the outstanding debt. The sales price for each vessel is $27.5 million, and the Company will bareboat charter-in the vessels for a period of seven years at $9,025 per day per vessel.

Thirteen Chinese fishermen died after their boat collided with a Hong Kong oil tanker in international waters off Japan, state media Xinhua reported on Friday, citing sources at China's consulate in Osaka. Three people were found alive after Thursday's collision. It was not known if there was any damage to the tanker or what caused the accident. The two vessels collided 400 km (240 miles) north of the Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, east of North Korea, state media reported. The identities of the victims have not yet been confirmed, Xinhua reported. The 290-tonne Chinese fishing vessel Lurong Yuanyu 378 had 16 people on board, according to the South China Morning Post.

Tanker owners Ektank and Utkilen have selected marine automation specialists Høglund to provide automation systems on new chemical tankers currently under construction in China. The four 18,600 dwt tankers for Ektank, and the four 9,900 dwt tankers for Utkilen will be fitted with integrated automation systems that link together systems such as power management, cargo control and alarms. This new level of integration is essential for the vessels’ long-term performance and reliability, Høglund said.

Dualog, the digital platform at sea, has won a contract to handle the business email and data transfer needs for 90 vessels managed by Thenamaris of Greece.   Thenamaris, one of Greece’s most respected ship managers, operates a diversified fleet of tankers, bulk carriers, LNG and LPG vessels as well as containerships. It selected Dualog for its mission critical email platform as well as the ease of installation, service availability and customer support.   Services associated with the contract, which will involve changing and installing the fleet’s new email platform, should be completed by the end of October.    

Q88 LLC, a software as a service technology provider to the maritime industry, has opened an office in Athens, Greece. According t o the company, the new office further increases the its presence in Europe and will serve as a key hub for client relations and business development. “The Greek shipping community is so important to our success as a company and the industry as a whole. Having a presence in Greece is something we are very excited about. The Athens office will allow us to further strengthen relationships in the region and allow us to tap into the pulse of the industry,” said Fritz Heidenreich, president and founder of Q88.

Notwithstanding the recent surge in crude oil prices, it isn’t lost on anyone that the offshore oil exploration business is, and has been for some time, in the doldrums. In the U.S. Gulf, that pain can be seen through Chapter 11 filings and the sobering specter of vessel after vessel rolling off the shipyard ways and directly into cold iron layup. And, it doesn’t help that the shore-based shale drillers have not only found a way to drastically reduce their operating expenses, but also how to turn the valve off and on, seemingly at will, in response to market conditions.

Total annual operating costs in the shipping industry fell by an average of 1.1 percent in 2016, says international accountant and shipping consultant Moore Stephens. This compares with the 2.4 percent average fall in costs recorded for 2015. For the second successive year, all categories of expenditure were down on those for the previous 12-month period, most notably for insurance costs and stores. The findings are set out inMoore Stephens’ ship operating costs benchmarking tool OpCost 2017…

Oil and natural gas producers began evacuating staff at U.S. Gulf of Mexico platforms on Thursday ahead of Tropical Storm Nate, the second storm in as many months to threaten Gulf Coast oil and refining facilities. Nate, which has already killed three people in Costa Rica, according to local authorities, is forecast to scrape past Honduras and Mexico, enter the Gulf and strengthen into a hurricane before making landfall early on Sunday in Louisiana, near several major refineries.

Gas4Sea partners - ENGIE, Mitsubishi Corporation and NYK - have been selected by Norwegian multinational energy group Statoil to be their liquefied natural gas (LNG) marine fuel supplier in the port of Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, for four crude shuttle tankers. The four planned dual fuel vessels are to come into service in early 2020 and will be operated by Statoil in Northern European seas. Gas4Sea will supply LNG using the ENGIE Zeebrugge which started operations earlier this year.

A set of agreements between PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group), Rosneft, the State Transport Leasing Company (STLC) and Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex will see the construction of five Aframax tankers for the export of crude oil and oil products from 2021. The 114,000 dwt vessels will be built by Zvezda jointly with technology partner Hyundai Heavy Industries (Republic of Korea). The tankers are purpose-designed to use liquefied natural gas (LNG) as their primary fuel and will have an ice class of 1A/1B…

Teekay Tankers has agreed to acquire all the remaining issued and outstanding shares of Tanker Investments (TIL), in a share-for-share merger at an exchange ratio of 3.30 Teekay Tankers Class A common shares for each TIL common share. Teekay Tankers currently owns 3.4 million common shares, or 11.3 percent, of TIL. TIL's fleet consists of 10 Suezmax tankers, 6 Aframax tankers and 2 LR2 Product tankers with an average age of 7.3 years. Following the merger, Teekay Tankers' fleet will consist of 62 conventional tankers…

Monaco-based Scorpio Tankers says it has entered into agreements to sell its two 2004 built, LR1 product tankers, 'Noemi' and 'Senatore' and has also taken delivery of a MR product tanker newbuilding, 'STI Duchessa', from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co., Ltd. of South Korea. The sales of the two 2004-built tankships for altogether US$44 million are expected to close in April 2014. The new vessel, STI Duchessa, is fixed to be chartered out for up to 120 days at approximately $19,000 per day. About Scorpio Tankers Inc. Scorpio Tankers Inc.

Scorpio Tankers Inc. has taken delivery of STI Veneto, an LR2 product tanker from Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. This vessel will begin a voyage for 60 days at approximately $32,000 per day. With this Scorpio Tankers owns 63 tankers (nine LR2 tankers, two LR1 tankers, 15 Handymax tankers, 36 MR tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker) with an average age of 1.3 years, time charters-in 21 product tankers (six LR2, five LR1, three MR and seven Handymax tankers), and has contracted for 18 newbuilding product tankers (nine MR and nine LR2)…

Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE: STNG) (the "Company") announced today that it has reached an agreement with an unrelated third party to purchase an MR product tanker that is currently under construction at SPP Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. of South Korea ("SPP"). The purchase price of the vessel is $37.1 million with delivery expected in September 2014. The Company recently took deliveries of two MR product tankers, STI Dama from SPP and STI Olivia from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard of South Korea. Upon delivery, both vessels began time charters for up to 120 days at approximately $18,000 per day.

Scorpio Tankers Inc. inform they have taken delivery of another MR product tanker newbuilding in their ambitious newbuilding programme, 'STI Opera', from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co., Ltd. of South Korea. The owners add that the new vessel will be chartered-out for up to 120 days at approximately US$19,000 per day. Scorpio Tankers Inc. Of these newbuildings, 43 are expected to be delivered to the Company in 2014, 16 in 2015 and  four in 2016. The Company also owns 30% of Dorian LPG Ltd.