Maritime news

Headlines aggregated from the maritime press. Links go straight to the source — Seafarer Index does not reproduce full articles.

• Royal Navy To Award £6 Billion Contract For 3 Floating Submarine Dry Docks
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  The British government is investing £6 billion to construct 3 floating dry docks to support the Royal Navy's nuclear submarine fleet at Faslane.

• Philippines Accuses Chinese Vessel Of Location Falsification Near Undersea Cables
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  The Coast Guard of the Philippines has blamed a Chinese vessel for operating in waters with undersea cables, while hiding its true location from Manila.

• EU Seeks More Warships For Red Sea As Hormuz Mission Remains On Hold
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  The EU wants member states to send more warships to the Red Sea as merchant ships wait for naval escorts amid renewed Houthi attacks.

• India And Liberia Launch UN Coalition To Protect Global Shipping And Seafarers
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  The Group of Friends on Safety and Security of Shipping and Seafarers has been initiated at the UN headquarters in New York.

• Fourth Person Charged After Attack On Filipino Shipworkers In UK’s Avonmouth Docks
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  A fourth individual has been charged over an assault carried out against three Filipino ship workers in the UK, near Avonmouth Docks,

• Nuclear power in shipping will change the industry's value proposition
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  Voyages would become faster but commercial shipping would need to adopt the high standards of safety seen for naval nuclear propulsion

• Scorpio pushes fleet renewal with tanker newbuilds and ship sales
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Scorpio Tankers has doubled its directly controlled VLCC orderbook and added another pair of LR2s in China, committing $415.6m to four newbuildings while continuing to clear older tonnage from its fleet. The Emanuele Lauro-led owner has agreed to acquire two scrubber-fitted VLCCs at Hengli Shipbuilding in Dalian for $1

• Death Toll From Sunken Indonesian Ferry Rises To 71 As Search Enters 16th Day
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  The death toll from the Virgo Transport 8 ferry disaster in Indonesia rose to 71, after divers found five more bodies inside the sunken ship.

• First U.S. Coast Guard Arctic Security Cutter in Finland Nears Halfway Point as Second Approaches Construction
  gCaptain · 9/29/2026

  Rauma Marine Constructions in Finland has made rapid progress on the first of two Arctic Security Cutters it is building for the U.S. Coast Guard, with almost half of the vessel's blocks already launched and construction of the second ship approaching, according to the Finnish shipbuilder's chief executive.

• China’s Deep-Sea Drilling Ship Mengxiang Reaches Record Depth In South China Sea
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  China’s deep-sea drilling ship Mengxiang has returned to Guangzhou after completing its first scientific drilling trip in the South China Sea.

• Shell to Double LNG Canada Plant in Multibillion-Dollar Plan
  gCaptain · 9/29/2026

  Shareholders in the Shell Plc-led LNG Canada venture greenlit plans to double its liquefied natural gas export capacity, forging ahead with the multibillion-dollar investment as key customers in Asia face the biggest supply shock of recent times.

• Hapag-Lloyd Urges Israel to Review Improved Offer for Shipping Services Company ZIM
  gCaptain · 9/29/2026

  Hapag-Lloyd HLAG.DE on Tuesday urged Israeli authorities to review improved terms in the company's $4.2 billion bid for ZIM Integrated Shipping Services.

• Container spot rates to US East and West coasts slide
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  Spot rates have eased as expected in the approach to China’s Golden Week, but increasing congestion and accelerated returns to Suez transits make for a complex path ahead

• Hapag-Lloyd Revises $4.2 Billion Bid For Israeli Shipping Firm Amid Security Concerns
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has changed its $4.2 billion plan to buy Israel’s Zim Integrated Shipping Services.

• Tufton scores 81% uplift on MR charter
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  London-listed Tufton Assets has capitalised on the strong tanker market, fixing one of its MR product tankers at $39,000 per day, an 81% increase on the vessel’s existing employment. The Mia Grace has been fixed for 12 to 14 months, up from its current rate of $21,500 per day. The new charter is expected to …

• Great Eastern adds newbuild suezmax to fleet renewal drive
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  India’s Great Eastern Shipping has contracted to acquire a 157,000 dwt newbuilding suezmax, adding a yard-built ship to a fleet renewal drive that has so far been dominated by secondhand transactions. The Mumbai-listed owner disclosed the deal late on Monday, saying the tanker will be constructed by an unnamed leading

• Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement buys into Norwegian crewing specialist
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Germany’s Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement has agreed to acquire a 50% interest in Kristiansand-based OffshoreCrew, widening the shipmanager’s access to specialised offshore personnel. OffshoreCrew supplies recruitment, agency staffing, crew-management services, and maintains an internal database of around 30,000 offsho

• Hoa Phat goes local for latest bulker newbuild
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Vietnamese steelmaker Hoa Phat has turned to a domestic yard for its latest fleet expansion, contracting Nam Trieu Shipbuilding to build an ultramax bulk carrier. Hoa Phat Shipping signed the contract for the 65,000 dwt unit with the Haiphong-based yard, better known as NASICO, with Vietnamese firm Viet Han Ship Design

• KKB unit bags Shell deal for Malaysian offshore developments
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Malaysian fabricator OceanMight has secured an engineering, procurement, and construction contract from Shell for fixed offshore structures linked to several field developments off Malaysia. Parent company KKB Engineering said OceanMight received a letter of award covering the SK408 Teja and Pepulut developments as wel

• US Coast Guard Rescues 40, Recovers 2 Bodies After Vessel Capsizes Near Mona Island
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026 · accident

  At least 40 people have been rescued after a makeshift vessel capsized near Mona Island, with two people confirmed dead and search efforts ongoing.

• Singapore Expands Maritime Innovation Hub To Advance AI And Decarbonisation
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  RINA is expanding its Singapore Open Innovation Hub with EDB support, focusing on digital twins, decarbonisation and AI-driven maritime solutions.

• US Navy Ship USS St. Louis And USCGC Pablo Valent Strengthen Maritime Ties During Nassau Port Visit
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  USS St. Louis and USCGC Pablo Valent completed a port visit to Nassau, strengthening maritime cooperation between U.S. and Bahamian forces.

• First US Ship-To-Ship Ethanol Bunkering Of Deep-Sea Container Ship Completed By Maersk
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  Maersk has completed the first ship-to-ship commercial ethanol bunkering of a deep-sea container vessel in the U.S., using 100% corn ethanol.

• Tsakos clears out oldest ship as fleet renewal rolls on
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Tsakos Energy Navigation has sold the oldest ship in its fleet, continuing to clear out ageing tonnage as a 26-vessel newbuilding programme feeds younger ships into the company. The New York-listed Greek owner said the 2003-built panamax/LR1 tanker Andes has been sold to independent third parties. The deal will generat

• Mermaid teams with Marine Platforms for Nigeria subsea push
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Thailand’s Mermaid Maritime has teamed up with Nigerian offshore services player Marine Platforms to establish a local subsea joint venture targeting work with TotalEnergies and other oil and gas majors. The Singapore-listed offshore contractor has taken a 49% stake in Mermaid Subsea Services through wholly owned Merma

• Amer Shipping adds two more Concordia Damen river bulkers
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Dutch inland shipping player Amer Shipping has returned to Concordia Damen for two more CDS dry cargo 110 newbuilds, taking its series of the shallow-draught vessels to six. The 110 m ships are scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2027 and the second quarter of 2028. The first, to be named AM Lianova, …

• Google, Microsoft and DSV join green shipping buyers alliance
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Google, Microsoft and logistics giant DSV have joined the Zero Emission Maritime Buyers Alliance (ZEMBA). ZEMBA pools demand from cargo owners before tendering for shipping services powered by low- and zero-emission fuels, allowing participating companies to tackle Scope 3 emissions generated in their supply chains. Th

• Jefferson to buy Port Arthur terminal in $255m logistics deal
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  FTAI Infrastructure subsidiary Jefferson has agreed to acquire the Port Arthur Terminal in Texas and a 50% interest in a diluent recovery unit in Hardisty, Alberta, from USD Group in a $255m deal. The assets form an integrated crude oil logistics chain serving the US Gulf Coast under a long-term take-or-pay contract wi

• HNA wraps up $52m bulker disposal sweep
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Shanghai-listed HNA Technology has agreed to sell the last of three bulkers earmarked for disposal, taking the combined value of its latest fleet sales to $51.55m. The company’s wholly owned unit Asian Star Marine has struck a deal to sell the 2012-built capesize Bulk Joyance to Hong Kong-registered Ripley Holding for

• MSC partners China institute on crew management
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  The pact promotes a multi-faceted partnership between the world’s largest container carrier and China’s leading maritime research institute

• Marintec Innovation 2026: Driving the energy transition
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  Shanghai conference in December explores digital twins, modular ship designs and nuclear propulsion as integrated strategy for shipping decarbonisation.

• RCL books four more container ships at Huangpu-Wenchong
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  The new contract expands RCL’s total boxship newbuilds at Huangpu Wenchong to 16 vessels

• Red Sea convoy demand overwhelms EU escort capacity
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Merchant vessels are now queuing for naval escorts through the southern Red Sea, with the European Union admitting that its Aspides mission does not have enough warships to meet demand. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas made the unusually stark admission following a meeting of European defence ministers in Brussels o

• VLCC S&P activity accelerates sharply in September
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  VLCC sale and purchase activity accelerated sharply in September, with 14 transactions registered compared with five in August, according to VesselsValue’s sales register, which has still to list sales from week 39.  Tanker asset values have climbed, with five-year-old VLCCs reported at $180m, up 6.51% week-on-week, AX

• ‘Positive sign’ with short-term suspension of USTR China port fees
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  Longer-term détente on penalties targeting Chinese-linked ships could be hammered out by January according to trade expert

• Rains ease water pressure at the Panama Canal
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  The Panama Canal is beginning to loosen restrictions after months of tightening, raising both allowable draft and daily transit capacity as rainfall improves the outlook for Gatun Lake. From October 15, the canal will increase neopanamax transits to 10 a day, taking combined neopanamax and panamax capacity to 33 daily

• Kribi iron ore corridor lines up demand for 80 capesizes
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  A potentially significant new capesize tradelane is taking shape in Central Africa, with plans to move as much as 100m tonnes of iron ore a year from landlocked Central African Republic through Cameroon’s deepwater port of Kribi. Drewry estimates that if the proposed CAR-Kribi corridor reaches anything close to its pla

• Shipping’s record boom still trails the 1970s in real terms
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Shipping may be breaking nominal earnings records almost by the week, but a new long-range analysis from Affinity Shipping suggests the industry still has some way to go before it can claim to be living through the greatest boom in its history. Clarksons’ cross-sector ClarkSea Index reached another all-time high of $66

• New Offshore Wind Service Vessel To Feature Motion-Compensated Gangway And Crane
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  NYK has ordered a new SOV to support offshore wind projects in Taiwan and the Asia-Pacific region, with delivery planned around 2029.

• Italy, Croatia And Slovenia Hold Joint Search And Rescue Exercise In Gulf Of Trieste
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  Italy, Croatia and Slovenia conducted a joint SAR exercise in the Gulf of Trieste, testing cross-border coordination after a simulated fishing vessel collision.

• Two Ultra-Luxury River Ships Set To Sail India’s Brahmaputra By 2029-30
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  Scenic Group is partnering with Assam Bengal Navigation to expand luxury river cruising on India’s Brahmaputra, with two Scenic ships planned by 2029–30.

• India’s Maritime Insurance Pool To Offer $1.5 Billion Coverage For War Risks
  Marine Insight · 9/29/2026

  India’s Bharat Maritime Insurance Pool is strengthening domestic marine insurance, offering homegrown cover against war risks, P&I liabilities, cargo losses and vessel damage.

• Laid-up offshore vessels eyed for new life as expedition yachts
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Italian designer Stefano Pastrovich has unveiled a concept that would turn laid-up offshore supply vessels into expedition yachts and small expedition cruise ships. The concept is based on an 86.6 m PSV reference platform, the Brage Supplier, built in India in 2011. The original 2015 study proposed retaining the vessel

• China lines up centralised offshore wind grid project off Fujian
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Chinese renewable energy developer Zhongmin Energy has signed a RMB 4.165bn ($585m) EPC contract for a major offshore wind transmission project off Fujian province. The Shanghai-listed company said its subsidiary, Fujian Fuzhou Mintou Offshore Wind Power, has formally signed the deal for the Changle offshore centralise

• CNOOC renews offshore EPC agreement with Worley
  Splash247 · 9/29/2026

  Australian offshore engineering company Worley has secured a five-year renewal of its EPC framework agreement with CNOOC UK business. Under the renewed agreement, Worley will continue delivering EPC services across CNOOC’s UK Continental Shelf assets, including the Scott, Buzzard, and Golden Eagle fields. The scope inc

• New Rail Service Boosts Swedish Forest Exports Through Port of Gothenburg
  The Maritime Executive · 9/29/2026
• JAXPORT Board Honors Late Chief Operating Officer
  The Maritime Executive · 9/29/2026
• Saudi Red Sea Authority and Tahaluf Sign MoU to Support Red Sea Yacht Show and Promote Investment
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026 · regulation

  Tahaluf plans to stage the inaugural edition of the show in 2027.

• Hapag-Lloyd boosts Zim offer and 2026 earnings outlook
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  Carrier adds $1bn to EBIT forecast as "substantially improved” bid for Zim faces resistance.

• Supply chain relief - Panama Canal to increase draught and daily transits
  Seatrade Maritime · 9/29/2026

  In some small relief to shipping and supply chains the Panama Canal is to increase draughts and daily transits following increased rainfall.