Tankers News

Russia has begun shipping oil and refined products to Bolivia, helping to tackle a fuel shortage in the country, and expanding its presence in Latin America as Western sanctions have forced Moscow to seek new markets, traders and shipping data show.After the full EU embargo on importing Russian oil products took effect in February 2023, Brazil has become one of the biggest importers of Russian fuel. Russia has also increased exports to Venezuela, Jamaica and Cuba.According to LSEG…

Ship owner Hafnia, operator of the Hafnia Nile oil tanker, is in discussion with Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) about transferring the damaged ship's cargo of naphtha to a safe location, the MPA said on Wednesday.The Singapore-flagged Hafnia Nile and the Sao Tome and Principe-flagged Ceres I collided and caught fire about 55 km (35 miles) northeast of the Singaporean island of Pedra Branca early on July 19.The Hafnia Nile, a Panamax tanker chartered by Spanish energy firm Cepsa, was carrying about 300,000 barrels of naphtha which had been purchased by Japanese refiner Eneos.

The rescue operation for the Comoros-flagged Prestige Falcon oil tanker that capsized off Oman on July 15 has been deactivated, Oman's Maritime Security Centre said on Tuesday.Nine of the 16-member crew were found alive and one dead, the centre reiterated, without giving further detail on the fate of the remaining six crew members.(Reuters - Reporting by Jaidaa Taha and Muhammad Al Gebaly; Editing by Mark Porter)

A tanker that fled the scene of a fiery Friday collision off Singapore entered the area of Malaysia's Bertam floating oil terminal on Monday after being tracked down and intercepted by Malaysian authorities, shipping data from LSEG and Kpler showed.The Sao Tome and Principe-flagged supertanker Ceres I had left the scene of the collision with the Singapore-flagged tanker Hafnia Nile about 55 km (35 miles) northeast of the Singaporean island of Pedra Branca without explanation.The Ceres I…

Trafigura Group has completed the acquisition of Gearbulk Holding 50% share in joint venture company High Heat Tankers (HHT) for an undisclosed sum.Aside from the acquisition, Trafigura has committed to a newbuild 17,500 dwt IMO II specialized high heat tanker to be delivered in the third quarter of 2026 from Chengxi Shipyard China to support the expansion of HHT’s services.HHT was established in 2018 between Gearbulk and Trafigura Group company Puma Energy Supply and Trading to provide access to the largest pool of modern IMO II high heat tankers in the world.Today…

Two large oil tankers were on fire on Friday after colliding near Singapore, the world's biggest refuelling port, with two crew members airlifted to hospital and others rescued from life rafts, authorities and one of the tanker operators said.Singapore is Asia's biggest oil-trading hub and the world's largest bunkering port. Its surrounding waters are vital trade waterways between Asia and Europe and the Middle East and among the busiest global sea lanes.The Singapore-flagged…

At least nine of the 16-member crew of a Comoros-flagged oil tanker that capsized off Oman on Monday have been rescued while one was found dead, officials said on Wednesday, two days after the incident was first reported.The Prestige Falcon, a 117-meter oil product tanker, was heading to the Yemeni port of Aden with a crew of 13 Indians and three Sri Lankans when it capsized off Oman's major industrial port of Duqm. The cause was not immediately known."Search and rescue operations have successfully found 10 crew members of the oil tanker Prestige Falcon, 9 found alive.

OceanPal on Tuesday announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire a 2009-built MR2 tanker vessel for $27 million, marking the Greek dry bulk shipowner's entry into the tanker market.The 49,999 dwt vessel, Zeze Start, is being purchased from an entity controlled by a director of the company and is scheduled to be delivered to OceanPal in the third quarter of this year.OceanPal—which currently owns a fleet of five bulk carriers—said the move to diversify its fleet is part of an effort to take advantage of opportunities in the product tanker sector.Robert Perri…

One person has died and another is missing after a commercial tanker struck a recreation vessel near Port Aransas, Texas.The U.S. Coast Guard said it received a call from a good Samaritan via channel 16 at 5:28 a.m. reporting the collision between. The recreational vessel, reported to be a commercial pleasure boat, became partially submerged, and the four people on board went into the water.After receiving the call, the Coast Guard issued an urgent marine information broadcast…

A Chevron-chartered oil tanker seized by Iran more than a year ago has dropped anchor near the United Arab Emirates port of Khor Fakkan, ship tracking data showed on Monday.The Marshall Islands-flagged Advantage Sweet was boarded by Iran's military in the Gulf of Oman in April 2023 after an alleged collision with an Iranian boat.After sailing away from Iran last week, its latest position was located close to the UAE, LSEG data showed on Monday.A Chevron spokesperson said on Saturday it was aware of reports that the tanker was released on July 10."We are pleased to see the safe release of the v

Danish pure play product tanker company TORM on Monday announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire eight secondhand MR vessels in a $340 million cash and stock deal. TORM did not name the seller.The vessels have all been built by South Korea's Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in 2014 and 2015, and six of the vessels have been fitted with scrubbers. TORM said it expects to take delivery of the vessels during the third and fourth quarters of this year.The purchase price, which includes a cash consideration of $238 million and the issuance of approximately 2.65 million shares…

A Chevron-chartered oil tanker that was seized by Iran more than a year ago was heading for international waters on Thursday, LSEG ship tracking data showed.The Marshall Islands-flagged Advantage Sweet was boarded by Iran's military in the Gulf of Oman in April 2023 after an alleged collision with an Iranian boat.There was no immediate comment from Chevron or Iranian officials on Thursday on whether the vessel had been released or what discussions may have been involved.The movement…

Freight rates to ship Russian oil have fallen this month towards parity with those for other global exporters for the first time since 2022 as more tankers were available despite Western sanctions and exports fell, three sources said on Wednesday.Freight rates to ship Russian oil soared to more than $20 million per voyage in 2022 after the West imposed sanctions and a $60 dollar price cap to try to limit Russian export revenues.The sources who asked not to be named because they…

Seattle-headquartered Saltchuk on Wednesday announced it has completed its acquisition of Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG), a New York-listed marine transportation company based in Tampa, Fla.Privately-held Saltchuk—previously OSG’s largest shareholder—said it completed a $950 million transaction to purchase all outstanding shares of OSG common stock at $8.50 per share in cash, making OSG a wholly owned subsidiary. OSG common stock is now delisted and deregistered from the from New York Stock Exchange.OSG…

Oil and shipping group Monjasa on Wednesday announced it has added two secondhand tankers to its owned fleet, in a move that targets growth in West Africa’s offshore industry.The vessels are the 17,200 DWT Monjasa Rover (formerly Fure Nord) and 7,858 DWT Monjasa Hunter (formerly Annelise Theresa), the latter of which joins as a unique fleet addition targeting length-restricted offshore oil and gas vessels in West Africa, including FPSOs, Monjasa said.According to Monjasa, the…

The Texas energy industry was evaluating the impact from Hurricane Beryl on Monday after the powerful storm lashed the U.S. Gulf Coast, closing key shipping ports and hitting the oil refining and production sectors.Beryl made landfall near the coastal town of Matagorda, Texas, on Monday morning, packing maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour (129 kilometers an hour) and posing problems for the heart of the country's energy sector.The storm had strengthened to a Category…

Brazilian logistics firm Transpetro, a subsidiary of state-run oil firm Petrobras, has launched a procurement notice to commission four new coastal vessels, Transpetro's chief executive announced on Monday.The four vessels would be of the 'handy' class with a capacity of 15,000 to 18,000 deadweight tonnage, Transpetro CEO Sergio Bacci said at an event on Monday in Rio de Janeiro.Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is pushing Petrobras to help strengthen the country's naval industry, which he sees as key to job creation, after it lost relevance over the past decade due to corruption s

Product and chemical tanker shipping company Ardmore Shipping Corporation on Monday announced that its current senior vice president and chief commercial officer Gernot Ruppelt will succeed company founder Anthony Gurnee as CEO.Gurnee will retire on September 16, 2024, at which point Ruppelt will step into the CEO position and current CFO Bart Kelleher will take on the additional role of president. Ruppelt will maintain responsibility for Ardmore's commercial platform, and Kelleher will maintain his role as CFO until successors are named for the positions.

Malte Willer has been appointed as the successor Jan Eghøj as head of European short-sea shipping company E&S Tankers, the company announced.The handover process will be completed by mid-August when Eghoej will leave the company and Willer will take over as managing director. Willer brings to the role a strong knowledge of the European chemical tanker market, E&S Tankers said.The company also revealed that Christian Vang will take up the role of commercial director, heading the chartering department.

An abandoned tanker that was drifting off Yemen's coast in June has disappeared and is believed to have sunk, three navy and security sources said, the latest vessel lost in the strategically important Red Sea.The area, on the main shipping route from Europe to Asia, is considered high risk as Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants have launched more than 70 attacks on merchant vessels since October in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.Maritime security sources said last week the abandoned tanker, the Lavant, was unlikely however to have been targeted by the Houthis.

The Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF) has confirmed that its digitalized Ship Inspection Report Program (SIRE 2.0) is scheduled to ‘go-live’ on Monday 2 September 2024 and become the standard tanker inspection tool for the marine industry.The final transition to SIRE 2.0 and the withdrawal of the option to request a SIRE Vessel Inspection Questionnaire (VIQ7) inspection from Monday 2 September 2024 has been given now that all pre-agreed ‘Critical Success Factors’ for going live have been met and approved by the OCIMF Vessel Inspection Program Steering Group…

U.S. crude oil imports last month rose to a nearly two-year high as refiners scooped up heavy crudes from Canada and Latin America to process into fuels for summer driving season.Imports of crude oil rose to 3.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in May, the highest since July 2022, data from ship tracking service Kpler showed. Imports so far this month have remained strong, at around 2.9 million bpd to date.Fuel demand has remained tepid with product supplied for gasoline at 9.1 million bpd in the week to June 14, slightly below the 10-year seasonal average, data from the U.S.

A ship operated by Russian shipping group Sovcomflot rescued the crew of a tanker taking in water off Yemen's coast this week, the state-owned company, which is under Western sanctions, said on Wednesday.Sovcomflot tanker NS Africa was sailing southeast of the port of Nishtun in southern Yemen on June 23 when it responded to a distress call by the Lavant tanker whose crew had abandoned ship and were in a life raft in the open sea."At 1410 local time, the crew of the tanker NS Africa ...