Scorpio may delay scrubbers decision beyond 2020

SCORPIO Tankers may wait until after the 2020 sulphur cap comes into force to decide whether it will install scrubbers to comply with the regulation, according to its chief operating officer Cameron Mackey.

The International Maritime Organization's 0.5% sulphur cap on fuel enters into force on January 1, 2020, with shipowners and refineries scrambling to find ways to conform to the new rules, but the adoption of LNG is not looking like a viable option at this time, Mr Mackey says.   

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Top stories:

Three Hamburg tug outfits hit with $15m cartel fines

GERMANY's competition watchdog has imposed fines totalling ?13m ($15.3m) on three top Hamburg tug companies.

Between 2002 and 2013 the harbour towage companies "divided orders and turnover earned from several German harbours among themselves", the regulator said.

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CDB Leasing agrees $514.3m LNG carriers deal with Dynagas

CHINA Development Bank Financial Leasing signed a $514.3m sale and leaseback agreement with Dynagas, the George Prokopiou-led vessel owner, for two liquefied natural gas carriers.

They were both built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2014, with charters for the Yamal project over a 15-year span starting from 2019 onwards.

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Top 10 women in shipping 2017

Our 2017 Top 100 most influential people in shipping series - published this week and available here - includes many of the women who are making their mark across all areas of the industry.

None more so than Hu Xiaolian, head of the leading Chinese policy lender in shipping and shipbuilding and the driving force behind many state-backed initiatives, whose profile will only get higher in years to come.

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Markets:

Baltic Exchange takes deckplate approach in switch to TD3C

THE recent change to the key very large crude carrier benchmark announced by the Baltic Exchange reflects the reality on the deckplate level that market participants have seen over the past 15 years, writes Court Smith.

The Middle Eastern Gulf to Japan TD3 route is being dropped, to be replaced with a Ras Tanura to Ningbo quote, TD3C, from January 2.

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Opinion:

BDI cannot be both a shipping barometer and effective trading platform

CONTROVERSY surrounding the new Baltic Dry Index has continued almost non-stop since the Baltic Exchange declared a major revamp of its most influential assessment.

The exchange proposed a revamp of the index last month in order to increase liquidity and attract new players. It completely removed the handysize time charter average from the BDI and increased the weighting for the rest of the segments from January 2.

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`Our industry needs to do more to stop sexual harassment and sexual assault'

IT is impossible to escape the focus being given globally to sexual assault and sexual harassment in the workplace, writes Carleen Lyden Walker. 

If we want to continue to attract women into the maritime industries, we need to provide a workplace where we feel respected and valued

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Analysis:

Brookes Bell building a centre of expertise

THE future of maritime professional services is likely to see further consolidation and concentration of expertise, writes Richard Clayton.

But what might such a concentration look like? The experience of UK-headquartered Brookes Bell offers some insight.

In brief

Damen signs deal with Concordia to build inland waterway ships

DAMEN Shipyards has signed a joint venture with compatriot shipbuilder Concordia Group that will help it make headway in the inland shipping sector.

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Vard to build $318m electric hybrid cruiseship for Ponant

VARD Holdings has signed an agreement with Ponant to build an electric hybrid cruise vessel worth ?270m ($318.2m).

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FSL Trust in talks to extend loan maturity

SINGAPORE-listed First Ship Lease Trust is negotiating with the creditors of its $480m-term syndicated loan facility, secured on December 1, 2011, to push back the maturity date by one year.

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Barge congestion continues at key European box ports

INTERMODAL operator Contargo is maintaining its congestion surcharge on barge services to and from the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp.

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DSME extends delivery dates for Maran Gas LNG carrier newbuilds

SOUTH Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering has extended the delivery dates of a number of liquefied natural gas carriers that it is constructing for Maran Gas, a subsidiary of the Angelicoussis Group.

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Korean maritime authorities outline measures to prevent vessel collisions

SOUTH Korea's Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries is considering measures to prevent casualties and improve on-site response systems for accidents involving vessel collisions.

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Wisdom Marine to order supramax duo at Kawasaki Heavy

DRY bulkers owner Wisdom Marine will order two supramax vessels at Kawasaki Heavy Industries for up to $52m in total.

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Toepfer to launch in-house commercial manager for chemtankers

Borealis Maritime is to launch an Istanbul-based commercial management outfit for chemtankers from January as part of a joint venture with an unidentified partner.

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Maurice Meehan: An environmental champion of passion and ability

SUSTAINABILITY champion Maurice Meehan, who was at the forefront of environment and climate change issues in the offshore and maritime industry, has died suddenly. He was 42.

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Shanghai tops Drewry's port connectivity index

SHANGHAI wins pole position in Drewry's global container port connectivity index, in which nine of the top 10 entrants are in Asia.

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