www.TheSeaNation.gr

0ΠΕΡΙΒΑΛΛΟΝΤΙΚΗ ΗΜΕΡΙΔΑ In the context of the Attica Group Corporate Responsibility programme “Sailing Together” which focuses on sustainable development and raises climate change awareness in local communities, BLUE STAR FERRIES organized a conference on “Climate Change & Today’s Challenges” which took place on 3rd December 2022 in Amorgos island.

TANKERS END 2022 WITH 78% TIME CHARTER CONTRIBUTION MARGIN AND BEST 2023 OUTLOOK

Λεπτομέρειες: Δημοσιεύτηκε στις Δευτέρα, 02 Ιανουαρίου 2023 18:25

tanker What a difference a year makes! At the end of 2021, container ships were enjoying a historically strong market and freight and time charter rates had yet to peak. At the same time, dry bulk ships were seeing multi-year high rates slipping away, although still enjoying better returns than in previous years. However, tanker ships were seemingly still stuck in a COVID market rut without any immediate hopes for a strong comeback.
During 2022, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February has been a key market driver. It led to higher food and energy prices and inflation spiked, especially in Europe and North America. Central banks turned to increasing interest rates to control the inflation that, despite attempts, remains high. At the same time, G7 countries, led by the US and the EU, implemented ever stricter sanctions on Russia. Elsewhere, the Chinese economy struggled under the weight of a strict Zero COVID policy. 
Less than two weeks before the new year we can conclude which markets prospered under these conditions and which faltered. The container market peak has fizzled out and a brief resurgence in the dry bulk market during spring did not last. However, the tanker markets have prospered, and the Baltic Exchange indices for the two tanker markets have hit their highest levels since the mid-2000s.
In addition, time charter rates for tanker ships have increased since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The average time charter contribution margin for tanker ships (time charter rate minus operating expenses) has increased from 45% at the beginning of the year to 78% at the end; from the lowest to the highest of the three main shipping segments. 
During 2022, tanker trades have benefitted from a 4% increase in oil production and a reshaping of tanker trades. As a result of the war in Ukraine, the EU and Russia found new suppliers and new buyers respectively as the year progressed. Average sailing distances increased and added to tonne miles demand. In December, EU’s ban on Russian oil took effect and closed Russia-EU trade, and in February the trade in refined products will close as well.
On the other hand, the time charter contribution margin for container ships slipped in 2022 from an average of 90% in January to 69% in December, and for dry bulk ships the margin slipped from 76% to 59% during the same period. 
In the container market, port congestion reduced and led to increased capacity supply while stagnating consumer consumption and a bleaker outlook have hurt demand. Businesses have begun to reduce inventories and global container volumes are likely to end the year 4% lower than last year, driven by volumes lower than in 2019 during the last four months of the year.
A renewed interest in coal in the EU and a ban on Russia-EU coal trade which started in August were not enough to drive the dry bulk market upwards. Weak demand in China plagued the market throughout the year, and a struggling real estate sector hurt iron ore demand while increased local mining reduced demand for imported coal.  
In 2023, the tanker market will benefit from increased sailing distances for both crude and product tankers as EU’s ban of Russian refined oil products will take effect in February. Supply growth will be minimal, and we expect the tanker market to be the best performing market of the three main shipping markets. The container market is likely to suffer from over supply while the dry bulk market is not expected to see significant demand growth.

While Santa Claus has come

Λεπτομέρειες: Δημοσιεύτηκε στις Τρίτη, 27 Δεκεμβρίου 2022 22:52

bulk ships 000 While Santa Claus has come down the chimney for some, the Chinese authorities have made an early gift to the global economy. China will no longer subject inbound travellers to quarantine from January 8th 2023, putting the country on track to emerge from three years of self-imposed global isolation under a zero COVID policy that battered the economy and stoked historic public discontent.

PPA S.A.: Back again this year with vital corporate responsibility initiatives on the occasion of Christmas

Λεπτομέρειες: Δημοσιεύτηκε στις Τρίτη, 27 Δεκεμβρίου 2022 17:31

0γενική PPA S.A. on the occasion of Christmas and New Year holidays, consistently and with real commitment implements for just another year its program, being part of the company’s broader social responsibility strategy, involving a range of great initiatives and actions aiming at local community, port neighboring municipalities but also employee reinforcement and broader support.

Decarbonisation of Sea Giants: SWS awarded by RINA First AiP of LNG/Hydrogen Fuelled VLCC

Λεπτομέρειες: Δημοσιεύτηκε στις Δευτέρα, 26 Δεκεμβρίου 2022 11:00

rina RINA has announced the Approval in Principle (AiP) of the first very large crude carrier (VLCC) vessel using an innovative propulsion arrangement that reduces the ship’s resistance by 5-10%. This result is achieved by splitting the thrust of a single large propeller into two smaller ones, thus reducing the required ballast draft for the full propeller immersion, which in turn allows the reduction of the volume of the ballast tanks and, ultimately, of the overall ship dimensions and the required power for propulsion without impacting the cargo carrying capacity.
At the same time the vessel will meet the IMO targets for 2050 through the use of the ship’s fuel (LNG) combined with hydrogen produced onboard. The LNG/hydrogen-fuelled vessel general arrangement developed by Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS) is based on the result of a joint project with Marin, the Liberia Administration, Wärtsilä, ABB and Helbio (a subsidiary of Metacon AB) and RINA.
Giosuè Vezzuto, Executive Vice President at RINA, said, “Following the AiP of an MR tanker, earlier this year, using the same solution to produce hydrogen on board, this vessel features a new approach to the design of VLCCs. It also demonstrates that the gas reforming concept can work equally well on smaller or bigger vessels, as this first AiP for a VLCC proves its application in the largest vessels.”
The new propulsion concept is important because it offers ship owners a way to exceed IMO 2050 carbon reduction targets using practical fuel and technology that is readily available today.
Mr. Gao Aihua, Deputy Director of SWS R&D Department at SWS, said, “We are proud to obtain the first AiP for a VLCC to meet IMO 2050. Also, the reduction of ship’s resistance is a paramount step for ships of this size, towards the primary target of reducing the energy consumption on board, and this makes it even easier to reduce GHG emissions. This is a huge step forward in decarbonisation for the global industry and for shipbuilding in China. This is a huge step forward in decarbonisation for the global industry and for shipbuilding in China.”
The propulsion design is based on combining LNG with steam in a Helbio gas reformer to split LNG molecules into hydrogen and CO2. Hydrogen is then directly used to fuel the internal combustion engines and fuel cells. The capture of carbon atom directly from the LNG molecules, serves as a pre-combustion technique, and the cryogenic separation of CO2 from a stream of reformed gases rather than from exhaust emissions results in much smaller installation on bard which eliminates the use of chemicals and the penalty in energy consumption.
The AiP to SWS, following the MR AiP design in Europe, shows the wider acceptance of the concept by global shipyards.
“One of the challenges for shipowners in meeting IMO carbon emission targets is knowing what the future holds,” continued Vezzuto. “The industry is considering many options using different technologies and new fuels, aiming to minimize the energy consumption and the resulting CO2 emissions on board. Shipowners need to be confident that onshore bunkering facilities and other supporting infrastructure will be available before investing in new vessels. This LNG/hydrogen fuelled design for VLCCs is modular and scalable and provides a practical solution that can adapt over time to meet increasingly stringent emission reduction targets and ensure their investment is optimized throughout the natural lifespan of the vessel. The design only requires LNG bunkering, which is widely available today.”

Global triple distinction for ATTICA GROUP at CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY REPORTING AWARDS 2022

Λεπτομέρειες: Δημοσιεύτηκε στις Τετάρτη, 21 Δεκεμβρίου 2022 22:21

0attica group Attica Group, parent company of SUPERFAST FERRIES, BLUE STAR FERRIES and HELLENIC SEAWAYS, is proud to announce its distinction at the Corporate Responsibility Reporting Awards 2022 (CRRA 2022) organized by Corporate Register Limited, the largest CR reference directory internationally, with a database of 166,531 CR reports from 24,312 organizations worldwide.