Container shipping faces 2027 pressure
The container shipping market is still benefiting from geopolitical disruption and longer sailing distances in 2026, but a rapidly expanding fleet could turn that support into a supply problem next year, according to BIMCO.
In its September Container Shipping Market Overview & Outlook, BIMCO said ship supply is expected to grow faster than demand in 2027 under both of its scenarios for the Strait of Hormuz, setting the stage for a weaker market as a large newbuilding pipeline hits the water.
“Disruptions and strong growth in head-haul trades continue to support the container shipping market in 2026, but accelerating fleet growth could weaken the supply/demand balance in 2027,” said Niels Rasmussen, BIMCO’s chief shipping analyst.
Coast guard awards $315 million Kodiak pier contract
The U.S. Coast Guard has awarded a $315 million contract to Tutor Perini Corp. to build a new fuel pier and major cutter mooring at Base Kodiak, Alaska, as the service prepares the base for a larger role in U.S. Arctic operations.
The contract, awarded Sept. 11, covers design and construction of a new fuel pier capable of receiving fuel deliveries and providing berthing for up to two major cutters. Work is expected to be completed in fall 2030.
“This contract represents a major investment in the infrastructure that supports Coast Guard crews and families in Alaska,” Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday said. “Modernizing Base Kodiak’s waterfront delivers the capabilities we need to be ready and carry out the missions to secure our northern border and maritime approaches in the Arctic.”
Traders push for discounts for Venezuelan oil
Global oil trading firms Vitol and Trafigura are pushing for steeper discounts on Venezuelan crude oil as rising freight rates shrink their margins, five sources familiar with the matter said.
The two merchant houses have been among the biggest winners in a race to control Venezuela’s crude flows since the US captured then-President Nicolas Maduro in January and began pushing to reactivate the country’s oil sector.
They now sell and ship more than half of the OPEC member’s exports, and the negotiations for cheaper prices highlight the challenges of operating in Venezuela’s volatile energy sector, which until recently was under severe US sanctions.
Zelenskiy: Ukraine ready for maritime truce if Russia agrees
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told leaders at the United Nations on Wednesday that Ukraine was ready for a maritime truce in the Black Sea based on proposals by Egypt, India and Turkey and said it was now up to Russia to respond.
Zelenskiy spoke at Ukraine’s Crimean Platform summit on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly gathering of world leaders and ahead of a Security Council meeting on Russia’s war in Ukraine, which is now in its fifth year.
Ukraine, which fears that Russia plans to pound power and heating facilities with missiles and drones this winter, has been pressing for ceasefires covering attacks on energy infrastructure and shipping in the Black Sea.
President Donald takes aim at shipping’s net-zero plan at UN
President Donald Trump used his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to renew his attack on the International Maritime Organization’s Net-Zero Framework, accusing the UN shipping agency of attempting to impose a global carbon tax that would drive up transportation costs.
“Last year, my administration was forced to intervene to stop an obscure U.N. body, the International Maritime Organization, from secretly establishing a first-ever global carbon tax,” Trump said, claiming the measure would raise international shipping costs by “10 to 20 percent — and maybe more than that.”
“There is no global government,” Trump added. “And while I’m president, there will be no global taxes.”
Over Indian beaching yards, EU ship recycling fight escalates
A fight over whether Indian ship breaking yards using the controversial beaching method should qualify under European environmental rules is widening, with steelmakers, recyclers, trade unions and environmental groups now urging the European Commission to withdraw its proposal.
The NGO Ship breaking Platform, EUROFER, Industrial Europe, the European Environmental Bureau, Recycling Europe and Transport & Environment sent a joint letter to European Commissioners Jessika Roswall and Stéphane Séjourné opposing the proposed addition of two facilities in Alang-Sosiya, Gujarat, to the European List of Ship Recycling Facilities.
American century often draws a crowd
The American Century often draws a crowd when the ship pulls into the Port of Duluth-Superior to load Minnesota iron ore. Kids cheer when the captain blasts the fog horn. A voice on the loudspeaker retells the story of how the 1,000-foot-long bulk carrier has sailed the Great Lakes for nearly a half century.
It’s a momentary flashback to the waning days of US industrial primacy. The vessel was built in 1981 in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, and runs on four General Motors Co. diesel engines that generate more horsepower than a dozen Formula 1 cars. It set records for coal payloads in the 1990s. The current owner is American Steamship Co., a unit of Mainstay Maritime that’s based in Williamsville, New York, and was founded in Buffalo in 1907.
Capesize bulker remains aground off Australia
Australian authorities have launched an investigation after the 182,066-dwt bulk carrier Cape Falcon ran aground off the Port of Gladstone, Queensland, with efforts to refloat the vessel so far unsuccessful.
The Liberian-flagged Capesize grounded south of Gladstone’s bunkering anchorage on September 18 while attempting to anchor about six nautical miles east of the port, according to Australian authorities.
Two attempts to refloat the vessel have failed. One operation involved six vessels, while a second effort involving 10 harbor tugs achieved only minimal movement, according to Queensland authorities. The vessel will remain aground while additional salvage options are assessed.