Weekly edition 2 June

Lines jockeying for position to make most of Pacific box boom

CONTAINER lines are currently showing a keen interest in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.

Marine risks brokers team up

LLOYD’S broker, FP Marine Risks (FP), has joined forces with Queensland-based Oceanic Marine Risks (Oceanic).

Port Pirie project one step closer

WPG RESOURCES, a South Australia focused miner, has received a recommendation from a local government body that one of its projects, an export storage facility at Port Pirie, should go ahead.

Woodside employee fails in dismissal bid

FAIR Work Australia (FWA) has thrown out an application by a long-serving Woodside Energy employee claiming he was unfairly dismissed after 15 years.

No time-zone penalties at Port Botany so far

SYDNEY Ports Corporation (SPC) says there have been no time-zone cancellations on the part of stevedores at Port Botany since the new penalty system of operational performance standards was introduced.

Docks action abates but no peace in sight

ARTHUR Spellson isn’t used to doing much media work.

Forum hears views from all sides on possible shipping policy moves

DIFFERING views about the Federal Government’s proposed shipping reforms were on full display at the Australian Maritime College 2011 Maritime Forum in Launceston.

Oil transfer rules to be enshrined in new Bill

AUSTRALIAN transport relies almost entirely on oil products. A significant amount of Australia’s oil is imported as crude oil for refining at one of Australia’s seven oil refineries.

MLC legislation goes to second reading

SHIPPING carries 99% of Australia’s trade by volume and Australia’s shipping task makes up 10% of the entire world’s seaborne trade.

Steel demand picking up faster than expected, says the OECD

GLOBAL demand for steel over the next 18 months is “promising”, according to an assessment by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Volatile commodity prices to shake dry bulk

FOLLOWING an extended bull run, commodity prices have suddenly entered a more volatile and uncertain period.

Mississippi floods slash coal movements

FLOODING along the Mississippi River in the US has dramatically reduced coal movements on the river, bringing them almost to a “standstill” and stifling dry bulk carrier demand in the US Gulf.

Producers step in to fulfil Japan’s needs

Qatar, Indonesia, Malaysia and Russia prove their ability to meet demand growth, writes CLAIRE WRIGHT*

Shell gets go-ahead with world’s first FLNG for WA Prelude gasfield

ROYAL Dutch Shell has the green light to start building the world’s first floating gas liquefaction vessel (FLNG), marking a breakthrough for the liquefied natural gas industry as it seeks to meet growing global demand for the fuel.

Bad weather flattens Oz exports

Floods, cyclones and general bad weather led to a 2.5% fall in Australian LNG production and has flat lined LNG exports in the March quarter, according to a report from LNG consultant, EnergyQuest, reports RHIANNON ZANETIC

Samsung Heavy unveils LNG carrier orders worth US$1bn

SOUTH Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has announced new contracts worth US$1.2bn for six liquefied natural gas carriers.

West coast growth is on a roll

Between Gorgon, Pluto T1 and the number of projects aiming for approval this year, Australia’s west coast has about 44m tonnes of new LNG capacity in the pipeline, according to EnergyQuest’s quarterly report, writes RHIANNON ZANETIC

NT Ichthys gas project clears another hurdle

INPEX in the Northern Territory has received environmental approval from the Teritory Government to continue with the Ichthys LNG project in Darwin.

Coleman starts in the top job at Woodside

PETER Coleman has begun work with Woodside, having replaced former CEO Don Voelte who retired after more than seven years with the company.

Chinese gas demand set for surge in next decade

LIQUEFIED natural gas imports into China were a key theme of a presentation to the US House of Representatives subcommittee on energy and power in April.

Carrier day rates race upwards on new demand

Market turns ‘red-hot’ as demand grows – with ships set to achieve prices not seen for seven years, reports MICHELLE WIESE BOCKMANN

Casualty briefs 2 June 2011

Maritime

EU Navfor takes masters to task over failed piracy prosecutions

EUROPEAN naval forces patrolling the Indian Ocean have hit out at the shipping industry for thwarting efforts that would help put more pirates in jail.

Losses deepen at RCL

REGIONAL Container Lines, the Bangkok-listed intra-Asia box carrier, reported a shortfall of Baht714m (US$23.6m) in the first quarter of 2011, more than double its Baht342m loss in the year earlier period, citing high bunker prices and costs associated with appreciating Asian currencies.

K Line lays up two car carriers

K LINE has put two of its pure car and truck carriers into cold lay-up following disruption to trade caused by the Japanese earthquake and tsunami three months ago.

CSAV beats Maersk in reliability

CSAV is now the world’s most reliable deepsea container carrier, according to the latest research from Drewry Shipping Consultants, knocking Maersk Line off from its customary perch.

Conference shipping: revolution!

MALCOLM McLean was a visionary. During the Great Depression in the late 1920s and early 1930s, he started his own road transport company on the east coast of the US and 20 years later it had grown to become the second largest trucking outfit in North America.

Chemistry of taxation and an animal hunt – 30 years ago

AUSTRALIA’S chemicals industry was holding out the begging bowl, at about this time in 1981. It was seeking incentives to compete more effectively on the world market.

Engine makers seek security of long-term maintenance contracts

THE 29-vessel maintenance contract between Royal Caribbean Cruises and Finland’s Wärtsilä underscores a growing trend in services provision to large shipowners that some of the leading engineering firms are beginning to offer.

Natural gas to step into nuclear breach

With governments questioning their future nuclear commitments, natural gas is a likely beneficiary, writes MICHAEL D TUSIANI*

Beware the result of well-meaning laws

The US Jones Act shows how the competitive marketplace is usually a better regulator of prices than any government legislation, writes Paul Slater*