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As the summer maintenance season has started, the first Arc7 ice-class gas carriers in service of the Yamal LNG project have arrived at the Fayard A/S shipyard in Odense. The 'Nikolay Urvantsev' (IMO: 9750660), chartered to Novatek’s Yamal LNG project, arrived at the drydock on June 26, 2025, and sailed around a week later. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Fedor Litke (IMO: 9768370)', operated by Dynagas, arrived at the Fayard A/S yard on July 17, following a delivery at Dunkerque, and remained in drydock as of July 24. Repairs and maintenance schedules have been significantly condensed for the Arctic LNG carriers due to their harsh operating conditions along Russia’s Northern Sea Route. The Damen ship repair focuses on hull maintenance, which the LNG carriers regularly require breaking a path through thick Arctic sea ice. The Damen Shiprepair stated that the company was in compliance with all international sanctions legislation against Russia. As the vessels have not been directly sanctioned by the U.S. or the EU the yards’ activities do not violate international law. Though procuring spare parts has become increasingly difficult, suppliers of gas chromatographs and flow meters used on LNG carriers have placed restrictions on the end user and no longer deliver parts to the vessels of the Yamal fleet, related to the fear of sanctions. A number of sanctioned LNG carriers, including an Arc7 and several Arc4 ice-class vessels, have recently resorted to receiving maintenance at Chinese yards. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Christophe de Margerie' spent months at a Zhoushan Island yard east of Shanghai in summer 2024. Currently two additional sanctioned Russian gas carriers, the 'Sputnik Energy' and the 'Nova Energy' (IMO: 9324277), remained at Zhoushan yards.

As of July 21, the 'Wan Hai 503' remained in a stable condition. Grey smoke was last observed in the vicinity of cargo holds no. 3 and 4 on the afternoon of July 2ß, consistent with previously reported patterns of residual combustion due to unextinguished smouldering cargo. The vessel continued to weather rough conditions with gusting winds over 30 knots and swells. The ship was currently located approximately 238 nautical miles southeast of the Indian EEZ boundary and has been drifting along with prevailing ocean currents in the absence of active tow. The connection with the 'Offshore Warrior' was scheduled to be re-established upon its return from Cochin, where it had proceeded for replenishment of bunkers, stores, and freshwater. Salvage operations continued on board with a 16-member team having boarded the casualty. The salvage team now intended to remain on board continuously to maintain operation tempo and stability. Essential amenities such as cooling appliances and food supplies have already been provided to support extended stays. Dewatering of the engine room, cargo holds, and duct keel continued, with improved control achieved in most spaces. Notably, cargo holds no. 2 and 3 appeaedr dry, while the engine room water level was being maintained at approximately 50 cm. Pumping in hold no. 6 was ongoing. The 'Offshore Warrior wass expected to arrive back on July 22. Once reconnected, it was to re-establish tow and return the vessel toward the Indian EEZ as previously committed to Sri Lankan authorities. The salvage team has also mobilized an additional tug, the 'Advantage Libra', which departed from Khor Fakkan on July 20 with an ETA as of July 27 to augment the operational fleet and provide greater redundancy for towage and salvage work, particularly in the light of an upcoming potential port entry. The 'Advantis Virgo', having suffered propeller issues during prior maneuvers, was planned to return to Colombo for underwater inspections and repair after the 'Offshore Warrior' took over towing duties. Until then, it remainned on standby. Meanwhile, the 'Saksham' was actively engaged in fire watch and boundary cooling as required. The 'Water Lily' continued to serve as the primary platform for safe personnel transfer to and from the casualty. The overall salvage and stabilization picture was cautiously optimistic. The 'Wan Hai 503' has shown structural resilience. The recurrence of grey smoke emissions was anticipated and attributed to residual combustion within affected cargo holds. Given the limitations of safe access to these areas, boundary cooling remained the feasible mitigation approach at present. The emergency towline that parted earlier was recovered and stored aboard the vessel as a precaution. A backup towline was also being prepared. The salvage team’s ability to remain on board continuously marked a positive shift in operations, reducing reliance on the single transfer ship 'Water Lily', and allowing uninterrupted oversight. Planning was also progressing for final stages of casualty removal. The Wan Hai Lines has communicated its decision, based on inputs from ITOPF and shoreline drift modelling, to discontinue contractual ties with SpillTech and MERC for shoreline clean-up, citing minimal ongoing risk. However, MERC remains on standby should future response be necessary. The Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) has taken note and will revert formally upon review.

The Tanger Med port has emerged as the biggest port in Africa in terms of container capacity, surpassing Africa’s bigger ports like Durban (South Africa) and Mombasa (Kenya). The Tanger Med port now connects Morocco to 77 countries and 186 ports around the world. The Tanger Med II has two new container terminals – TC3 and TC4 – with an additional 6 million container capacity. The TC3, which is operated by Morocco’s main port operator Marsa Maroc, has a capacity of 1 million TEUs (twenty foot equivalent units). The TC4, which is operated by the Netherlands-based APM Terminals, has a capacity of 5 million TEUs. According to the Tanger Med Port Authority, with its new terminals, Tanger Med port will have a capacity of processing 9 million containers, 7 million passengers, 1 million vehicles and 700,000 trucks. Thanks to its extensions, Tanger Med port has now become the largest port in the Mediterranean region, surpassing some of the region’s top ports like Algeciras (Spain), Valencia (Spain) and Gioia (Italy). The port is located 40 kilometers east of the Moroccan town of Tangier, which is a gateway to both Europe and Africa. “Our aim is to develop an effective port platform integrated with transshipment activities, imports and exports,” Tanger Med Port Authority said on its website. The Tanger Med port has become vital for Morocco’s economy as it handled 317 billion Moroccan dirhams (US$33.14 billion) worth of exports and imports in 2018. It processed an overall tonnage of 52.24 tonnes last year.

French oil and gas giant Total SA has taken a 50 per cent stake in Dhamra LNG Terminal Pvt Ltd (DLTPL), a unit of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ), which is constructing a 12 million tonne per annum (mtpa) LNG regasification terminal at its port located at Dhamra in Odisha’s Bhadrak district.

As the summer maintenance season has started, the first Arc7 ice-class gas carriers in service of the Yamal LNG project have arrived at the Fayard A/S shipyard in Odense. The 'Nikolay Urvantsev' (IMO: 9750660), chartered to Novatek’s Yamal LNG project, arrived at the drydock on June 26, 2025, and sailed around a week later. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Fedor Litke, operated by Dynagas, arrived at the Fayard A/S yard on July 17, following a delivery at Dunkerque, and remained in drydock as of July 24. Repairs and maintenance schedules have been significantly condensed for the Arctic LNG carriers due to their harsh operating conditions along Russia’s Northern Sea Route. The Damen ship repair focuses on hull maintenance, which the LNG carriers regularly require breaking a path through thick Arctic sea ice. The Damen Shiprepair stated that the company was in compliance with all international sanctions legislation against Russia. As the vessels have not been directly sanctioned by the U.S. or the EU the yards’ activities do not violate international law. Though procuring spare parts has become increasingly difficult, suppliers of gas chromatographs and flow meters used on LNG carriers have placed restrictions on the end user and no longer deliver parts to the vessels of the Yamal fleet, related to the fear of sanctions. A number of sanctioned LNG carriers, including an Arc7 and several Arc4 ice-class vessels, have recently resorted to receiving maintenance at Chinese yards. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Christophe de Margerie' spent months at a Zhoushan Island yard east of Shanghai in summer 2024. Currently two additional sanctioned Russian gas carriers, the 'Sputnik Energy' (IMO: 9256602) and the 'Nova Energy' (IMO: 9324277), remained at Zhoushan yards.

The 'Bute', operating on the route Wemyss Bay-Rothesay suffered a fuel issue on July 22. The departures from Rothesay at 10:000 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. and from Wemyss Bay at 11:15 a.m. and 1:05 p.m. had to be cancelled with more crossings at the risk uf disruption. After the issues were successfully resolved, the following sailings, which were initially cancelled, were reinstated: Departure Rothesay - 2:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Departure Wemyss Bay -3:05 p.m., 5:05 p.m. and 7:05 p.m.

Phase one of the new Jurong Port Tank Terminals (JPTT) was officially opened on Monday (July 29), with Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Chee Hong Tat saying it will allow Singapore to strengthen its position as one of the world’s top bunkering ports for low-sulphur fuels. The $200 million, 16ha petrochemical terminal is a joint venture between port operator Jurong Port and German firm Oiltanking with 252,000 cubic m of clean petroleum storage capacity. From January next year, the International Maritime Organisation will prohibit ships from using fuels containing more than 0.5 per cent sulphur.

Moves are afoot for a new multi-billion-rand liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage and regasification terminal to be established at the port of Richards Bay by 2024, but state-owned Transnet wants the private sector to be the main investor and operator of the facility. The plan was revealed on Tuesday as Transnet announced the signing of a cost-sharing agreement with the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) to jointly fund a feasibility study into the terminal project. The IFC has committed $2 million (around R28 million) as part of the cost-sharing agreement. The move comes as Transnet looks to bolster South Africa’s LNG infrastructure, both at the country’s ports and within its pipelines business.

As the summer maintenance season has started, the first Arc7 ice-class gas carriers in service of the Yamal LNG project have arrived at the Fayard A/S shipyard in Odense. The 'Nikolay Urvantsev', chartered to Novatek’s Yamal LNG project, arrived at the drydock on June 26, 2025, and sailed around a week later. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Fedor Litke (IMO: 9768370)', operated by Dynagas, arrived at the Fayard A/S yard on July 17, following a delivery at Dunkerque, and remained in drydock as of July 24. Repairs and maintenance schedules have been significantly condensed for the Arctic LNG carriers due to their harsh operating conditions along Russia’s Northern Sea Route. The Damen ship repair focuses on hull maintenance, which the LNG carriers regularly require breaking a path through thick Arctic sea ice. The Damen Shiprepair stated that the company was in compliance with all international sanctions legislation against Russia. As the vessels have not been directly sanctioned by the U.S. or the EU the yards’ activities do not violate international law. Though procuring spare parts has become increasingly difficult, suppliers of gas chromatographs and flow meters used on LNG carriers have placed restrictions on the end user and no longer deliver parts to the vessels of the Yamal fleet, related to the fear of sanctions. A number of sanctioned LNG carriers, including an Arc7 and several Arc4 ice-class vessels, have recently resorted to receiving maintenance at Chinese yards. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Christophe de Margerie' spent months at a Zhoushan Island yard east of Shanghai in summer 2024. Currently two additional sanctioned Russian gas carriers, the 'Sputnik Energy' (IMO: 9256602) and the 'Nova Energy' (IMO: 9324277), remained at Zhoushan yards.

The 'Lochinvar', serving on the route Lochaline-Fishnish, suffered a technical issue that requires further investigation on July 23. As a consequence, the scheduled departures from iLochaline at 9.40 a.m. and from Fishnish at 10 a.m. had to be cancelled. After the issue was resolved, the 'Lochinvar'operated the previously cancelled crossings.

Congestion at Cambodia’s top port is creating supply chain disruptions. In a note to clients German containerline Hapag-Lloyd noted that terminal productivity at Sihanoukville port has deteriorated due to port and yard congestion. Feeder services and turnaround times are affected and feeder space is tight. In an effort for medium term improvement of this situation, the port is building an extended yard for additional storage space. “Before the new container yard is completed, port congestion may persist,” Hapag-Lloyd warned.

Hong Kong-based Dream Cruises’ World Dream cruise ship made its first port call to Keelung on July 8 and tourism operators have said that the port could receive a visit by Royal Caribbean International’s new Spectrum of the Seas in 2021. With gross tonnage (GT) of 151,300, the World Dream is the largest ship ever to visit Keelung Port, the Keelung Harbor Bureau said on Sunday, July 21. Tourism operators have said that the 169,379GT Spectrum of the Seas could set a new record if it makes an anticipated port call in 2021.