We are well into the discussions advising shipbuilders and operators how the U.S. will create a renaissance of the maritime industry. Federal Legislation, Executive Orders, and new foreign partnerships driving the promise of commercial competitiveness with the leading global shipbuilders. Most of the shipbuilding rhetoric indicates the domestic markets will be left to survive on their own.
The military and Coast Guard budgets are established that will benefit the U.S. ship building and repair sector, but what will stimulate the commercial yards?This author has been scratching his head of late, after a thrilling dive into July’s U.S. Big Beautiful Bill Act, and has asked several colleagues where the funding for support commercial shipbuilding can be found? To answer that
“As the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships (Hong Kong Convention) enters into force we have updated our estimate for the ship recycling potential over the next 10 years. We now estimate the potential to be 16,000 ships, or 700m deadweight tonnes (DWT), from previously 15,000.
Norwegian oil and gas company Aker BP has completed the installation of a jacket for a new production platform at the Valhall field in the Southern North Sea.The Valhall production and wellhead platform (PWP) jacket has been installed with the support from Allseas' Pioneering Spirit and Heerema Marine Contractors' Sleipnir, two of the world’s largest offshore vessels
The offshore rig market recovery appears to have taken a pause, with demand tapering off and marketed utilization hitting the lowest levels recorded since recovery began in 2021. A variety of factors have contributed to this – including Saudi Aramco’s suspension of over 30 jackup contracts by up to one year, the entry of newbuild rigs into the market without work to go to
Beijing increased its tariffs on U.S. imports to 125% on Friday, hitting back against U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to hike duties on Chinese goods and raising the stakes in a trade war that threatens to up-end global supply chains.China's retaliation intensified the economic turmoil unleashed by Trump's tariffs
Kraken Robotics Inc. announced the passing of founder and former CEO, Karl Kenny on February 11, 2025, at the age of 64. Karl founded Kraken in 2012 and was instrumental in building the company into a leading player in subsea robotics over his 10-year tenure, before retiring in December 2022.
Austal Limited said that Austal Australasia has been awarded a contract valued between A$265 and A$275 million by Gotlandsbolaget of Sweden for the design and construction of a 130-m combined cycle, ‘hydrogen-ready’ vehicle passenger ferry. Part of Gotlandsbolaget’s ‘Horizon X’ program, the high-speed ROPAX catamaran will be the largest vessel ever constructed by Austal, and feature a unique
“At the end of 2024, the container ship order book was 8.3m TEU, a new record compared with the previous high of 7.8m TEU in early 2023,” says Niels Rasmussen, Chief Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.As 4.4m TEU were contracted during 2024, the second highest ever, the order book grew despite deliveries hitting a new record high of 2.9m TEU.
Shandong Port Group has banned U.S.-sanctioned tankers from calling into its ports in the eastern Chinese province, home to many independent refiners that are the biggest importers of oil from countries under U.S. embargo, three traders said.The province imported about 1.74 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil from Iran, Russia and Venezuela last year, accounting for about 17% of China's imports
Dry bulk contracting falls 70% below average amid low rates.“Over the past three months, dry bulk newbuilding contracting has been 70% below the yearly average. Declining freight rates in recent months, a cloudy outlook and high newbuilding prices contributed to the slowdown, and contracting in 2024 will likely fall short of 2023 levels,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.
President-elect Donald Trump's support for the fossil fuel sector and climate scepticism have sparked dismay throughout the global climate tracking community, and fears that his policies may reverse global energy transition momentum.His campaign speeches included pledges to boost domestic oil and natural gas output and to remove mandates on electric vehicle production