Houthi blockade of Saudi shipping begins
The first indications have been seen that the Houthi blockade declared against ships traveling to Saudi ports is beginning to have an impact. As yet, however, there have been no known Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, or elsewhere. Three tankers are believed to have altered their intended destinations, although none of the ships are believed to have been threatened directly. The Singapore-flagged tanker, 333-meter (1,092-foot) VLCC Xin Long Yang (IMO 9761463), and the Liberia-flagged 250-meter (820-foot) tanker Rodos (IMO 1024948) had both loaded crude at Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu terminal, and were proceeding in a southerly direction down the Red Sea, before reversing course. The Xin Long Yang is still indicating its destination on AIS as China, arriving on August 10, whereas the Rodos is now declaring that its destination is Port Suez.
Chinese space firm launches commercial rocket
China’s Gravity-1 launch vehicle, the world’s most powerful solid-fuel rocket, has successfully launched from a sea-based platform at a position in the East China Sea, its furthest excursion yet from the operator’s shoreside base.
Gravity-1 is a 100-foot-tall rocket with a squat appearance and a 6.5 tonne payload capacity. It operates from the deck of a specially-adapted heavy lift ship; being solid fueled, it does not require the weight, volume, manning and and risk of a liquid fuel loading system on board. Since it does not use volatile or cryogenic fuels, it can remain in a ready-to-go state for extended periods of time without human intervention, according to the Haiyang Aerospace Industry Development Center. This is particularly suitable for at-sea launches further offshore, since the rocket can make the transit with its fuel pre-installed and undisturbed. The operator says that the time delay between final manufacturing and launch readiness is five hours.
UK convicts 11 members of drug gang
The UK’s National Crime Agency is reporting the details of a bumbled smuggling effort that nearly saw the gang lose the drugs before they could ever get them to shore. On July 22, they completed the conviction of four additional members of the gang, reporting the individuals will be sentenced in November for their bumbled smuggling efforts.
The caper began with the gang assigning three people to head out from Portsmouth into the English Channel to meet up with a containership. An accomplice from the crew of the containership was to drop the packages of cocaine overboard about 40 nautical miles south of the Needles, to the west of the Isle of Wight.
According to the NCA, the entire event was being orchestrated by another member of the gang on shore who was directing everyone over WhatsApp. It started on the night of August 17, 2024.
The problems began when the containership sailed past the three men in a rigid-hulled inflatable boat and did not drop the packages. NCA reports the leader was messaging the little boat, “Big ship has passed you, flash lights” … and then “Big ship has passed you, chase it, and flash lights.”
Panama canal suspends auction
The Panama Canal Authority is continuing to take steps to preemptively manage against an anticipated weather pattern that could again challenge its water management and the operations of the Canal. It has now advised agents that it will be temporarily suspending the auction process for the close-in transit slots based on “current hydrological conditions.”
In a notice to clients on July 20, the Norton Lilly agency reported that it has been advised of a temporary suspension of the auction for “Period 3” slots, which are offered 96 to 48 hours before the transit time. Typically, they were the most competitive slots, commanding the highest prices for vessels operating on a tight schedule and without a pre-arranged slot. With the surge in traffic at the Canal due to the disruptions in the Middle East and high demand for LNG exports from the U.S., there were reports that companies were willing to pay in the millions of dollars at the auctions for one of these slots. The top price at auction was reportedly earlier in 2026 at over $4 million for a Neopanamax transit slot.
Rules the future?
Classification societies no longer serve solely as compliance inspectors at vessel delivery. Evolving pressures demand they maintain oversight of innovation throughout a vessel’s lifecycle. Owners want faster approvals for complex ships; shipyards are progressively innovating, and shifting regulations create ambiguous moving targets. Meanwhile, technological advances outpace existing standards, pushing class societies to adapt faster than ever before. “The role of a classification society has expanded considerably beyond its traditional foundations in survey, certification and rule-setting,” explains Korean Register Chairman & CEO Yongsok Lee. “At KR, we see this as a transition from being primarily a technical gatekeeper to becoming a proactive technical partner across the full vessel lifecycle.”
LPG tanker on fire off Romania
Romanian officials are reporting that they have evacuated the crew from an LPG carrier that is on fire off the coast. The ship, which was inbound for Ukraine, was apparently struck by a Russian drone, although the official Romanian position is that the incident is under investigation. The Turkish-owned Gas Lisbon (8,064 dwt) was coming from Egypt and reporting it was heading to Reni, Ukraine, with reports saying it was carrying 3,790 tonnes of propane. Built in 2002, the vessel is registered in Liberia. The vessel reported an explosion and fire late on July 20 while it was 20 nautical miles off the Romanian coast. Two Romanian rescue vessels, Apollo and Artemis, were dispatched.