Methanol Leads February Alternative Fuel Vessel Orders

The figures from DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insight (AFI) platform show orders placed in February for 10 LNG-fuelled containerships and a record 22 methanol-fuelled ships.

The rise in methanol-fuelled in February shows an accelerating adoption of methanol for marine use with a total of 106 confirmed methanol-fuelled vessels in operation and on order. This compared to 886 LNG-fuelled ships, according to DNV data. The class society also noted the limited operational experience for methanol-fuelled vessels—mostly from the chemical tanker market—and a need to ramp up production of green methanol. Continue reading here (Source: Seatrade Maritime News).

Tanker Market Firming Up

The tanker market’s prospects look brighter by the day. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Intermodal said that “the crude tanker market continues to gather momentum as we head towards the end of 1Q2023, against a backdrop of strong U.S. exports paired with a steady recovery of Chinese demand for crude”.

According to Ms. Georgousi, Research Analyst, “U.S. crude exports are set to climb to 140.4 million barrels in March, versus 108.2 million barrels in February, amid a surge in domestic crude inventories, which currently hover close to 480,063 million barrels, almost 30,000 million barrels above the 5-year average and by 66.2 million barrels up from December 2022. More specifically, the surge occurred despite an increase in refinery rates after a strong maintenance season, while it was primarily driven by an increase in Gulf Coast crude inventories, which climbed to their highest since April 2021. China and Europe have been reportedly the biggest importers of U.S crude in March. As Europe and Asia look for supplies, U.S. crude oil exports, which have been bolstered by a change in trade flows following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, will continue to rise this year providing support to the tanker market”. Continue reading here (Source: Hellenic Shipping News).

US Ocean Shipping Antitrust Enforcement Act Takes Aim At Container Carriers

Container carriers are facing new measures in the US Congress that would strip away a long-standing antitrust exemption and require them to load more exports, even as the first shipping reform law in two decades is still being implemented.

As consumer demand surged during the pandemic and logistics networks clogged up, the liner companies were accused of operating like cartels, driving up freight rates for US imports and other busy routes while refusing to take lower-fare exports.

President Joe Biden even took credit in his State of the Union address in February for cracking down on soaring shipping costs, adding “let’s finish the job” by strengthening antitrust enforcement. Continue reading here (Source: gCaptain).

Trans-Atlantic Container Rates Still Double Pre-COVID Levels



Container shipping rates are not back to normal quite yet. Trans-Pacific rates have returned to pre-COVID levels, but pricing in trans-Atlantic markets has not.

Spot container rates from Europe to the U.S. — while falling — are still more than twice pre-pandemic rates. U.S. imports from Europe remain strong, with building materials supporting volumes. Continue reading here (Source: Freight Waves).

Shanghai Reopens as China's First Cruise Port in More Than Three Years

China took a key step in the ongoing process of slowly reopening the country’s cruise industry. On Sunday, March 26, the port of Shanghai reopened to a domestic cruise ship for the first time since the onset of the pandemic more than three years ago. Port officials said it was part of an ongoing effort that would see the port also reopen for international cruises.

Before the pandemic, China had been the cruise industry’s fastest-growing source market with a developing domestic industry as well as a range of international cruise lines basing ships in China. While limited amounts of domestic cruising have been permitted over the past three years, the larger cruise ships have remained idle as China maintained a strict zero-covid policy until late 2022. Continue reading here (Source: The Maritime Executive).