Venezuela tanker crackdown timeline: U.S. seizures, “oil control” messaging, and the immediate shipping knock-ons
As of Friday, January 9, 2026, reporting across multiple outlets ties the U.S.–Venezuela oil dispute to a fast-moving mix of tanker interdictions/seizures, policy messaging about directing Venezuelan crude sales, and a practical “ghost fleet”...
The Pros and Cons of Automated Mooring Systems
Automated mooring systems are moving from “nice-to-have tech” to a real operational lever because they touch three pain points at once: safety at the ship shore interface, berth productivity, and the ability to keep...
OpenTug Review: A single operating system for barge moves
OpenTug is built for a very specific pain point in U.S. inland and coastal shipping: barge freight still runs on a lot of phone calls, emails, and spreadsheets, which is fine until you need...
Early-Year Rate Tape Turns Up: Carriers Push FAK/GRIs as Capacity Discipline Returns
Container pricing just delivered an early-year jolt: Drewry’s World Container Index jumped 16% week-on-week to $2,557 per 40ft. The move is being linked to carriers lifting FAK levels across key east–west trades, with the...
U.S. Escalation at Sea
This signal is a visible step-up in U.S. at-sea enforcement against sanctioned tanker activity, highlighted by the interdiction and seizure of the Venezuela-linked tanker Marinera (formerly Bella-1) in the North Atlantic under a U.S....
A Two Billion Dollar VLCC Reset for Frontline
Frontline is using a sell-and-replace move to reset its VLCC cost curve: it has agreed to sell eight 2015–2016-built first-generation ECO VLCCs for $831.5m (deliveries scheduled Q1 2026) while simultaneously agreeing to acquire nine...
Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships Made Simple: (2026 Update)
Going into 2026, the real story of MASS is supervised autonomy and remote support becoming normal on specific routes, while the regulatory and liability structure slowly catches up. For most owners, the near-term value...
Korea Ocean Expo 2026 Review
Korea Ocean Expo 2026 is a tight, operations-forward marine and maritime safety show in Korea’s capital region. If you want a fast read on what is being deployed right now across safer operations, smarter...
Drewry Rate Tape Jump
On 08 Jan 2026, Drewry’s World Container Index (WCI) rose 16% week-on-week to $2,557 per 40ft. In the same weekly update, Drewry flagged sharp increases on key headhaul lanes (including Shanghai–Los Angeles and Shanghai–New...
35 Major Shipping Incidents in 2025
2025 did not have one single “headline disaster.” It had a steady drumbeat of shocks that hit every part of the system: port explosions, ferry tragedies, container ship fires, tanker blasts, piracy kidnappings, and...
U.S. Pullback From Global Bodies Sends a Risk Signal Through Shipping
The U.S. decision to withdraw from 66 international organizations is being read in shipping as a governance shock rather than a single-policy tweak. The headline impact is not a new rule for vessels tomorrow...
Breakbulk Europe 2026
Breakbulk Europe is where project cargo turns into booked moves. Rotterdam pulls the whole chain into one hall and one port city: EPCs, global shippers, freight forwarders, carriers, ports, terminals, and heavy-lift specialists comparing...
Saam FSU wakes up: Ura Bay becomes an active handoff point in Russia-linked LNG logistics
Recent vessel-tracking reporting indicates the Saam floating storage unit (FSU) in Ura Bay/Ura Guba near the Kola Peninsula is seeing renewed operational activity after sitting largely quiet since it was positioned there in June...
Maritime Cyber Security Solutions made Simple: 2026 Update
Maritime cyber security is getting less “IT-only” and more “ship operations reality.” Going into 2026, the practical shift is that shipowners are buying solution stacks that work in degraded connectivity, mixed-vendor OT, and constant...
ABS Group Review: Turn compliance pressure into a cleaner operating system
ABS Group is a strong fit when an owner or operator needs engineering + risk work that stands up in front of class, flag, charterers, insurers, and internal governance. Think: getting ahead of incidents,...
Black Sea Drone Hit Damages Suezmax Near Turkey
A reported drone and unmanned surface vehicle incident damaged the Suezmax Elbus while transiting the Black Sea off Turkey, with no injuries or pollution reported. Even when an event stops short of a spill,...
Arctic Container Trial Push
South Korea’s oceans ministry has outlined a government-backed pilot plan to run a container voyage from Busan to Rotterdam via Russia’s Northern Sea Route (NSR), positioned as a feasibility test and data-gathering step for...
Seizure at Sea as U.S. Boards and Seizes Russia-Flagged “Marinera”
A U.S. interdiction operation ended with American forces taking control of the Russia-flagged oil tanker Marinera (reported previously as Bella-1) in the North Atlantic after it fled a prior attempted boarding in the Caribbean....
Top 30 Ship Financing Banks Worldwide
In the intricate world of global maritime trade, ship financing stands as a cornerstone, supporting the ambitions of shipowners and facilitating the world’s flow of goods. Banking institutions play a pivotal role, offering the...
Remote Vessel Operations (ROC 2026 Guide)
Remote vessel operations (ROC) is moving from “cool demo” to “managed operating model.” Going into 2026, the practical shift is that more projects are treating the shore-based Remote Operations Center as a real part...
Suez Still Avoided
This signal tracks continued avoidance of the Suez/Red Sea corridor in commercial routing, showing up as persistently depressed transits and “Cape default” network behavior rather than a quick return to pre-disruption patterns. Indicator What...
$2B Venezuela Crude Pivot Talk: U.S. Ports Back in the Picture
A proposed U.S.-bound lane for Venezuelan crude is already forcing a re-think of Atlantic positioning and compliance throughput. The key shipping question is not just “how many barrels,” but how repeatable the load and...
Seawork 2026 Review
Seawork is one of those rare workboat weeks where you can see equipment operating on the water, walk the pontoons, and then go straight into supplier and operator conversations that stay grounded in real...
Marinera Escort Escalation Puts Shadow Fleet Risk Back on the Radar
The pursuit of the tanker Marinera has escalated from an enforcement chase into a state-signaling episode after reporting said Russia dispatched naval assets, including a submarine, to escort the vessel while U.S. forces continued...
Deepwater Port Approval Shift
This signal tracks a noticeable change in how quickly U.S. deepwater port projects are moving from “under review” into concrete approval milestones (licenses, records of decision, and key permits) that unlock the next stage...
BNP Paribas Ship Financing Review
BNP Paribas is the kind of bank shipowners tend to use when the goal isn’t just “get a loan,” but to line up capital, risk tools, and documentation that can hold up across cycles...
MSC keeps buying as secondhand spree tightens charter supply while rates cool
Fresh market reporting continues to link MSC to steady secondhand acquisitions across sizes, including mid-size ships that matter for weekly network coverage. The practical effect is less about one headline purchase and more about...
Arctic LNG ice-class bottleneck
Arctic LNG flows are increasingly gated by a small pool of ice-class LNG carriers and the logistics workarounds built around them. When that pool tightens (winter operations, repairs, sanctions friction), cargo timing slips, transshipment...
V.Group Absorbs Njord to Scale Fuel-Saving Tech Across Managed Fleets
Ship management is becoming a bigger lever in decarbonization because it sits where day-to-day operating decisions get made. V.Group has now bought Njord, the fuel-efficiency and decarbonization platform originally founded by Maersk Tankers, in...
Marine Cranes: Ultimate Guide (2026)
Marine cranes are one of those topics where the labels sound simple, but the buying decision is anything but. “Deck crane” can mean a light utility unit for stores, or a serious cargo-handling capability...