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The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, edged up on Thursday as capesize rates hit a three-week peak and offset weakness in the panamax and supramax segments.

The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, was up 8 points, or 0.4%, at 2,010 points.

The capesize index gained 123 points, or 5.3%, to 2,457 points, its highest since June 21.

Average daily earnings for capesizes, which typically transport 150,000-tonne cargoes such as iron ore and coal, were up $1,017 at $20,375.

Shares of Australian coal miners jumped after a Chinese news site said that talk of China ending its unofficial ban on Australian coal imports had recently intensified, while Bloomberg reported that Chinese officials were proposing to end the ban on supply concerns due to sanctions on Russia.

The panamax index was down for a 18th straight session, shedding 88 points, or 4.4%, to 1,920 points, its lowest since Feb. 7.

Average daily earnings for panamaxes, which usually carry coal or grain cargoes of about 60,000 to 70,000 tonnes, decreased by $795 to $17,280.

Major wheat exporter Argentina’s harvest of the grain for the 2022/23 season is expected to be lower than previously estimated, the Rosario Grains Exchange said on Wednesday, due to a drop in the estimated planting area because of a drought in agricultural areas.

The supramax index fell by 27 points to a fresh five-month low of 2,050 points, registering its 16th straight decline.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Deep Vakil in Bengaluru)

Smart shipping is a combination of cutting-edge digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT)⁽¹⁾, artificial intelligence or big data, that improves the economic and environmental impact of a ship thanks to calculations we were unable to do until recently. Smart shipping is already being leveraged to support the decarbonization of global maritime transport. It is the ship-owners’ best ally in complying with the new environmental standards from the International Maritime Organization, which aim at cutting CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030 and by 50% by 2050.

Smart shipping builds connections between all emission reduction technologies. Digital has already revolutionized many shipboard tasks by, for example, optimizing routing, engine load, trim or hull maintenance – which is now predictive.

Thanks to data acquisition connected to sensors positioned on the ship (mass flowmeters, gas or movement analyzers …), crews on board and on land have immediate access to detailed analysis, so they can maximize their ship performance optimization.

Digital also contributes to safety, enabling crew members to have the right reaction when facing certain risks for themselves, the ship or its cargo. Advanced digital functions such as multicriteria route optimization thus enable them to avoid dangerous itineraries, participating in preserving the environment as well because in addition to potential human losses, damages or wreckage can also cause true ecological catastrophes.

These technological evolutions will play a key role in the transformation of sea transport, without a doubt. First in contributing to the development of autonomous ships, which are already a reality as such ships are already operating on certain routes. Then by supporting the industry in its energy transition, via the use of alternatives to heavy fuel oil.

For GTT, smart shipping solutions combined with the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as fuel constitute the best immediately available solution to significantly reduce the emissions of operating ships, and thus achieve our objectives.

LNG fuel, of which GTT is a leading global expert⁽²⁾, is a key lever for decarbonizing sea transport. As soon as a ship is put into service, LNG allows for a 20% reduction of its CO2 emissions. It also reduces emissions of other polluting substances threatening public health: by 92% for nitrogen oxide, 99% for sulfur oxides et 91% for fine particles. It’s also a transitioning energy that will continue to reduce its own carbon footprint as it evolves toward bio-LNG and, over the long term, towards synthetic and renewable LNG.

Developing technologies for a sustainable world is a wonderful but long-term endeavor, because of the many challenges that have to be conciliated. It requires strong convictions, a lot of imagination and constant innovation efforts. To take up the new challenges that the maritime industry is facing, we must combine diverse skills and complementary technologies. All talents at GTT are mobilized to contribute to this global effort.

Source: https://marine-oceans.com/en/digital-solutions-for-sustainable-maritime-transport/

Seabourn Cruise Line took delivery of its first expedition cruise ship, Seabourn Venture, today during an official handover ceremony at the T. Mariotti shipyard in Genoa, Italy. Seabourn Venture is the first of the line’s two purpose-built, ultra-luxury expedition ships and is the first dedicated expedition ship in the Carnival Corporation fleet. The world’s largest cruise company, Carnival looks to expand into the rapidly growing expedition segment with ships focusing on cruises in the polar regions.

“Today is so incredibly special and important as we take ownership of our first ultra-luxury expedition ship and welcome Seabourn Venture to the Seabourn family,” said Josh Leibowitz President of Seabourn. “The Mariotti team has done a wonderful job in the building of the ship and bringing Adam Tihany’s designs to life. Seabourn Venture will raise the bar in ultra-luxury expedition travel.”

The 23,000 gross ton cruise ship, and a sister ship still under construction in Italy, were designed and built to PC6 Polar Class standards with the ability to operate in diverse environments. According to the shipyard, the design features advanced maneuvering technology and stability to operate in the harsh polar regions. Each of the cruise ships is 558 feet long with accommodations for up to 260 passengers in 132 oceanfront veranda suites.

Following the trend in expedition travel, amenities aboard the cruise ships are being enhanced to provide luxury travel to a segment that traditional was more focused on the destinations versus luxuries aboard its ships. The Seabourn Venture and her sister ship Seabourn Pursuit due to enter service in 2023, feature amenities including two gourmet restaurants, a bow lounge with large windows, an infinity swimming pool, and a spa and fitness center.

The expedition programming will be led by a 26-person team of scientists, scholars, and naturalists, who will conduct educational programs on the ships’ Discovery Center and Expedition Lounge as well as to guide Zodiac cruises, hikes, nature walks, scuba diving, and snorkeling, among the ship’s shore programs. Passenger amenities supporting the expedition program include a ready room on the ships to prepare for shore excursions as well as a landing zone to board the two custom-built submarines, kayaks, and 24 zodiacs each ship carries.

Seabourn announced plans to enter the expedition market in 2018 and construction began in December 2019. The hull for both of the cruise ships was built at the CIMAR shipyard in San Giorgio di Nogaro, Italy, and each was later transferred to the T. Mariotti yard in Genoa for completion. The Seabourn Venture is a year behind schedule due to delays in construction in part due to the pandemic. The maiden voyage was rescheduled from April to July 2022 and just recently delayed a further two weeks to late July. The ship will cruise in Norway and Iceland before repositioning to South America and ultimately to Antarctica for the 2022-2023 season.

The ships will expand both the cruise line and its parent company, Carnival Corporation, participating in the growing expedition market. In the past, Seabourn operated cruises to destinations such as the Antarctic, but lacked the purpose-built hardware. Their two new ships are part of a wave of new ships designed for this market segment. By 2023, 40 new cruise ships, with nearly 8,000 berths, are expected to enter service offering expedition cruises to exotic destinations.

Source: https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/seabourn-takes-delivery-of-carnival-s-first-expedition-cruise-ship

Sembcorp Marine has delivered what it describes as the world’s first eighth-generation drillship, the Deepwater Atlas.

The Deepwater Atlas is the first in a series of two high-spec vessels for Transocean. It has a hook-load capacity of three million pounds and can accommodate well control systems for 20,000 PSI-rated drilling, making it the first of its kind.

The rig is contracted for Chevron’s Anchor project in the Gulf of Mexico – the first deepwater high-pressure development to achieve FID. It will have dual 20,000 PSI blowout preventers for drilling in the extreme high pressure / high temperature conditions found tens of thousands of feet below the seabed, where no one has ever drilled for oil before. The design is capable of reaching a maximum depth of 40,000 feet, including up to 12,000 feet of water depth.

“We are very pleased to achieve the delivery of Deepwater Atlas and to set many record firsts in the process. It gives us great pride to have designed and built for Transocean, the world’s first eighth-generation drillship of the highest industry specification,” said Sembcorp Marine head of rigs William Gu.

It is not the first attempt at a “20K” rig, but it is the first to succeed. Maersk Drilling placed an order for BOP systems rated at 20,000 PSI in 2014 for BP’s Project 20K; little news has emerged from the project since the start of the offshore downturn in 2015.

The delivery is a milestone for Sembcorp Marine, which is in the home stretch of a merger deal with compatriot offshore yard Keppel O&M. Shareholders are set to vote on the proposal later this year.

Source: https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/sembcorp-marine-delivers-world-s-first-eighth-gen-drillship

Two start-up cruise lines are reporting that they have been able to work around challenges created by the Russian sanctions. Both Swan Hellenic and Havlia Kystruten had financed their new ships with the Russian-owned GTLK, which in April was included on the growing list of sanctioned companies by European and American officials.

Helsinki Shipyard announced today that it has declared Swan Hellenic the winner of a tender auction staged by the shipyard to determine the ownership of the recently completed second expedition cruise ship Newbuild 517 built to Swan Hellenic’s specifications. The keel of the 370-foot cruise ship was laid down in December 2020 in Helsinki and the ship was ready for delivery when the sanctions intervened.

GTLK, which was due to take delivery of the cruise ship, was unable to complete the handover due to the sanctions. Helsinki Shipyard then announced under the terms of the contract, that they were going to place the cruise ship up for sale accepting bids through last Friday, June 24.

Swan Hellenic found itself in the unusual position of having to bid for its ship which is due to sail on its maiden voyage in just over a month’s time. They reported however that they were the priority bidder and today the shipyard said it had reviewed the bids and declared Swan Hellenic the winner. The cruise line said as soon as registration is completed with the Bahamas it will take delivery of the SH Vega and the maiden voyage will proceed as planned on July 20 from Tromsø, Norway.

In the spring, Swan Hellenic had announced that it was exercising the purchase rights under its charter for its ships from GTLK. The company’s first cruise ship, SH Mineva, however, was laid up in South America instead of repositioning for planned summer cruises in the Arctic. The cruise line cited a softening of demand due to the geopolitical situation, travel restrictions due to COVID-19, and its need to complete the purchase of the ship.

Havila found itself also caught in a similar situation. The first of the company’s four cruise ships, Havila Capella, had to be laid up in April after the sanctions were announced and its insurers canceled the general liability coverage for the ship. The cruise line reported it was seeking a solution to refinance and went to court in Norway and the UK seeking to win control of their first ship.

After being laid up for 11 weeks, Havila Capella will resume its Norwegian coastal voyages on June 28. The company reported that it recently won a court order in Norway to arrest the ship with forced use for up to two years. Last week, they were able to resolve the insurance issues and received the necessary certificates from the Norwegian Maritime Directorate to resume operations of the Havila Capella.

The cruise lines, however, continue to have challenges from the sanctions as they also seek to refinance the ownership of the vessels. Under the sanctions, they are not permitted to hand over monies to GTLK as a sanctioned entity. Havila had proposed putting the proceeds into a blocked account which GTLK could access when the sanctions ended. GTLK, however, reportedly rejected that option continuing to seek immediate payment for the ships.

Both Swan Hellenic and Havila also have additional cruise ships under construction that would have been covered under the original financing arrangement. Havila reported that the UK court ordered that the shipyard could not take any actions on Havila’s two additional cruise ships due for delivery in late 2022 without the line’s approval. Helsinki Shipyard is also building a third, larger cruise ship for Swan Hellenic due for delivery at the end of 2022.
Source: https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/swan-hellenic-and-havila-make-progress-against-russian-sanctions

It is indeed a tragedy that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine jolted the world into action in using clean fuel, according to Dr. Sanjay Kuttan, Chief Technology Officer, Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonization, during a panel discussion at the Bunker & Shipping Summit on June 16.

However, when it comes to decarbonization, there is no silver bullet solution or “one fuel fit all” approach. Maritime industry stakeholders are left in the precarious situation of making investment decisions for future fleets with a general lack of clarity regarding the million dollar question – which alternative fuel would be the future?

According to the United Nations, to keep global warming to no more than 1.5°C – as called for in the Paris Agreement – emissions need to be reduced by 45 percent by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050.

Shipping alone transports close to 80 percent of global trade by volume and is estimated to contribute two to three percent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As such, decarbonization has become the greatest challenge to the maritime industry in this century.

There are numerous decarbonization opportunities that exist across the life cycle of maritime assets such as vessels and ports.  The typical life cycle of a maritime asset starts from the design.  This is followed by construction, operation, retrofit and eventually decommissioning.

Different alternative fuels

The energy sector is the source of around three-quarters of GHG emissions today and holds the key to averting the worst effects of climate change. Replacing fuel oil with alternative fuel would dramatically reduce carbon emissions.   Therefore, the World Shipping Council considers fuel supply development as a critical pathway to zero-carbon shipping.

According to the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Maritime Energy and Sustainable Development (MESD) Centre of Excellence, there are three major groups of primary energy sources with various production path ways.

The first type of derived fuels would be fuels containing less carbon such as liquified natural gas (LNG), methanol and its derivatives.  The next type of alternative fuels would be those containing biogenic carbon, typically known as biofuels.  These include bio-liquified natural gas (Bio-LNG), bio-methanol, biodiesel, hydrogenated vegetable oil etc.

The last type of alternative fuels would be the carbon free ones also known as non-bio renewable energy, primarily consisting of electricity and resulting in hydrogen. There is also research on using nuclear energy as an alternative source of fuel for ships.

Alternative fuels are expensive

Of at least the same importance as technological and environmental aspects, the economic performance of alternative fuels plays a crucial role in their adoption.

According to NTU MESD, with the current status of technological development, the adoption of fuel cells is around four to six times more expensive than using internal combustion engines.  However, the cost of fuel cells is anticipated to be lower in the future as the technology matured.

The cost of fuel storage tanks for convention fuel oils, biodiesel, methanol, LNG and liquified hydrogen range from 0.1 USD/kWh to 0.95 USD/kWh, with the storage of liquified hydrogen being the most expensive.

The application of biodiesel can leverage the existing fuel tanks used for the storage of conventional fuel oils with only some precautions.  However, the storage for methanol is still more expensive due to its flammable characteristics and material compatibility.

The cost of storage for cryogenic liquids especially liquefied hydrogen can be nine times more expensive than the conventional marine fuels and other liquid alternative fuels i.e. biodiesel and methanol.  Moreover, the cost of other types of hydrogen storage are still unknown as they are in fundamental development stages.

For the application of alternative fuels onboard ships, the cost must consider both the selling cost per ton but also the efficiency of energy conversion when using a particular fuel.

Among all options, using LNG is cheaper than using conventional fuel oils and other alternative fuels.  The cost of methanol and biodiesel blended diesel is comparable with marine gas oil (MGO).  In comparison with the price of fossil-based diesel, biodiesel price is higher and this is mainly because of feedstock cost. The application of ammonia will result in a cost of at least two times higher than that of MGO due to its high specific fuel consumption.

Alternative fuels are not adequate

The availability of alternative fuels is one of the major components enabling energy transition, leading to sustainability in terms of energy systems and meeting climate action targets.  For the maritime industry, the adequacy of alternative fuels refer to the combination of availability of feedstocks and production capacity of alternative fuels with the consideration of competing use in other sectors.

In an interview with Serena Huang, project manager at Drewry, during the Bunker & Shipping Summit, ammonia was cited as an example of a future fuel.  Huang said that people and companies are investigating ammonia from its production scale to its transportation.  Even the automobile industry is interested in ammonia as seen by Mitsubishi’s research on its power generation capabilities and whether it is economically good as a future fuel.

When it comes to convention fuels i.e. low sulfur fuel oil (LSFO) and MGO as well as fossil-based LNG, there is adequacy such that they can meet more than 50 years of global demand. When it comes to fossil-based methanol, Bio-LNG, Bio-methanol and hydrogen, adequacy can only be achieved if a significant expansion of production capacity is realized.

However, first generation biodiesel production produced from edible oils will not be an ultimate choice due to its insufficient supply of feedstock. If biodiesel is to be a preferred choice, third-generation biodiesel from microalgae has to be considered, requiring R&D for microalgae harvesting and establishment of bio-refinery.

Infrastructure for alternative fuels

Other than securing a steady supply of alternative fuels, the infrastructure needs to be on par in order to accommodate them. The requirement of storage facilities at terminal and bunker ships will depend on the fuel’s characteristics, such as physical state, boiling point, flashpoint and storage conditions.

In the case of bio-methanol, new requirements and safety protocols for bunkering would need to be introduced worldwide as it is a flammable liquid. Double-wall fuel storage tanks with leak detectors would need to be in place to ensure the usability of the fuel as well as safety of workers.

As for hydrogen, there is a requirement of the establishment of renewable hydrogen supply chain and bunkering infrastructure. Hydrogen requires either super-insulated low pressure tanks or stainless steel alloy with high level of nickel in order to store and transport it.

It is also important for infrastructure for bunkering to be standardized, so that ships can call at ports regardless of the alternative fuel they are using. Ports need to ensure that they have ready and competent manpower to serve ships using various alternative fuels especially when it comes to cleaning of equipment for flammable fuels.

Other considerations

Although alternative fuels like hydrogen can provide zero emissions onboard ships, hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels without carbon capture technology.  The GHG emissions from the production of hydrogen is definitely not a sustainable approach and “defeats the purpose” of decarbonization.

Instead, hydrogen produced from renewable energy is considered an ideal option.  However, there needs to be more R&D and future studies for adoption of hydrogen as a fuel.

According to Huang, only small volumes of various alternative fuels have been produced by different fuel producers, resulting in a premium price for environmentally friendly fuel. As such, this may be a hard pill to swallow for ship owners as fossil-based fuels are much more available and thus pocket friendly.

Fortunately, overtime, the economies of scale will improve with better technology and lower pricing of the energy source, thereby driving down the cost of generating energy services.

The importance of collaboration

Kuttan emphasizes on the need to “bring people around a table” to “understand stakeholder’s needs and constraints” in order to decarbonize effectively.  The maritime industry is a “highly interdependent industry”, as such, the government, land-based authorities, ports, customers, ship designers and people in technology need to work together in a timely fashion.

All stakeholders need to reflect on their carbon footprint and make changes which will have a “ripple effect across the industry”, thus relieving the burden of the industry as a whole. There also needs to be a shared model and procurement policy to get green shipping moving in the right direction.

Kuttan from the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonization also shared about the importance of working with the insurance sector as these new fields have different risk profiles.  Working closely together with Protection and Indemnity (P&I) clubs to bridge the issues and gap would help the industry move forward with decarbonization.

Source: https://maritimefairtrade.org/maritime-alternative-fuels-consideration-and-options/