Terminal Services News

Brazil's Federal Audit Court (TCU) on Monday voted six to three to recommend that operators of existing container terminals at the Santos port be barred from participating in the first phase of bidding for a planned mega terminal, citing concerns over market concentration.The decision deals a blow to companies such as Danish shipping group Maersk, MSC and others already operating container terminals in Latin America's largest port, as these companies will only be able to enter a second phase of the auction if the first does not attract valid bids.The two-phase model, proposed by port regulator

Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT), Australia’s fully automated container terminal operated by International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI), recently enhanced maritime connection to Asian markets through a revamped Koala service.The service, operated by MSC, made its inaugural call at VICT on October 4, linking the Port of Melbourne directly with major ports in China and Indonesia.Fixed weekly route will offer increased flexibility to supply chains serving…

SAAM Towage, the largest towage operator in the Americas, has added two new units to its fleet: the SAAM Petrel and the SAAM Charrán. These modern ships, designed by the firm Robert Allan and built at the Sanmar shipyard in Turkey.Their names—SAAM Petrel and SAAM Charrán—pay homage to seabirds native to the coasts of Chile and Peru, following a SAAM Towage tradition dating back 60 years to the company's founding.SAAM Petrel. © SAAM TowageThe SAAM Petrel is on its way to the Port of Arica in Chile.

T. Parker Host (HOST), a provider of maritime agency and terminal services across the United States, has acquired Transmarine Navigation Corporation (Transmarine), a West Coast ship agency headquartered in Long Beach, California.The transaction unites two industry pioneers, forming the largest independent tramp ship agency in the United States and expanding HOST’s maritime coverage from coast to coast, including the Hawaiian Islands.With more than 85 years of experience navigating the Pacific corridor…

ADNOC Logistics & Services Plc (ADNOC L&S) has signed a 15-year strategic partnership agreement with Borouge, worth $531 million, to manage shipping and port logistics for the company’s expanding petrochemical exports.The agreement positions ADNOC L&S as the primary logistics provider for up to 70% of Borouge’s annual production, covering container handling, port operations, and feeder shipping services from Al Ruwais Industrial City to the deepwater ports of Jebel Ali and Khalifa Port.As part of the deal…

International Container Terminal Services, Inc.’s (ICTSI) Baltic Container Terminal (BCT), Gdynia, acting in coordination with the Port of Gdynia Authority, has completed Phase 1 of a two-phase major upgrade of its Helskie Quay.The project, implemented over 400 meters of quay line, represents an important step in the Port of Gdynia’s goal to accommodate larger vessels. This objective will become a reality this September with the commissioning of 100 meters of the additional 400 meters to be upgraded under Phase 2 works as well as the entry into service of a newly expanded turning basin.

Gulf LNG Tugs of Port Arthur on Thursday announced it has placed orders for four new escort tugs to serve the Port Arthur LNG export facility in Texas. Two will be constructed by Master Boat Builders in Coden, Ala., and two by Sterling Shipyard in Port Neches, Texas. Gulf LNG Tugs—a joint venture comprised of Bay-Houston Towing, Moran Towing Corporation and Suderman & Young Towing Company—said the new high horsepower, highly maneuverable RApport 2800 tugboats have been designed by naval architect Robert Allan Ltd.

Tidewater, a provider of marine transportation and terminal services on the Columbia Snake River System, revealed plans to invest in up to four new refined liquid products barges.The Vancouver, Wash. based company said its board of directors has approved the barge design and is progressing toward the construction phase. The new barges will replace older, less efficient assets, enhancing fleet safety, efficiency and environmental stewardship, Tidewater said."Our investment in these…

One of Turkey's mid-sized Mediterranean oil terminals - the Dortyol terminal - will no longer accept Russian imports after receiving record volumes last year, amid an increase in sanctions pressure by the United States.Turkey has become one of the biggest importers of Russian crude and fuel since 2022, after the West imposed sanctions on Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine. Russia responded by re-routing oil away from Europe and the U.S. to Asia, Turkey and Africa.Global Terminal Services' (GTS)…

A.P. Moller-Maersk's towage arm Svitzer announced it has signed a 15-year agreement to service Gastrade’s Alexandroupolis Independent Natural Gas System (Alexandroupolis INGS) LNG terminal—the first offshore LNG project in Greece—set to become operational in the beginning of 2024. The project marks Svitzer’s entry into the Greek market.Svitzer will set up towage services and support for LNG operations at the new import terminal, including support for a floating storage regasification…

Glosten is growing its PelaStar partner network to prepare for Phase 2 of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Floating Offshore Wind ReadINess (FLOWIN) Prize. The expanded team will focus on identifying facilities and the requisite investment to enable U.S.-based platform fabrication and marine logistics capabilities; creating workforce development plans focused on local manufacturing in underserved communities; advancing engineering readiness for ultra-deepwater sites in the U.S.

Japanese container shipping company Ocean Network Express (ONE) announced it has acquired controlling stakes in three California container terminals amid a push by many of the world's largest global shipping lines to expand their presence in the port infrastructure component of the logistics chain.ONE, which is jointly owned by the Japanese shipping lines Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYL), Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) and K Line, said it signed definitive agreements to acquire a 51% stake in each of TraPac and Yusen Terminals (YTI)…

Mokena, Ill. based Middle River Marine, LLC announced it has struck a deal to acquire the assets of Chicago's Kindra Lake Towing LP.With the acquisition, Middle River will expand its affreightment, towing, fleeting and terminal services to customers on the Illinois Waterways, including Lake Michigan. The agreement will expand MRM’s bulk material logistic operations with the addition of five vessels, marine equipment and a harbor slip in South Chicago.“Our people make the difference and we’re happy to welcome new coworkers to expand the MRM team,” said Aaron Halcomb, president of Middle River Marine. “For our customers, this further extends our ability to economically…

Liberty Green Logistics LLC, (Lake Success, NY) formed an offshore wind supply chain consortium to provide "Factory to Farm" logistical support and integrated supply chain services to the U.S. offshore wind industry. The consortium is on a non-exclusive basis and available as a one stop shop for developers, OEM’s, and EPC contractors, providing services ranging across ports & terminals, vessels, and supply chain logistics. Since the inception in May 2021 Liberty Green has enrolled 17 consortium members…

A blockade of Sudan's main Red Sea port by a local tribal group and threats of more disruptions have hurt efforts to lift the country out of economic crisis and could push trade flows to another regional route, officials and shipping executives say.Several shipping firms were forced to pause bookings via Port Sudan, the African nation's main international trade gateway that generates vital revenue for the cash-strapped state that is trying to recover from three years of political turmoil.The port…

The world faces "very prolonged" disruptions to shipping cargo flows, an executive at leading ports operator ICTSI said, as logistical headaches such as truck shortages weigh on backed-up supply chains and rebounding trade drives up volume.Major bottlenecks have formed across the globe in recent months due to a surge in demand for retail goods from people stuck at home under pandemic-related lockdowns and logjams impacting the supply of container ships and boxes to transport cargo.The situation has been particularly severe in major retail markets such as the United States…

Enterprise Products Partners LP is working with U.S. officials to advance an offshore crude terminal project after the review schedule was suspended last week, the company said.Enterprise and Enbridge Inc agreed late last year to jointly develop a U.S. Gulf Coast crude export terminal known as Sea Port Oil Terminal (SPOT) that would load supertankers off Freeport, Texas.The application review schedule was suspended after SPOT Terminal Services LLC said it needed additional time to fully respond to information requests, according to a June 4 letter by the United States Coast Guard and Maritime Administration (MARAD).The USCG and MARAD have requested more information such as the project description and a list of landowners that would be affected…

The Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced the extension of the period for the public to comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed SPOT Terminal Services, LLC deepwater port facility. The comment period was initially scheduled to end on March 23, 2020, but is now extended 30-days from the publication date of this Federal Register notice published on Friday, May 1, 2020.Due to the nationwide impacts of COVID-19 and the associated social distancing protocols, MARAD and the U.S. Coast Guard determined that the impact of these protocols have affected the public’s ability to assemble and provide feedback on the SPOT DEIS.

Philippines-based port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) will more than double the capacity of its container terminal in Congo as part of a $100 million expansion, the company said on Thursday.Located on the Congo River, the port city of Matadi, where ICTSI operates the Matadi Gateway Terminal (MGT) under a joint venture with Congolese property management company SIMOBILE, is the Democratic Republic of Congo's primary shipping hub.The planned expansion will bring MGT's throughput capacity up to 400…

The Panama Canal is a strategic crossroads for maritime traffic, and is arguably one of the most important maritime developments in the past century. Here we take a deeper dive into the history behind that famous strip of waterway.The present canal, which saw its first vessel transits in 1914, along with possible alternatives through Nicaragua and Mexico, had actually been on the minds of merchants, explorers and military/political strategists since the Age of Exploration in early 1500’s.

Dutch dredging company Royal Boskalis Westminster announced that its 50%-owned associate company Smit Lamnalco is contracted by Coral FLNG to provide marine services to the first Mozambique floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) terminal.The 10-year contract with additional extension options marks the first terminal services contract award for the Mozambique offshore LNG developments.The contract value for Smit Lamnalco amounts to approximately USD 200 million and services will commence early 2022.For the delivery of its services Smit Lamnalco will deploy three new 95 ton bollard pull tugs to provide escort, berthing and unberthing services to LNG carriers at the FLNG facility.

International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI) Ecuador has launched the first transport insurance program for banana trade.Contecon Guayaquil SA, the Ecuadorian subsidiary of ICTSI, will be providing banana-exporters with a comprehensive insurance program, increasing coverage for the transport. ICTSI claims that Contecon Guayaquil SA (CGSA) is the world’s biggest banana export port.Designed according to the needs of Ecuador’s export market – SIE, Ecuador’s first integral insurance for banana exporters was launched recently through efforts of CGSA-led Logistics Community of the Port of Guayaquil (Comunidad Logistica del Puerto de Guayaquil – CLPG).Supported by RSA Seguros as advisers and multi-national insurers CHUBB and Zurich…

Commission Expresses Concerns about Puerto Rico Terminal Facilities Agreement.An agreement filed at the Federal Maritime Commission allowing a joint venture between two adjacent terminals at the Port of San Juan, Puerto Rico, will go into effect on August 29. However, concerns about the agreement and its impact on the marketplace will lead the FMC to adopt a more vigorous oversight plan than its traditional monitoring program.Under the terms of the Puerto Nuevo Terminals LLC Cooperative Working Agreement (FMC Agreement No.