Southeast Asia News

Marilyn Hubalde still remembers the first time she heard the thunderous chop of military helicopters swooping over this northernmost outpost of the Philippines, less than 90 miles from Taiwan. It was April 2023, when Filipino and American troops descended on the cluster of 10 emerald green islands of Batanes province for amphibious warfare drills.“We were terrified,” the 65-year-old Hubalde recalled. “We thought China might attack when they learned there were military exercises in Batanes.” Hubalde’s helper…

A sanctioned liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker made a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer off the coast of Malaysia after picking up a cargo from a Russian export terminal also under Western restrictions, according to two analytics firms.The operation appears to be the first known STS transfer of sanctioned Russian LNG, despite Western efforts to curb Moscow's energy revenues over its war in Ukraine.The LNG tanker Perle, which was sanctioned by the United States in January, had been…

A Chinese container ship has completed a pioneering journey through the Arctic to a UK port, state-run news agency Xinhua reported, cutting in half the usual transit time for the electric vehicles and solar panels aboard destined for Europe.The Istanbul Bridge's maiden voyage, originally expected to take 18 days, was delayed by two days due to a storm off the coast of Norway but the ship still reached Europe earlier than the 40 to 50 days it takes freighters going through the Suez Canal or around the Cape of Good Hope.The new Northern Sea Route…

20 leading green fuel producers are calling on IMO delegates to seize a ‘once-in-a-generation’ opportunity to set shipping on a sustainable pathway.At this week’s extraordinary session, leaders will come together in London to discuss the adoption of the IMO’s Net Zero Framework (NZF) that was agreed in April earlier this year. A final vote is expected on Thursday or Friday.The companies, including European Energy, Liquid Wind, ET Fuels, HIF Global and Zero Waste, call on the IMO…

Lagersmit, a provider of advanced sealing solutions and a member of The Timken Company, and Subsea Global Solutions, a leader in underwater ship repair and marine services, announced the renewal and expansion of their long-term partnership.The collaboration strengthens both companies’ presence in Singapore and the wider Southeast Asian maritime market, ensuring shipowners, operators, and OEMs in the region benefit from reliable sealing solutions and marine services.Subsea Global…

Belgian marine contractor Jan De Nul has ordered a rock installation vessel, specifically built to strengthen the protection of offshore energy and subsea data infrastructure.The vessel, named George W. Goethals, will be the company’s largest rock installation ship to date, with a carrying capacity of 37,000 tonnes. It will be equipped with ultra-low emission technology and engines capable of running on biofuel and green methanol.According to Jan De Nul, using its flexible vertical fall pipe and an inclined fall pipe system…

As the global shipping industry grapples with a plethora of regulatory, technological and sustainability shifts, few sectors embody both the challenges and opportunities as acutely as the ferry industry.Interferry leads the charge to ensure there is balance, rationalizing legislative mandate with market, technical and economic reality. Interferry is the trade association representing the worldwide ferry sector, an at the helm is Mike Corrigan, CEO, who has spent the past several…

HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) has conducted a steel cutting ceremony for a 115,000-ton product tanker at the HD Hyundai Philippines Shipyard in Subic Bay, Philippines.The vessel is the first ship built by HD Hyundai Philippines and is the first in a series of four vessels ordered from an Asian shipping company in December last year.Last May, HD KSOE signed a lease agreement with Cerberus Capital for a portion of the Philippine shipyard site, marking the…

Cerberus Capital Management has entered a strategic partnership with HD Hyundai to launch a new maritime investment strategy, Cerberus Maritime.Cerberus Maritime is aligned with the U.S. Government’s initiative to revitalize the maritime capabilities of the United States and allied nations. The strategy aims to identify high-impact opportunities that strengthen strategic maritime infrastructure and supply chains, maritime logistics infrastructure, port modernization, and advanced maritime technologies. The strategy will have a particular focus on U.S.

The United States has everything it needs to lead in offshore carbon capture and storage (CCS), except the rules to make it happen.Nearly four years ago, Congress gave the Department of the Interior authority to oversee offshore carbon sequestration. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021 amended the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) to authorize competitive leasing and regulation of carbon dioxide injection into subsea formations on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

The First Steel Cutting ceremony took place at Saipem’s Karimun fabrication yard, marking the official start of construction activities for the Tangguh UCC project, awarded by bp Indonesia.The event was attended by representatives of the client, local and national government bodies, together with key members of Saipem’s management team gathered to celebrate this significant milestone achievement.The Tangguh UCC project, located in Papua Barat province, Indonesia, is a national strategic project that includes the development of the Ubadari gas field…

Tougher U.S. trade penalties on goods originating in one country being re-shipped from another are not expected to immediately follow new U.S. tariffs, three people in Southeast Asia with knowledge of the matter said, easing a major cause of concern.Southeast Asian countries including Vietnam and Thailand have been explicitly targeted by White House officials for their alleged role in facilitating the so-called transshipment to America of Chinese goods, which would face higher…

French shipping giant CMA CGM said on Tuesday it is interested in taking over some of CK Hutchison's ports after the Hong Kong conglomerate's exclusive talks ended with a consortium led by BlackRock this week.CK Hutchison agreed in March to sell the majority of its $22.8 billion global ports business to the consortium also including Italian billionaire Gianluigi Aponte's family-run shipping company MSC, but the exclusive talks expired on Sunday.Gaining a stake in CK Hutchison's…

Naval architecture firm MAURIC has reached a new milestone in its development plan by establishing its presence in Southeast Asia. Marin Guillo, newly appointed Business Developer for MAURIC, has taken up residence at Changi Business Park, Singapore, positioning himself closer to clients and prospects across both commercial and naval sectors. His mission encompasses developing relationships with regional shipyards and shipowners, with the objective of extendingMAURIC's reach throughout…

“During the first half of 2025, global coal shipments fell 6% y/y amid weak import demand in large markets. Cargo loadings headed to China and advanced economies slowed considerably, partly due to stronger electricity generation from renewables and to weaker steel production,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.In recent years, China has joined several of the world’s advanced economies in rapidly phasing out fossil fuels from its electricity generation, thus reducing import dependence.

SCHOTTEL GmbH announced the appointment of Holger Trecksel as Managing Director of its subsidiary SCHOTTEL Far East, effective July 1, 2025. He succeeds Joachim Schein, who has played a pivotal role in the company’s development and success over the past two decades.Holger Trecksel brings 23 years of experience in the maritime industry to his new role. Holding degrees in naval architecture and business administration, he became familiar with SCHOTTEL early in his career. Since then, he has held increasingly senior positions across at various maritime companies.

Emirates Shipping Line (ESL) enters the US market with the launch of the Sun Chief Express (SCX).The Sun Chief Express (SCX) will directly connect Seattle, WA with Ho Chi Minh, and Shekou, while also providing wider coverage of Southeast Asia via these ports. ESL will leverage its intermodal solutions within the US market, to provide inland connectivity via Seattle to locations across the US including, but not limited to Portland, OR, St. Paul, MN, Chicago, IL, Kansas City, MO, Columbus, OH and Memphis, TN.This news follows ESL's recent expansion to Mexico.

Strategic Marine has delivered TMS Tah Muang fast crew boat to Truth Maritime Services (TMS), a subsidiary of the Prima Marine Group.The latest 42-metre Generation 4 Fast Crew Boat (FCB) marks the fourth high-performance vessel delivered by Strategic Marine to TMS since 2024, following the earlier handovers of TMS Ranod, TMS Raman, and most recently, TMS Chana.Purpose-built to meet the operational needs of offshore energy clients in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, TMS Tah…

EV Maritime, New Zealand’s leading electric ferry design and technology company, announced the launch of its first fully electric passenger ferry. The new vessel will operate between downtown Auckland and the suburb of Half Moon Bay.This is the first of the EVM200 class,a series of battery-electric fast ferries built using lightweight carbon fiber. Designed for urban public transport, the EVM200 offers service speeds of up to 25 knots and a range of up to 20 miles.Developed with support from the New Zealand Government…

The world's largest car carrier making its maiden voyage is generally cause for celebration. But in the case of Chinese car manufacturer BYD and its mammoth new BYD Shenzhen -- a 16,300 dwt, 9200 CEU, LNG Dual-Fuel PCTC that measures 219.9 x 37.7m with a 9.2m draft -- the ship instead represents the flooding of a market with cheap electric vehicles (EVs).The world's largest car-carrying ship - with the equivalent of 20 football fields of vehicles - completed its maiden journey late last month to dock in Brazil's Itajai port.BYD…

MacGregor has secured a contract to supply an advanced anchor handling towing winch (AHTW) package for a series anchor handling tug supply (AHTS) vessels owned by SINOPACIFIC Engineering & Contracting (SPEC).The MacGregor AHTW package is designed to support the complex operations of SPA90 (90T BP AHTS ABS Class) AHTS vessels, ensuring precision, safety, and operational efficiency in all offshore conditions.The MacGregor scope of supply includes anchor windlass with roller chain stoppers…

India's diesel exports to Southeast Asia for May are expected to be the highest in at least four years, according to shiptrackers and three trade sources, as traders eyed higher profits in Asia and as higher freight costs deterred shipments to Europe.Increased diesel exports from India, one of the largest suppliers in the region, is cooling spot premiums for the fuel in Asia and pressuring derivatives markets, while tightening the fuel's availability in Europe and supporting prices there.Shipments on the India-Southeast Asia route climbed to 600…

The latest edition of the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Investment report demonstrates how the global energy scene has changed from when the first edition of the report in 2015 showed energy investment in China just edging ahead of that of the United States.Today, China is by far the world’s largest overall energy investor, spending twice as much on energy as the European Union – and almost as much as the EU and United States combined.China’s share of global clean energy investment has risen from a quarter 10 years ago to almost one-third today.