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Industry on alert over scam...
Credit: Shutterstock Fraudulent messages offering safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for cryptocurrency have been circulated...
Smart Green Shipping: Wind must...
In an exclusive interview, Diane Gilpin, Founder and CEO of Smart Green Shipping (SGS), challenges the way wind propulsion is currently...
IMO LEG 113 concludes with...
Credit: IMO / Flickr The hundred thirteenth session of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Legal Committee (LEG 113) was...
IMO lays groundwork for GHG...
Credit: Shutterstock The 21st session of the Intersessional Working Group on Reduction of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions from Ships...
Ukraine Hits Two Russian Landing Ships at Port of Sevastopol...
posted on: Apr 22, 2026
Overnight Saturday, in a reprise of an earlier era in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a drone strike team from Ukraine’s military intelligence directorate hit two moored landing ships at the Port of Sevastopol, about 150 nautical miles from Ukrainian-controlled territory. While the operation would have been remarkable three years ago, this time the strike was overshadowed by Ukraine’s increasingly successful attacks on Russian petroleum infrastructure. The attack was noteworthy for its location: the Russian Navy previously pulled most of its assets out of Sevastopol because of severe Ukrainian drone and missile threats. Despite the known risk, two attractive targets – landing ships Yamal (a Project 775 Ropucha-class) and Nikolay Filchenkov (a Project 1171 Tapir-class) – were in port on Saturday. These ships are designed for amphibious assault, but Russia has primarily used its Black Sea amphibs for ferrying military supplies around the theater, from mainland Russia to the Kerch Strait to the Sea of Azov....
Kazi Sayed (44E) was promoted as Manager of the Solent Maritime and Research Technology Centre at Southampton Solent University...
posted on: Apr 20, 2026
Kazi Sayed (44E) was promoted as Manager of the Solent Maritime and Research Technology Centre at Southampton Solent University Heartiest congratulations to Kazi Sayed (44E) on his well-deserved promotion as Manager of the Solent Maritime and Research Technology Centre (SMART Centre) at Southampton Solent University. This remarkable achievement reflects his longstanding dedication to maritime education, technical innovation, and professional excellence. In his new role as Maritime and Research Technology Centre Manager, he will contribute significantly to advancing applied maritime engineering education under the South Coast Institute of Technology, a prestigious initiative supported by more than £13 million in funding from the UK Department for Education. The scale and ambition of this national-level project underline the importance of his appointment and the confidence placed in his leadership and expertise. The SMART Centre represents a forward-looking platform designed to prepare the next generation of maritime and engineering professionals through hands-on technical...
Traffic Confusion in the Strait of Hormuz
posted on: Apr 20, 2026
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X on April 17 that the Strait of Hormuz ‘is open for all commercial vessels for the remainder of the U.S.-brokered 10-day truce between Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah agreed between Israel and Lebanon’. He said ships would need to follow the Iranian routing past Larak Island, which had been prescribed by Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organisation. Based on AIS data, it appears that there was a small increase in movements early afternoon, but by midnight traffic had eased off. Most traffic was sticking to Iranian waters on the eastern side of the approaches to the Strait. No traffic was seen using the internationally-recognized Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS), but some ships were transiting the Strait on a direct east-west route through Omani waters close in to the Musandam peninsula, and through what Iran has designated a danger area. Amongst...
IEA Head Pitches Iraq-Turkey Pipeline To Bypass Hormuz...
posted on: Apr 20, 2026
By Selcan Hacaoglu Apr 19, 2026 (Bloomberg) –International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol proposed building a new oil pipeline linking Iraq’s Basra oil fields and Turkey’s Mediterranean oil terminal in Ceyhan to shift the balance away from the Strait of Hormuz, according to Turkish newspaper Hürriyet. “I believe a Basra–Ceyhan pipeline could be extremely attractive and a very important project for both Iraq and Turkey, as well as for regional supply security—especially from Europe’s perspective,” Birol said in an interview with Hürriyet, published on Sunday. “I also believe the financing issue can be overcome. Now is exactly the right time.” Iran on Saturday reimposed restrictions on vessel traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, less than 24 hours after Tehran declared the waterway open to commercial ships. Several liquefied natural gas tankers reversed course while en route there after Iran warned ship captains that the vital channel was once again closed to maritime traffic....
Climate change presents major global health and drowning risks...
posted on: Apr 20, 2026
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), drowning is the “[third]-leading cause of unintentional injury death worldwide, accounting for 7% of all injury-related deaths”. Drowning is a serious and ignored global public health issue. Given the limited data available on its accurate scale, global estimates may significantly underestimate actual public health problems related to drowning. At the same time, climate change and increasing global temperatures are already affecting water access for people worldwide, causing more severe droughts, floods and severe weather conditions. In a bid to better understand the impact of climate change on global drowning risks, the International Drowning Researchers’ Alliance (IDRA) is developing a position paper based on presentations and discussions held at its ‘Drowning and Climate Change’ conference, which was held in Ireland in June 2022 and will be published later this year. As part of their research, IDRA will look at examples of how climate change has...
U.S.-Flagged Cargo Ship Goes Missing During Passage of Typhoon Sinlaku...
posted on: Apr 20, 2026
The U.S. Coast Guard reports that a small U.S.-flagged cargo ship went missing off the coast of Saipan during the passage of Super Typhoon Sinlaku. An upturned hull – not yet identified – was spotted Saturday morning at a position 100 nautical miles away. The Mariana is a U.S.-flagged offshore supply vessel repurposed for cargo and employed on a regular freight route between Guam, Tinian and Saipan. On the afternoon of April 11, as Sinlaku approached the islands, Mariana departed Saipan with six crewmembers aboard. She deviated from her usual itinerary, heading north – away from the path of the storm. Over the next few days, Mariana loitered on a circular loop to the east of the island, then resumed her northward track in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Courtesy USCG Courtesy Pole Star Global Mariana was under way at a position about 140 miles to the northwest of Saipan on Wednesday when her starboard engine failed,...
Greek, Indian Tankers U-Turn Before Hormuz Amid Reopening Doubt...
posted on: Apr 20, 2026
By Weilun Soon Apr 18, 2026 (Bloomberg) –Several oil tankers have u-turned in the Persian Gulf after appearing to try to transit the Strait of Hormuz, as shipowners and oil traders remain in a state of disarray as they try to figure out whether Iran would stick to its promise to keep the chokepoint open for all. The halted journeys of five Greek and Indian tankers early Saturday paint the first picture of how traffic is navigating through the energy artery, after Iran’s foreign minister said on Friday that it was completely open. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency later reported that the passage will still be closed if a US naval blockade was still in effect. The Greek and Indian tankers had all made their journeys northeast toward Hormuz from waters off Dubai, filled with crude, before they began turning around on Saturday morning. Some are now idled in locations not far from where they...
Some tankers cross Strait of Hormuz before shots fired, ship-tracking data shows...
posted on: Apr 19, 2026
OSLO, April 18 (Reuters) – More than a dozen tankers, including three sanctioned vessels, passed through the Strait of Hormuz after a 50-day blockade was lifted on Friday, shipping data showed, before Iran reimposed restrictions on Saturday and fired at some vessels. Reopening the strait is key for Gulf producers to resume full oil and gas supplies to the world, and end what the International Energy Agency has called the worst-ever supply disruption. The Reuters Iran Briefing newsletter keeps you informed with the latest developments and analysis of the Iran war. Sign up here. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday Iran had agreed to open the strait, while Iranian officials said they wanted the U.S. to fully lift its blockade of Iranian tankers. Western shipping companies cautiously welcomed the announcements but said more clarity was needed, including on the presence of sea mines, before their vessels could transit. IRAN RESUMES RESTRICTIONS The...
India summons Iranian envoy after ship attack in Hormuz...
posted on: Apr 19, 2026
New Delhi summoned the Iranian ambassador today to lodge a protest over a “shooting incident” involving two Indian-flagged ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the foreign ministry said. Iran has reversed its pledge to reopen the strategic trade route to commercial traffic during a ceasefire in the Middle East war in protest at a US counter-blockade of the waterway, a crucial passage for crude oil and gas. Security monitors said several commercial ships came under fire and threats from Iranian forces today as they tried to cross the strait. India’s foreign ministry said in a statement that Secretary Vikram Misri summoned the Iranian ambassador and “conveyed India’s deep concern at the shooting incident earlier today involving two Indian-flagged ships in the Strait of Hormuz”. New Delhi also urged Iran to “resume at the earliest the process of facilitating India-bound ships across the Strait”, the statement said, adding that the...
Defiant message from Iran as vessels attempting to cross Hormuz report gunfire...
posted on: Apr 19, 2026
Handout photo taken from the X account of US European Command @US_EUCOM showing a Venezuela-linked oil tanker which is travelling off British waters. US forces are reportedly attempting to seize the Marinera, a Russian-flagged vessel previously known as Bella-1, which is said to have escaped Donald Trump’s “total naval blockade” of Venezuela. Issue date: Wednesday January 7, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: @US_EUCOM/X/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. At least two merchant vessels reported they were hit by gunfire as they attempted to cross the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, three maritime security and shipping sources said, shortly after Iran said it was once more tightening...
Shipping Industry Pushes Back on ‘Open’ Hormuz Narrative as Risks Persist...
posted on: Apr 19, 2026
The global shipping industry is urging caution after declarations from both Washington and Tehran that the Strait of Hormuz is “open,” warning that conditions on the water remain far from normal. Today’s messaging that the Strait of Hormuz originates from Tehran, which declared the Strait open to commercial shipping explicitly “in line with the ceasefire in Lebanon,” and statements made by President Trump. “[The] Strait of Iran is fully open and ready for full passage,” Trump posted to social media in an apparent reference to Hormuz. However, Iran’s own statement makes clear that vessels are expected to follow a designated “coordinated route” along its coastline—rather than the internationally recognized Traffic Separation Scheme that normally governs commercial traffic through the strait. Industry associations say the reality facing shipowners is far more complex than what officials have alluded to, shaped by unresolved mine risks, overlapping military controls, and an expanding U.S. enforcement...
A Temporary Corridor Strategy for Hormuz
posted on: Apr 19, 2026
[By Frank Bell] The Strait of Hormuz does not need to be made safe to reopen global shipping. It only needs to be made governable. Even as the United States has begun striking selected Iranian military targets—including recent operations against military facilities on Kharg Island—the fundamental challenge in the Gulf remains unchanged: restoring predictable commercial transit through a contested maritime chokepoint without triggering a broader regional war. Attempts to eliminate every Iranian capability that could threaten shipping would require a prolonged campaign across the Persian Gulf. A more practical approach is to establish a temporary defended transit corridor, concentrating naval escort, airborne surveillance, shipborne helicopter protection, and a limited southern-shore defensive node into a narrow and defensible passage through the strait. For months, analysts have treated the Strait of Hormuz as if it were either completely safe or completely impassable. In reality, maritime chokepoints rarely function in such absolute...
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Industry on alert over scam messages offering ships “safe passage” on Hormuz Credit: Shutterstock Fraudulent messages offering safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for cryptocurrency have been circulated to shipping companies with vessels stranded west of the waterway, according to MARISKS. In an alert issued on 20 April, MARISKS cautioned that unknown actors posing as Iranian authorities had contacted […]
The ‘Cadet Gridlock’ in Bangladesh’s Maritime Sector: A Sorrowful Story of Wasted Potential The ‘Cadet Gridlock’ in Bangladesh’s Maritime Sector: A Sorrowful Story of Wasted Potential By Minar Rashid 21E On 15 November, the BMCS Gala Night 2025 was held at Singapore’s Orchid Country Club. With the vibrant participation of hundreds of Bangladeshi mariners and their families, the event became a remarkable reunion […]
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