Category Archives: Marine News EN

2024 WORST YEAR ON RECORD FOR SEAFARER ABANDONMENT, SAYS ITF New data from the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) reveals abandonment of seafarers by ship-owners increased by 87% in 2024 from the previous year.  The abandonment of seafarers is spiralling out of control, increasing nearly two-fold with 3,133 seafarers abandoned by ship-owners in 2024 compared […]

DRY BULK CARRIERS: “THE STRIKE” OF THE YEAR OF THE SNAKE Drinking too much “snakebite” cocktail will make you sick. The question for dry bulk shipowners is, how long will this drunkenness last? For those born in the Year of the Ox (like 1949, when Chairman Mao declared the founding of the People’s Republic of […]

MARITIME HEALTH: TACKLING CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE AMONG SEAFARERS In recent years, the maritime industry has observed a concerning rise in cardiovascular disease (CVD) cases among seafarers, according to the West P&I Club. Incidents such as heart attacks and cardiac arrests are becoming alarmingly common, underscoring the critical need to prioritize heart health for those working at […]

TANKERS BEST PLACED IN THE YEAR OF THE SNAKE As shipping slithers somewhat apprehensively into the Year of the Snake, analysts reckon tankers – whether hauling gas or oil – are best placed to see an uptick in fortunes. The Lunar New Year is not starting too well with many sectors struggling to break even […]

CONTAINERS: SNAKES AND LADDERS he container shipping freight market has felt like a game of snakes and ladders since the pandemic. Shippers negotiate the trade board, hoping to make steady progress. Sometimes the rates they pay climb exponentially up a ladder for a while, for instance when the pandemic and the Red Sea crisis caused […]

BLAZE FORCES CREW ABANDON CONTAINER SHIP IN RED SEA The crew of Hong Kong-flagged container ship ASL Bauhinia abandoned ship after a cargo fire broke out on the vessel. The 1,930 teu, 2022-built, vessel owned by Asean Seas Line in Shanghai was transiting the southern Red Sea enroute from Jebel Ali to Jeddah when an […]

THREAT ‘REMAINS HIGH’ TO ISRAELI, UK AND US SHIPPING IN RED SEA Warnings to treat Houthi announcements with scepticism as Israel-Hamas ceasefire unfolds. The Houthi have lifted a ‘ban’ on vessels transiting the southern Red Sea, Bab-el-Mandeb, and Gulf of Aden, but the situation remains fraught with risks for international shipping, according to security experts. […]

ENVIRONMENTALISTS CALL FOR IMO TOTAL BAN ON SCRUBBERS Scrubbers have become the tool of choice for many shipowners to meet low sulphur regulations, but environmentalists argue they poison the seas. A study on the atmospheric and oceanic effects of scrubber residues and operations has seen environmentalists take their concerns to the IMO in a bid to see […]

THE RISING THREAT OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE: A CALL TO ACTION FOR SEAFARERS For over eight decades, antibiotics have been essential in combating bacterial infections. However, irresponsible usage and a lagging development pipeline have propelled the world to a tipping point. According to The Lancet, drug-resistant infections are rising steeply, with projections of 10 million annual […]

IMO POLLUTION PREVENTION AND RESPONSE (PPR 12) The Twelfth Session of the IMO Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR) Sub-Committee was held from January 27 to January 31, 2025, in London, where key issues related to marine pollution prevention were discussed. The Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR) Sub-Committee addresses all matters related to pollution prevention and […]