InterManager Daily News 30.07.2020.

1. Japan Marine United Corporation hit by COVID-19
Japanese shipbuilder Japan Marine United Corporation (JMU) has suspended some of its works in its Ariake yard in the southern island of Kyushu, after 23 of its employees contracted COVID-19. It is the third known maritime COVID-19 cluster in Japan, after the outbreak on the cruise ship Diamond Princess in Yokohama and the cruise ship Costa Atlantica in Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ Nagasaki yard. https://safetyatsea.net/news/2020/japan-marine-united-corporation-hit-by-covid-19/

2. Mauritius Environmental Minister: No Oil Spill from Grounded Wakashio
Mauritius’ Minister of the Environment Kavi Ramano addressed parliament on the on-going response to the grounding of the MV Wakashio, on a reef off Pointe D’esny. https://gcaptain.com/mauritius-environmental-minister-no-oil-spill-from-grounded-wakashio/

3. Turkey Holds Off Sea Survey to Defuse Tensions with Greece
Turkey will hold off on surveying the seabed in an area of the eastern Mediterranean disputed by Greece to give time for diplomacy, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesman said. https://gcaptain.com/turkey-holds-off-sea-survey-to-defuse-tensions-with-greece/

4. The berth of a nation
Today, hundreds of thousands of seafarers are trapped. Either on ships, fatigued and fearing for their families, or stuck at home worried about for their livelihoods and even their careers. A reality which means we desperately need for fixes, and which means all of us in the maritime industry must be either calling for change or thinking how things can be done differently. As was recently rightly written in Splash, “Crew changes aren’t working”. How then can we fix them? https://splash247.com/the-berth-of-a-nation/

5. China Merchants and AVIC Trust to support Antong Holdings restructuring
Financially troubled domestic container shipping operator Antong Holdings is expected to receive financially support from both China Merchants Port Holdings (CMPH) and AVIC Trust if the company’s restructuring process goes smoothly. https://splash247.com/china-merchants-and-avic-trust-to-support-antong-holdings-restructuring/

6. Four-day strike hits Montreal port
Longshoremen at the Port of Montreal launched a four-day strike on Monday morning. Union members said they will not provide mooring services during the work stoppage, except for supplies to Newfoundland and Labrador and for grain vessels.
https://splash247.com/four-day-strike-hits-montreal-port/

7. Maersk Flow debuts
Soren Skou has revealed his next step in making his company shipping’s answer to FedEx. A.P. Moller – Maersk today unveiled Maersk Flow, a digital supply chain management platform which the Danish container shipping giant claims gives customers everything they need to take control of their supply chain, from factory to market. https://splash247.com/maersk-flow-debuts/

8. Market Expansion And Diversification Over The Past Decade: What’s Next For LNG?
Panos Mitrou, LR’s Global Gas Segment Manager (pictured right), has been dealing with LNG as fuel for the past eight years. Over this period, he has seen the use of LNG expand and diversify from just a few LNG carriers using boil off gas for convenience to far wider adoption across a range of shipping sectors. In recent months, the LNG as fuel question is part of the decision making process in approximately 50% of new projects. https://www.shippingtribune.com/news/shipping/Market+expansion+and+diversification+over+the+past+decade%3A+what’s+next+for+LNG%3F

9. U.S. Crude Floods Into Asia, But It’s A Once-Off Phenomenon
Asia will import record volumes of U.S. crude oil this month, with China leading the way, but the surge is more likely a short-term blip rather than a sustained trend. A total of 57.7 million barrels of U.S. crude is expected to land in Asia in July, equivalent to about 1.86 million barrels per day (bpd), according to vessel-tracking and port data compiled by Refinitiv. https://www.shippingtribune.com/news/shipping/U.S.+crude+floods+into+Asia%2C+but+it’s+a+once-off+phenomenon

10. Brazil’s Steelmakers Say U.S. Is Pressuring To Lower Export Quotas
Brazilian steelmakers’ trade group Iabr on Monday said the United States is pressuring Brazil to reduce its exports of unfinished steel, part of a long fight between both countries. “They have threatened us,” Iabr President Marco Polo said of the United States. “If we don’t agree to tariffs they will lower our quotas,” he told reporters. https://www.shippingtribune.com/news/shipping/Brazil’s+steelmakers+say+U.S.+is+pressuring+to+lower+export+quotas