The United States Did Not Just Outsource Shipbuilding. It Outsourced Demand.
Pudget Sound Naval Shipyard worker Troy Wood carbon arks rudder access patches aboard USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), while in port at Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton, Washington, (U.S. Navy photo by Christian Gonzalez)
The United States Did Not Just Outsource Shipbuilding. It Outsourced Demand.
John Konrad
Total Views: 1
April 29, 2026
Why America’s Cargo Demand Is Building Maritime Capacity Everywhere but at Home
By
Bruce Kimbrell
(Policy Op-Ed) I spent last week at the
Sea-Air-Space
Conference at the Gaylord in Maryland listening to discussions about American shipbuilding.
Across panels, the focus was consistent: improving efficiency and throughput.
ABS Acquires RMC Global to Strengthen Cyber, Risk and Resilience Capabilities
ABS Acquires RMC Global to Strengthen Cyber, Risk and Resilience Capabilities
gCaptain
Total Views: 0
April 29, 2026
ABS, through its affiliate ABSG Consulting Inc. (ABS Consulting), has today announced the acquisition of RMC Global (RMC), a leading provider of industrial cybersecurity, risk management and resiliency solutions.
The acquisition strengthens ABS Consulting’s capabilities and market position, bringing together two organizations with complementary expertise, shared values and a common mission. Combining RMC’s capabilities with ABS Consulting’s scale, technical depth and global resources, unlocks more integrated solutions for clients operating in increasingly complex risk environments.
ABS Chairman and CEO John McDonald said: “Clients are facing increasing operational risk, cyber threats, and regulatory pressure.
From Supply Disruption to Transit Disruption: What April Reveals About the Global LNG Shock
From Supply Disruption to Transit Disruption: What April Reveals About the Global LNG Shock
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
What appeared in March 2026 as a supply shock in global LNG markets has, by April, evolved into a broader transit disruption affecting the physical movement of gas through the Strait of Hormuz. Damage to Qatari infrastructure has reduced Qatar’s LNG export capacity by ~17%, tightening global supply, though the global shortfall is smaller and partly offset by other exporters. The United States has emerged as the primary alternative supplier, while Asia absorbs the most acute impacts and Europe faces growing indirect pressure heading into the refill season.
Key figures at a glance:
>2 bcm/week LNG flows lost from Qatar & UAE
~17% reduction in Qatari LNG exports (~3–5% global impact)
$20bn/yr estimated annual Qatari revenue loss
The Shift: From Supply Shock to Transit Disruption
The global LNG crisis that began in early March with damage to Qatari export fa
The List: How Iran Managed Access to the Strait of Hormuz and Where That System Broke Down
The List: How Iran Managed Access to the Strait of Hormuz and Where That System Broke Down
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
O
n the morning of April 18, 2026, the master of a crude oil tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz broadcast a transmission that remains the clearest summary of what our observation window had documented over the preceding seven days: “You gave us clearance. We are second on the list.”
Seventeen hours earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister had declared the strait completely open to commercial shipping. The gunboats that approached without a standard VHF challenge were also very real.
UKMTO Warning 037-26, issued at 09:20 UTC that morning, confirmed what vessel tracking had already begun to reveal: a tanker had been fired upon 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman.
Digitalisation at Sea: Opportunities and Risks
Digitalisation at Sea: Opportunities and Risks
in
Marine Insurance P&I Club News
29/04/2026
O
n United Nations’ World Day for Safety and Health at Work, this year’s theme – “ensuring a healthy psychosocial working environment” – feels especially relevant at sea.
There is no doubt that better connectivity has brought real benefits. Digital tools help crews do their jobs more safely and efficiently, improving workload management, and providing greater support to seafarers in fulfilling their roles. Improved communications also allow mariners to stay in closer contact with family and friends ashore.
Security Council Demands Freedom of Navigation in Hormuz as Shipping Risks Mount
Guided-missile destroyer USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) enforces the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports against M/T Stream after it attempted to sail to an Iranian port, April 26, 2026. Central Command Photo
Security Council Demands Freedom of Navigation in Hormuz as Shipping Risks Mount
Mike Schuler
Total Views: 0
April 28, 2026
The United Nations Security Council heard urgent calls Monday to restore freedom of navigation through the
Strait of Hormuz
, as world leaders warned disruptions in one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints are threatening shipping, energy security and food supplies.
In a high-level Security Council session, António Guterres warned the fallout is already rippling through fuel markets, trade routes and humanitarian supply chains.
“The economic shock has been immediate, and everyone is paying the price,” Guterres told the Council, warning prolonged instability could trigger wider food insecurity, particularly in vulnerable import-dependent regions.
How viable is Syria as a trade route to bypass blocked Hormuz strait?
How viable is Syria as a trade route to bypass blocked Hormuz strait?
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
As disruption in the Strait of Hormuz pushes governments and businesses to seek alternative routes, Syria is re-emerging as a potential trade corridor, linking Iraq to the Mediterranean and the Gulf to Europe.
Syria’s interim president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, said earlier this month that the country’s geography makes it a “safe corridor” and an “alternative route” for energy supplies and supply chains, particularly between the Gulf and Turkiye.
That role is already beginning to take shape. Under a joint agreement between Syria and Iraq, Iraqi oil exports have started moving through Syrian ports, Al-Sharaa said.
His remarks come as the regional conflict has upended longstanding energy and commercial trade routes.
When the US and Israel began joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran retaliated by attacking Israel and the Arab states and effectively blockading the Strait of Hormuz, a
UN shipping chief hopes for consensus over Net-Zero Framework despite divisions
UN shipping chief hopes for consensus over Net-Zero Framework despite divisions
in
International Shipping News
29/04/2026
International Maritime Organization member states could still reach a consensus on the Net-Zero Framework without a vote despite currently divided views, the UN agency’s secretary-general, Arsenio Dominguez, said April 27 after what he described as “momentum” during recent technical meetings.
The framework, designed to place a cost on life cycle greenhouse gas emissions from marine energy from 2028, was first hammered through in a vote in April 2025 before its opponents successfully prevented its adoption last October by winning a separate vote to delay the negotiation by a year.
The UN agency is holding the 84th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee April 27-May 1, during which member states will have further talks over the framework as a growing number of countries are seeking to revise the previously approved text.
“The fact that they’re actually
U.S. Forces Search and Release Containership Suspected of Violating Blockade on Iran
forces board the M/V Blue Star III suspected of breaching the U.S. maritime blockade on Iran, April 28, 2026. Forces Search and Release Containership Suspected of Violating Blockade on Iran
Mike Schuler
Total Views: 0
April 28, 2026
U.S.
Hanwha Ocean beats Q1 forecasts on LNG-led profits
Hanwha Ocean beats Q1 forecasts on LNG-led profits
in
Shipbuilding News
29/04/2026
Hanwha Ocean posted a first-quarter earnings surprise, driven by a high-margin shipbuilding portfolio centered on liquefied natural gas carriers, as demand for alternative fuels strengthened amid Middle East-driven energy volatility.
According to the company’s earnings call Monday, operating profit for the January-March period rose 70.6 percent on-year to 441.1 billion won ($300 million), while revenue edged up 2.1 percent to 3.21 trillion won.
The “Lebretha,” the 200th LNG carrier constructed by Hanwha Ocean for SK Shipping (Hanwha Ocean) The “Lebretha,” the 200th LNG carrier constructed by Hanwha Ocean for SK Shipping (Hanwha Ocean)
Hanwha Ocean posted a first-quarter earnings surprise, driven by a high-margin shipbuilding portfolio centered on liquefied natural gas carriers, as demand for alternative fuels strengthened amid Middle East-driven energy volatility.
According to the company’s earnings call