Korean Crude Tanker Uses Red Sea Detour Amid Risks
Korean Crude Tanker Uses Red Sea Detour Amid Risks
in
International Shipping News
20/04/2026
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on April 17 that a Korean vessel loaded with crude oil from Yanbu Port, Saudi Arabia, has safely exited the Red Sea, marking the first instance of crude oil being transported to the country through the Red Sea as a detour route since the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
The Red Sea is an area of operation for Yemen’s Houthi rebels, a group backed by Iran, and the Ministry has been advising vessels to refrain from navigating the region, where approximately 79 attacks on vessels have occurred since the Israel-Hamas armed conflict in October 2023.
During the ‘Report on the Results of Measures Regarding Port Entry via the Hormuz Detour Route’ at the 14th Cabinet Meeting, which also served as the 4th Emergency Economic Review Meeting on the 6th, a plan was discussed to secure the crude oil supply by closely monitoring the safety of our vessels navigati
Iran Considers US Talks in Pakistan With Blockade Still Unresolved
Tankers are seen off the coast of the Fujairah, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, March 3, 2026. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky
Iran Considers US Talks in Pakistan With Blockade Still Unresolved
Reuters
Total Views: 0
April 20, 2026
DUBAI/WASHINGTON, April 20 (Reuters) – Iran is considering attending peace talks with the United States in Pakistan, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday, following moves by Islamabad to end a U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports, a major hurdle for Iran to rejoin peace efforts.
However, the official stressed that no decision had been made.
Adding to the uncertainty, a source told Reuters that Vice President JD Vance was still in the U.S., denying reports that he was already on his way to Pakistan’s capital Islamabad for talks.
With a two-week ceasefire set to expire, the senior Iranian official said Tehran was “positively reviewing” its participation but no final decision had be
EU to Widen Iran Sanctions to Those Who Block Hormuz
Luojiashan tanker sits anchored in Muscat, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 7, 2026. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
EU to Widen Iran Sanctions to Those Who Block Hormuz
Reuters
Total Views: 0
April 20, 2026
BRUSSELS/PARIS, April 20 (Reuters) – The European Union will expand the criteria of its Iran sanctions to include those responsible for blocking the
Strait of Hormuz
, which has been largely shut for nearly two months upending global energy and commodities markets, two EU diplomats said.
Tehran effectively closed the strait after U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28, cutting off roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.
More than a dozen tankers sailed through Hormuz after Iran briefly declared it open on Friday, but the ceasefire agreement was thrown into
jeopardy
after the United States seized an Iranian cargo ship as it maintained its own military blockade of Iranian po
Industry Floods Into Autonomous Vessel Race as U.S. Navy Opens MUSV Marketplace
Magnet Defense’s flagship MUSV, the M48, has a range of 17,000 nautical miles, making it the longest range of any MUSV at sea today. Image courtesy Hanwha Defense/Magnet Defense
Industry Floods Into Autonomous Vessel Race as U.S. Navy Opens MUSV Marketplace
Mike Schuler
Total Views: 4
April 20, 2026
A wave of announcements from defense technology firms, shipbuilders, and autonomy specialists is rapidly transforming the U.S.
Search Intensifies After Cargo Ship Mariana Found Overturned Near Saipan
Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane crew assigned to Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point flies over an overturned vessel offshore Saipan, April 18, 2026. The Coast Guard and partners are searching for a 145-foot missing vessel, the Mariana, that experienced an engine failure April 15, 2026. Coast Guard photo Courtesy Air Station Barbers Point)
Search Intensifies After Cargo Ship Mariana Found Overturned Near Saipan
Mike Schuler
Total Views: 0
April 20, 2026
The U.S.
IMO approves new guidelines on ship registration: IMO Legal Committee approves first international guidelines to deter maritime fraud and misuse of flags
IMO approves new guidelines on ship registration: IMO Legal Committee approves first international guidelines to deter maritime fraud and misuse of flags
in
International Shipping News
21/04/2026
The International Maritime Organization’s Legal Committee has approved a new set of guidelines to improve transparency and due diligence in ship registration, as well as prevent fraudulent registrations and misuse of flags.
The guidelines help to close a key regulatory gap for the maritime industry, given there is currently no binding international framework to regulate the registration of ships.
The newly approved Guidelines will assist new and existing flag State ship registries by providing practical measures to strengthen verification and due diligence, ensure accurate ownership records, and improve oversight of registration procedures.
Welcome step
Closing the 113th session of the Legal Committee held in London (13-17 April), IMO Secretary-General Mr. Arsenio Dominguez said:
“This is a we
Marine Fuel Availability: FONAR Friend?
Marine Fuel Availability: FONAR Friend?
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Marine Insurance P&I Club News
21/04/2026
E
xecutive Summary
The continuing fragility of the security situation in the Middle East has materially disrupted global energy and marine fuel supply chains. As a vital energy corridor, disruption to the Strait of Hormuz has already resulted in vessel congestion, sharp increases in marine fuel prices, and growing concerns among Owners and Charterers regarding the physical availability of compliant marine fuels.
In this context, this article examines a number of recurring questions raised by Members since the outbreak of the Conflict, focusing on the following key operational, contractual, and regulatory risk areas:
Seaworthiness and due diligence: Where marine fuel scarcity is foreseeable, inadequate voyage planning and bunkering arrangements may expose Owners to allegations of unseaworthiness on delivery or at the commencement of a voyage.
Charterparty risk allocation: Disputes may arise as to which
Crisis in the Middle East waterway places alternative shipping fuels in sharp focus
Crisis in the Middle East waterway places alternative shipping fuels in sharp focus
in
International Shipping News
21/04/2026
T
he escalation of conflict across the Middle East and the disruption to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz have introduced a variable into the maritime energy transition that regulatory frameworks were never designed to handle: the possibility that conventional marine fuel becomes unavailable because competing domestic priorities absorb the available supply. This changes the analytical framing for clean shipping in a big way.
Until now, the investment case for alternative marine fuels has been driven by compliance – organized around the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Net-Zero Framework (NZF), and the European Union’s (EU) FuelEU Maritime regulation and emissions trading system (EU ETS) – with energy security treated as background context. The Hormuz crisis forces this to the front, opening an arguably more durable investment rationale for al
Why and how is US blockading Iranian ports in Strait of Hormuz?
Why and how is US blockading Iranian ports in Strait of Hormuz?
in
International Shipping News
21/04/2026
The US has attacked and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship trying to get past its blockade of Iran’s ports, President Trump says.
The ship, called the Touska, was intercepted in the Gulf of Oman.
Earlier this month, US forces announced they would intercept or turn back vessels travelling to or from Iran’s coast.
Washington said ships coming or going from elsewhere would be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway off Iran’s coast that Tehran effectively closed in response to US-Israeli strikes.
The US wants to restrict Tehran’s ability to profit from oil exports in an attempt to put pressure on the country.
Why did Trump decide to blockade Iranian ports?
Trump hopes to put pressure on Iran by targeting two economic drivers – the huge tolls it was demanding ships pay to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and its oil revenue.
The US president told Fox News
Shipping Industry United in Support of IMO as its Global Regulator and Successful Implementation of IMO GHG Reduction Pathway
Shipping Industry United in Support of IMO as its Global Regulator and Successful Implementation of IMO GHG Reduction Pathway
in
International Shipping News
21/04/2026
In advance of a critical meeting of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 84) this statement is made jointly on behalf of BIMCO, CLIA, ICS, INTERCARGO, INTERFERRY, INTERTANKO and WSC, representing the global commercial shipping fleet.
Following the postponement, in October 2025, of the adoption of new IMO greenhouse gas (GHG) regulations, the shipping industry highlights the vital importance of IMO Member States agreeing on a way forward.
The IMO consistently demonstrates a unique ability to deliver critical regulations for the safety and security of international shipping and protection of the marine environment.
The industry remains unified in its commitment to the value and effectiveness of the IMO as the global regulator for international shipping and remains comm