Green Marine
MOL Bets on Offshore Shipping
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) has agreed to establish a ship-owning joint venture with Norway’s Viken Shipping AS, and to participate in a shuttle tanker project. The joint company is called Viken MOL AS, and will be managed from Viken Shipping’s office in Bergen. The initial investment by the joi
A Dash of Renaissance for MSC Cruises
MSC Cruises’ ambitious Renaissance Programme to renew and enlarge four ships of its 12-strong fleet has reached a new level after MSC Armonia arrived in Sicily, MSC said. On Sunday 31 August MSC Armonia entered the Fincantieri shipyard, in Palermo, Italy, where she will remain for 11 weeks, until re
Paragon Hurt by Plummeting Market Rates
Paragon Shipping Inc., a global shipping transportation company specializing in dry bulk cargoes, has reported a a net loss of over USD 35 million for the six months ended June 30, 2014. The company states that even though there was an increase in the number of operated vessels on average, a weak dr
Royal Caribbean Sells Celebrity Century
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell its cruise ship Celebrity Century to Exquisite Marine Ltd., a holding company led by Ctrip.com International Ltd. The sale will result in a non-cash loss of approximately $20 million dollars. According to Royal Carr
Box Ships Scrapes to Black
Box Ships Inc., an international shipping company specializing in the transportation of containers, has marked a 24% decline in charter rates for the first six months 2014, despite the fact that the company on average operated the same number of vessels as in 2013. Michael Bodouroglou, Chairman, Pre
Passenger Ships Break New Ground
The expedition ship Hanseatic of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has set a new record for passenger ships in the Northeast Passage, as informed by the company. On August 26, 2014, the 122.8-metre-long ship reached the northernmost point at 85°, 40.7′ north and 135°, 39.6′ east. At this latitude, the Hanseatic w
Rickmers-Linie Opts for Interliner Agencies
Hamburg based Rickmers-Linie has appointed Interliner Agencies as its new agent in South Central Europe. The agency contract covers Slovenia, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia & Hercegovina, Macedonia and Montenegro. On 1 September 2014, Interliner Agencies
Norwegian Cruise Takes Over Prestige
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Prestige Cruises International, Inc., parent company of Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, in cash and stock for a total transaction consideration of USD 3.025 billion, including the assumption of deb
BFC Cleared for St. Petersburg Oil Terminal Expansion
The Baltic Fuel Company Group (BFC) has received approval and permits from the St. Petersburg City Administration for creation of artificial lands of Turukhtannye Islands Oil Terminal. St. Petersburg City Administration has approved area planning documentation of land reclamation for expansion of Ma
Global Liner Reliability Drops
A global decline in performance of shipping lines has been recorded in July for the first time since February, according to SeaIntel’s latest Global Liner Performance report. The drop amounts to almost four percentage points from 75.6% in June to 71.6%, the report shows. Shipping giants Maersk Line,
East-West Shippers Get Some Breathing Space
Ocean freight rates for cargoes moving under contracts on major East-West routes decreased by 6% between March and July, enabling hard-pressed shippers to reduce their costs, according to the results of Drewry’s Benchmarking Club. The cost reduction, based on contract freight rate data provided conf
Active Methane Emission at Antarctic Seafloor Confirmed
During an expedition with the German research vessel Polarstern off the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia, an international team of scientists discovered more than 130 active methane seeps at the seafloor, Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) said in a release. According to chief scientist and MARUM r
NOCC Sells Two
Norwegian Car Carriers AS (NOCC) has entered into agreements to sell two of its vessels during the second quarter. The two are NOCC Caspian, which was delivered to the new owner in July 2014 and NOCC Coral slated for delivery to the new owner by April 2015. Currently, NOCC’s fleet consists of 10 ves
Evelyn Maersk Rescues 352 from Sinking Vessel
The crew of Evelyn Maersk, a container ship en route from Suez to Algeciras, participated on Saturday, August 30, in a search and rescue operation launched in an effort to find a fishing boat sinking off Sicily, carrying hundreds of immigrants on board, Seanews reports. One of the Mediterranean’s RC