• 2012 July 6 18:15

    S.Korea ship classifier defends Iran marine work

    A South Korean ship classification society on Thursday sidestepped calls from a U.S. lobby group to halt its verification work in Iran, saying it was concerned that vessel safety and marine environment protection could be compromised by political issues, Reuters reports.

    Without verification from such bodies, ships are unable to call at international ports.

    U.S. group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) last week urged the Korean Register of Shipping (KR) to stop providing classification and certification services to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), its front companies and the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC).

    It had described KR's approach as "irresponsible."

    A targeted campaign by UANI, which includes former U.S. ambassadors on its board and is funded by private donations, has led Germany's Germanischer Lloyd and France's Bureau Veritas to drop their classification cover for Iranian shipping firms.

    "KR is concerned that there is a potential for ship safety and the protection of the marine environment to be compromised by political issues," a spokesman said when asked about services it provided for Iranian vessels.

    "However, KR is taking this situation extremely seriously and is considering all the available alternatives. It will continue, at all times, to comply with national and international regulations."

    Classification societies are hired by ship owners to regularly check that vessels, from their hull and propulsion systems to the machinery and appliances, meet international safety standards. Under international conventions, a classification is required for a ship to dock at major ports.

    "The only responsible course for KR is to stop enabling the regime to circumvent U.S. and EU sanctions at this critical time," a UANI spokesman said in response on Thursday.

    Tehran has faced a series of blows in recent weeks with the exodus of other top classifiers such as Britain's Lloyd's Register and Norway's Det Norske Veritas, which were all part of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), which classes more than 90 percent of the world's merchant fleet.

    There are more than 50 agencies that classify vessels, but not all are members of the IACS, which numbers 13 societies including KR.

    Japan and South Korea, among Iran's top oil buyers, have halted all Iranian imports this month due to sanctions imposed by Brussels on Sunday that aim to cut Tehran's oil revenues and force it to curb its disputed nuclear programme.

    As western powers pile pressure on the Islamic Republic, firms that still trade with Iran are in the line of fire.

    "Maritime safety and environmental stewardship clearly have the potential to fall victim to politics here," another IACS member said.

    "When you prevent the world's top class societies from technically supporting Iranian beneficially owned ships - pushing them into the hands of class and insurance organisations with fewer technical and financial resources - it doesn't stop them from trading. It just compromises their ability to trade responsibly."

    IRISL has been on a Western blacklist for a number of years, while NITC faces potential sanctions after the U.S. Senate passed a bill in May that aims to target Iran's biggest tanker operator.

    The spokesman with UANI, which seeks to stop Iran's nuclear ambitions, said EU and U.S. sanctions "will work best when non-Western classification societies join the cause instead of providing the regime with loopholes".

    "It is rather disingenuous to portray business with Iran as an exercise in public safety, given how many companies and individuals stand to profit from it," the UANI spokesman said.

    "It is impossible for a shipping company to safely do business with Iran, given the regime's well known history of deception, falsified cargoes, and shipments to and from terrorists."


2024 September 26

18:03 Eni publishes its first Methane Report
17:35 Port of Barcelona container traffic increases by 22% in the first 8 months of the year
17:34 MABUX: Bunker price trends in the world's four largest hubs, Sept 23-27
17:23 TECO 2030 announces strategic shift to global fuel cell technology provider
17:14 CMB.TECH signs strategic agreement with Beihai Shipbuilding
16:45 Ports of Hamburg, Busan and Ulsan sign a joint declaration of intent
16:24 Damen to deliver two fully electric ferries to City of Toronto
15:59 Shell and TenneT sign an agreement for the large-scale hydrogen plant on the high-voltage grid in the Port of Rotterdam
15:24 Northern Lights is ready to receive CO2
14:41 MSC amplifies UN global compact call for IMO fit-for-purpose regulatory framework to accelerate use of net-zero fuels
14:23 MOL introduces an application for performance degradation tracking 'Fouling Analysis'
13:40 MAN PrimeServ signs cooperation agreement with Latsco Marine Management
13:13 Port of Oakland container volume up 5.4% in Aug 2024
12:48 H-LINE Shipping takes delivery of a 7,000 CEU LNG dual-fuel PCTC
12:08 Yangzijiang Shipbuilding delivers first batch of eco-friendly dual-fuel methanol containerships to X-Press Feeders
11:54 Jawar Al Khaleej L.L.C. takes delivery of three Damen Search and Rescue vessels
11:20 Technip Energies and JGC Corporation awarded FEED contract by ExxonMobil for the Rovuma LNG project in Mozambique
10:41 Panama Canal launches revamped maritime services tariffs section
10:22 ADSB delivers pair of RAmparts 2800-SD vessels to ADNOC
09:59 MITSUI OCEAN CRUISES welcomes new ship MITSUI OCEAN FUJI in handover ceremony with Seabourn Cruise Line

2024 September 25

18:00 Ingalls Shipbuilding receives a $9.6 bln contract to procure multiple ships, including three San Antonio-class amphibious assault ships
17:38 The Port of Oslo has officially opened its new shore power plant for cruise ships
17:11 John T Essberger orders two 13,000 dwt, ice class 1A chemical tankers from Nantong Rainbow Offshore & Engineering Equipment
16:45 Ningbo-Zhoushan port to add 2 million TEU in container capacity
16:13 Hanwha Ocean drops talks to acquire Australian shipbuilder Austal
15:36 Hyundai Glovis, China's BYD sign MOU for logistics partnership
15:24 Wallenius Marine christens vessel Future Way in German port of Emden
14:58 Asyad Group, OQ Alternative Energy, and Sumitomo Corporation announced a joint study agreement to explore the potential of Oman as a global low-carbon fuel bunkering hub
13:50 CLdN places order for 10 newbuild container carriers
13:22 Purus orders two 45,000 cbm dual fuel ammonia-ready medium-sized gas carriers from Hyundai Mipo Dockyard
12:47 HD Korea Shipbuilding wins 403.9 bln won order for 6 container ships
12:05 Victoria International Container Terminal hits 5 million TEUs
11:43 Damen signs with WUZ Port and Maritime for ASD Tug 2111
11:20 Fincantieri starts works on the first next-generation Offshore Patrol Vessel for the Italian Navy
10:43 Lloyd's Register, RINA, DNV, Bureau Veritas and ABS join forces to form Yacht Safety and Environmental Consortium
10:25 Fincantieri, Vard and Sandock Austral Shipyards form collaboration centred around Afrika Offshore Patrol Vessel
09:48 GTT receives an order from HD Hyundai Samho Co. for the tank design of four new LNG carriers

2024 September 24

18:00 PowerCell signs SEK 165m order for fuel cell systems with leading Italian marine OEM manufacturer
17:01 TankMatch and Evos team up to launch green methanol bunkering solutions
16:45 MOL announces naming ceremony for new LNG-fuel car carrier “CELESTE ACE”
16:24 Navig8 takes delivery of fourth and fifth MR newbuild vessels from New Times Shipbuilding
15:53 Canadian Coastguard orders MAN 32/44CR propulsion packages for two Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships
15:23 AD Ports records a 30 percent increase in vehicle volumes through Autoterminal Khalifa Port in H1 2024
14:43 HELCOM launches shipping data platform
14:23 The Port of Tallinn signs MoU with the U.S. company Protio for the production of e-fuels at Muuga Harbour
13:42 TotalEnergies to supply 200,000 tons per year of LNG to HD Hyundai Chemical until 2033
13:21 Shenzhen and Long Beach ports sign green framework
12:50 LR and Samsung Heavy Industries sign JDP for AiP for an ammonia-fuelled 9,300 TEU container vessel
12:11 Wartsila to future-proof container vessels with CCS-Ready scrubber technology
11:40 Lloyd's Register has granted Samsung Heavy Industries AiP for the construction of a next-generation 174,000 cubic metre LNG carrier
11:02 Hanwha Ocean partners with ABS to co-develop offshore solutions
10:41 Royal Huisman commissions world’s largest sportfish yacht 'Special One'
10:15 ABS approves new autonomous technologies from HD Hyundai for ammonia-fueled ships
09:46 HD Hyundai to supply shaft generator for Middle Eastern firm

2024 September 23

18:07 TechnipFMC awarded subsea contracts by Petrobras for Brazil’s pre-salt fields
17:26 South Korean ministry starts testing container ship equipped with autonomous navigation system
17:06 Spliethoff Group acquires majority interest in ForestWave
16:42 Hanwha Power Systems signs an agreement with GasLog for the retrofitting of ammonia gas turbines for eco-friendly fuel
16:19 McDermott and BW Offshore announce collaboration to enable offshore blue ammonia production
15:56 Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and Bureau Veritas collaborate on advanced 3D model-based classification project
15:46 Kawasaki and CB&I sign an agreement for promoting commercial-use liquefied hydrogen supply chain
13:30 Türkiye welcomes the arrival of its first-ever FPSO vessel
12:58 Fujian Shipping Group signs contract for the construction of "2+2" 82,000-ton dual-fuel bulk carriers
11:24 CMA CGM to acquire a c.48% stake in Santos Brasil
10:43 ABS approves new FLNG design from Wison
10:23 Methane Abatement Group adds BP, CMA CGM and GT
09:52 Lloyd’s Register awards HD Hyundai Mipo AiP for 20,000 cbm LCO₂ carrier

2024 September 22

16:03 Container shipping costs to U.S. east coast, Europe up for 4th month
15:10 GRSE secures $54 million German order for four additional multi-purpose cargo ships
14:12 Water recycling project launched by industrial enterprises in Shanghai