1. Cargo ship with barley bound for Iran aground in Caspian sea
General cargo ship PORT OLYA 2 loaded with 4698 tons of barley ran aground in Volga – Caspian Seaway Channel at 143.5 kilometer mark, at around 1600 Moscow time Mar 18, while en route from Port Olya river Volga, to Amirabad Iran. As of 2100 Moscow time, the ship was still aground, with tug nearby. http://www.maritimebulletin.net/2020/03/18/cargo-ship-with-barley-bound-for-iran-aground-in-caspian-sea/
2. 17 Corona distressed cruise ships: Summary
I compiled something of a summary of cruise ships distressed or troubled by coronavirus paranoia and fears. The overwhelming majority of the ships and people on board are corona clean, they fell victims to inflated, not justified, fears, not to infamous virus. The list contains brief information on 17 troubled ships, it’s not full of course, there are more ships still cruising around, turned away by a number of countries, and not knowing where to dock. http://www.maritimebulletin.net/2020/03/18/17-corona-distressed-cruise-ships-summary/
3. Newbuilding Orders on the Rise, But S&P Deals Scarce
Ship owners have pushed forward with more newbuilding contracting activity this week, but deals in the S&P market appear to be dwindling. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Intermodal said that “a healthy number of orders surfaced for a second week in a row, with dry bulk activity having the lion’s share in recently contracted deals after a long time. Despite the more generous volumes of orders being reported in recent weeks, we expect that at least for the first half of the year appetite for newbuilding contracting will remain softer compared to the same period in 2019 during which both the shipping industry and world growth in general was looking at very different and admittedly smaller challenges compared to today. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/newbuilding-orders-on-the-rise-but-sp-deals-scarce/
4. China Macro & Metals: As work slowly resumes, high steel stocks weigh on prices
The impact of the coronavirus on the economy was revealed by China’s two manufacturing purchasing managers’ indices with both falling to record lows in February. The PMI published by China’s National Bureau of Statistics dropped to 35.7 points in February from 50 in January, while Caixin’s PMI, which is more weighted towards small, private industry, fell to 40.3 down from 51.1 in January. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/china-macro-metals-as-work-slowly-resumes-high-steel-stocks-weigh-on-prices/
5. SOCAR MARINE becomes leader in international marine fuel market
SOCAR Marine, daughter company of the Azerbaijani State Oil Company (SOCAR), operating in Turkey became the leader of the marine fuel market in 2019, SOCAR’s press service said this week. Thus, SOCAR Marine secured 25% of the market shares, with a record sale of 600,000 tonnes of fuel in 2019. SOCAR MARINE, has been operating in the international marine fuel sector since 2013. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/socar-marine-becomes-leader-in-international-marine-fuel-market/
6. The Shipowners’ Club: The ongoing development of COVID-19 requires that we regularly review our day to day operational practices.
From 16th March, following UK Government advice, the London branch of the Club will temporarily close with all London staff working remotely. Despite the London branch closure, it remains very much business as usual with all staff able to service our Members and their brokers remotely. Our focus will remain towards offering the highest service levels and fundamentally supporting our Membership with their claims, operational liabilities and providing their insurance solutions. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/the-shipowners-club-the-ongoing-development-of-covid-19-requires-that-we-regularly-review-our-day-to-day-operational-practices/
7. Covid-19 Emergency Bill: Keeping our trading gateways open should be a priority
Responding to the publication of the Government’s policy paper on its new Emergency Bill the British Ports Association has said that keeping the UK’s global gateways open for trade should be a priority. Commenting Richard Ballantyne, Chief Executive, British Ports Association said: UK ports facilitate 95% of our trade and will be instrumental ensuring the country is fed and resourced in the coming weeks https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/covid-19-emergency-bill-keeping-our-trading-gateways-open-should-be-a-priority/
8. Kalmar and Tanzania Ports Authority extend successful collaboration with new RTG order
Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has been awarded a contract to supply Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) with a total of six Kalmar rubber-tyred gantry (RTG) cranes for use at Dar es Salaam port. The order was booked in Cargotec’s 2020 Q1 order intake, with delivery scheduled for Q1 of 2021. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/kalmar-and-tanzania-ports-authority-extend-successful-collaboration-with-new-rtg-order/
9. Axxis Geo Solutions secures contract extension in the Middle East
Axxis Geo Solutions has been awarded an extension to a contract for 3D ocean bottom node (OBN) seismic acquisition survey in the Middle East.
LThe additional work is estimated to be totaling seven vessel months and will continue into the second quarter. https://splash247.com/axxis-geo-solutions-secures-contract-extension-in-the-middle-east/
10. Supply chains face another headache as China starts 14-day restrictions for ships and personnel coming from worst-hit coranavirus countries
China celebrated no new cases of Covid-19 yesterday for the first time since making public daily figures on the outbreak. In the process of suppressing the virus, Beijing has detailed a huge raft of new rules limiting foreigners accessing the country, something that Splash can reveal also has potentially seismic dimensions for the shipping industry, especially the intra-Asia trades. https://splash247.com/supply-chains-face-another-headache-as-china-starts-14-day-quarantine-for-ships-and-personnel-coming-from-worst-hit-coranavirus-countries/
