International Maritime Organization News

Singapore Eyes Electric Harbor Boats to Cut Emissions

Singapore is seeking proposals on the electrification of small vessels known as harbourcraft as the industry transitions towards a low-carbon future, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said in a joint statement on Wednesday.The MPA is working with the Singapore Maritime Institute (SMI) to seek proposals from industry participants and institutes of higher learning or research institutes to develop commercially ready fully-electric harbourcraft.They are also seeking…

World's First LNG-powered Very Large Containership Delivered

Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries has delivered the world's first very large containership powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Singapore's Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS), the South Korean shipbuilder announced Wednesday.The LNG-powered, 14,800 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) capacity CMA CGM Tenere is one of six containerships in a series being built for EPS by Hyundai Samho, a unit of shipbuilding giant Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. The six neo-Panamax box…

IMO Head Urges Governments to Resolve Crew Change Crisis

International Maritime Organization (IMO) Secretary-General Kitack Lim is urging governments to take swift action to resolve the crew change crisis that has left several hundred thousand seafarers stranded at sea and unable to be repatriated despite the expiry of their contracts.It is estimated that more than 300,000 mariners are stuck at sea, and a similar number of seafarers have been unable to join ships and relieve them due to restrictions imposed by several governments in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic…

Japan Trio Begins Work on an Ammonia-Fueled Tugboat

As the marine industry works to find the ‘fuel of the future’ to address increasingly stringent emission regulations, an interesting development from a trio of marine powers in Japan seeks to develop the world’s first ammonia-fueled tugboat. The joint research and development agreement was signed by NYK, IHI Power Systems Co., Ltd., and ClassNK recently to put the world's first ammonia-fueled tugboat into practical use.With the entry into force of the Paris Agreement in 2016, global momentum for decarbonization has increased…

Container Shipping & Perfecting on-time Performance

Recent reports show that on-time performance in the containership sector continues to deteriorate, causing tension between the carriers and retailers. In general, non-ocean carriers – trucks and trains – are achieving reliability rates well above 90% whereas containerships rarely beat a 70% on-time threshold. For retailers, the threat of having empty shelves is beginning to swing the balance from cheaper ocean transport to a need for reliable just-in-time deliveries supplied by…

Smart Management is Needed as Wave of Digitalization Transforms Maritime

As the shipping industry undergoes major transformation, with operations becomingly increasingly automated, maritime companies need to consider more than just efficiency and safety when it comes to operations. The current global situation has resulted in a growing demand for crew communication, for both work and social purposes, alongside the ongoing need for optimization. All of this causes higher levels of traffic on maritime networks, forcing shipping operators to place an…

Ocean Influencer: Dr. Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, President, World Maritime University (WMU)

The July/August edition of Marine Technology Reporter, the 15th Annual "MTR100", recognizes Dr. Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, president of the World Maritime University (WMU) in Sweden, as a leading "Ocean Influencer." She is a leader on issues impacting the international shipping industry, maritime law and gender equality in ocean-related fields. She is a distinguished academic in the field of international law, justice drives her motivation for social and environmental change on a global scale.Born and raised in the Commonwealth of Dominica…

Japanese Partners Eye Ammonia as Marine Fuel

A joint research and development (R&D) project initiated by a group of Japanese maritime companies aims to utilize ammonia as a marine fuel and establish methods for the mass transportation and supply of ammonia.The joint R&D agreement signed by NYK Line, Japan Marine United Corporation and Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) on August 6 will target the commercialization of an ammonia-fueled ammonia gas carrier (AFAGC) that would use ammonia as the main fuel, in addition to an ammonia…

IMO Updates Virtual Meetings Calendar

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has published its remote meetings calendar for the rest of 2020 after its initial agenda of IMO Council and Committees sessions was scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic.The first scheduled meeting is set to be a simultaneous, remote extraordinary sessions of all Committees (expected to be held 16-18 September), to address procedural matters. This follows decisions of the IMO Council's thirty second extraordinary session (summary here C.ES 32)…

Congress Responds to COVID19 and Other Challenges for the Maritime Industry

In response to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, the Congressional Research Service released a report that stated global economic growth has declined by 3% to 6% in 2020 with a partial recovery predicted for 2021. Also, the GDP of the U.S. has fallen by 5% in the first quarter 2020. According to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the maritime industry, and seafarers themselves, have not been able to escape the significant effects of this crisis.All sectors of the maritime industry have been adversely affected by the global pandemic.

Shipping's Switch to Cleaner Fuel Has Been Smooth Sailing -ING Bank

Seven months after the United Nations' shipping agency brought in hotly anticipated new rules to curb emissions, the raft of technical issues and leap in fuel prices that were expected to result have failed to materialize, ING Bank said on Tuesday.Global shipping and oil firms had flagged major concerns over potential disruptions from International Maritime Organization (IMO) rules implemented at the start of 2020, which capped marine fuels' sulphur content at 0.5% against 3.5% previously.However, shipping and marine fuel suppliers say expected technical issues, such as damage to engines from

Denmark to Allow Crew Changes

Denmark will allow merchant sailors stranded on the high seas since the outbreak of the coronavirus to come ashore and be reunited with their friends and families, the Business Ministry said on Monday.Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, 200,000 seafarers have been stranded on merchant ships, some for more than a year, because travel restrictions have made it almost impossible to rotate crews."While many Danes have used the corona crisis to spend more time with the family, many Danish sailors have had to do without family and friends for much longer than usual…

Desperate Times for Sailors Stranded by Pandemic

Jens Boysen disembarked one of the world’s largest container ships on Thursday after 167 days at sea when he has acted not only as captain but also as doctor, dentist, mental coach and entertainment director for his stressed-out crew.Almost 200,000 seafarers like Boysen are stuck onboard merchant ships, some for more than a year, because coronavirus travel restrictions make it almost impossible to rotate crews, according to the U.N.’s International Maritime Organization (IMO).The crews…

Governments Pledge Crew Change Action

A dozen countries have have committed to facilitate crew changes and achieve key worker designation for seafarers, following a virtual ministerial summit hosted by the U.K. government on Thursday, marking progress to help resolve a growing crisis facing the maritime industry, and enable hundreds of thousands of stranded seafarers to go home or join ships.“The inability of ship operators worldwide to conduct ship’s crew changes is the single most pressing maritime operational challenge to the safe and efficient movement of global trade…

Klaveness Lines Up Sustainability-linked Newbuild Financing

Norwegian shipping company Klaveness Combination Carriers (KCC) said it has secured a $60 million sustainability-linked term loan and revolving credit facility for the financing of the seventh and eighth CLEANBU vessels with delivery in 2021, reportedly a first within the maritime industry. Nordea is acting as coordinator and bookrunner and Credit Agricole CIB as sustainability agent.The credit margin will be adjusted, up or down, based on KCC’s sustainability performance, as…

UK Plans Summit to Address Crew Change Crisis

The U.K. government announced Thursday it will host an international summit next month to address crew change challenges caused by the COVID-19 health crisis.Led by U.K. Maritime Minister Kelly Tolhurst, the virtual event will bring together UN, political and business leaders from across the globe to reflect on the impact of the pandemic on the global shipping industry, and what governments and industry must do to protect the welfare of crew workers around the world. Secretary…

China to Be Self-reliant in IMO-compliant Fuel

Chinese refiners have the capacity to produce 18.1 million tonnes of low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) this year, which would make the country self-sufficient in the new shipping fuel, an official with state major PetroChina said on Monday.China has been striving to reduce its reliance on bunker fuel imports and is aiming to create its own marine fuel hub to supply northern Asia.About 20 refineries, mostly under state-run Sinopec Corp, PetroChina, CNOOC and Sinochem, installed equipment to produce 0.5% sulfur fuel that meets International Maritime Organization (IMO) rules that came into force at the

Stena Bulk Offering Biofuel as an Option

Shipping company Stena Bulk said Monday it is offering low-carbon biofuel as an option for its customers following trials of the cleaner but costlier fuel on board one of its tankers in April.Customers will have options ranging from 20% to 100% biofuels based on an offsetting program where the biofuel is used within the Stena Bulk fleet, Stena Bulk said. This allows customers to make use of low-carbon shipping options regardless of fuel availability on the specific route and without operational disruptions…

Djibouti Offers Crew Change Support

Djibouti announced at the United Nations Monday its readiness to facilitate crew change operations for any ships passing through the Bab el Mandeb strait, with the necessary support provided by the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority (DPFZA).The East African country is responding to a joint statement from the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) and UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to support crew changes and ensure that maritime personnel can return…

Weary Sailors Pose Risk to World Merchant Fleet -Kitack Lim

Hundreds of thousands of weary seafarers stuck on ships for many months and unable to go home due to the coronavirus pose a risk to the safe operation of the world’s merchant fleet, the UN’s shipping chief said on Tuesday.About 90% of world trade is transported by sea and continued complications with changing over ship crews due to restrictions in some jurisdictions is still affecting supply chains despite an easing of lockdown in many parts of the world.Kitack Lim, Secretary-General of the UN’s International Maritime Organization…

Great Lakes Shipping Companies Navigate Market Challenges Ahead

For U.S.-flag shipping on the Great Lakes, 2019 was a good year. Total cargos were 90 million net tons, up 7.5% over 2018 and 4.6% over the five-year average. 49.7 million net tons of iron ore were shipped, up 8.5% over 2018 and 11.7% over the five year. Limestone was up 9.7% over 2018 and 10.2% over the five-year average. In 2010 and 2011, coal and limestone were each about 20 million net tons. Since then, coal has shown a steady decline as coal-fired power generating plants…

Pandemic Forces Ship Owners to Shelve Scrubber Installs

Ship owners are postponing or canceling the installation of “scrubbers” that extract harmful sulphur emissions from their vessels as the coronavirus pandemic tightens finances.Regulations from United Nations agency the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which took effect in January, were viewed by the oil and shipping industries as one of the first worldwide efforts to enforce environmental change.The rules aimed to make ships use fuel with a sulphur content of 0.5%, compared with 3.5% previously.

Stena Line is 10 Years Ahead of IMO Emissions Goals

Ferry shipping company Stena Line reports it is 10 years ahead of international shipping's emissions reduction targets thanks to measures such as new, larger and more energy efficient vessels, AI assisted captains and an increased punctuality.The Sweden-based operator says that during 2019 it reduced its total CO2 emissions 1.7 %, corresponding to 24,000 metric tons of CO2 in total, while CO2 emissions per transported ton freight and passenger vehicles on board the vessels fell…

Ports Pledge to Stay Open During COVID-19

Dozens of seaports across Asia, Oceania, Middle East, Africa, Europe and Americas have pledged to remain open to merchant vessels to ensure the flow of essential goods throughout the coronavirus pandemic.To date, more than 50 port authorities have signed on to support the Port Authorities Roundtable (PAR) COVID-19 declaration, initiated by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore for ports to commit to staying open to merchant vessels and work together to share best practices in ensuring that port operations can remain undisrupted.“Now is the time…

China's VLSFO Exports Rose By a Third in April

China's low-sulphur marine fuel exports rose by a third in April compared with March to the highest level yet after it waived export taxes for domestic refiners to meet shipping demand, Chinese customs data showed.Chinese refiners began exporting in January very low sulphur fuel oi (VLSFO) with a maximum sulphur content of 0.5% to comply with emission rules for ships from the International Maritime Organization.Data from China's General Administration of Customs showed April exports of the ship fuel reached nearly 1.43 million tonnes…

Shipping Plan Would Reel International Emissions into EU Carbon Market

The European Union's carbon market could capture a large chunk of emissions from outside Europe if the bloc succeeds in including shipping in the scheme, according to the European Commission's first report on maritime CO2 emissions.Pollution from ships plying international waters typically escapes countries' domestic emissions-cutting targets, but the EU's executive has said the sector must contribute to its trillion-euro push to achieve a "climate neutral" economy by 2050.It wants to curb shipping's carbon footprint by adding it to the Europe-wide emissions trading system (ETS)…