1. Bengal Tiger Line boss Bill Smart retires. Singapore’s Bengal Tiger Line (BTL) has announced that industry veteran Bill Smart is retiring as the container feeder operator’s chief executive.
Smart will step back at the end of March after 35 years with the company but continue on BTL’s board of directors.
https://splash247.com/bengal-tiger-line-boss-bill-smart-retires/
2. Peter Döhle contracts up to five boxships at GSI. Germany’s Peter Döhle Schiffahrts has added to its boxship orderbook with up to five 8,400 teu newbuilds in China.
Shipbuilding sources say the Hamburg-based boxship and bulker owner and operator has contracted three firm and two optional vessels at CSSC Guangzhou Shipyard International (GSI), paying between $120m and $125m per vessel.
https://splash247.com/peter-dohle-contracts-up-to-five-boxsips-at-gsi/
3. New Jersey Cancels Fourth Offshore Wind Solicitation as Shell Exits Atlantic Shores Project. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has canceled its fourth offshore wind solicitation amid significant market challenges and Shell’s withdrawal from the Atlantic Shores project.
https://gcaptain.com/new-jersey-cancels-fourth-offshore-wind-solicitation-as-shell-exits-atlantic-shores-project/
4. Alternative-Fueled Vessel Orders Show Strong Momentum in Maritime Industry, DNV Reports. The maritime industry continues its steady shift toward alternative fuels, with 12 new orders for alternative-fuelled vessels placed in January 2025, all in the container segment, according to DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insight (AFI) platform.
https://gcaptain.com/alternative-fueled-vessel-orders-show-strong-momentum-in-maritime-industry-dnv-reports/
5. Sweden Says Ship Broke Baltic Sea Cable by Accident. The cargo ship Vezhen did damage a subsea cable linking Sweden and Latvia last month but it was an accident, not sabotage, a Swedish prosecutor said on Monday, adding that the Maltese-flagged vessel had been released.
The incident took place on Jan. 26 and was one of several in recent months, triggered a hunt for vessels suspected of involvement.
https://gcaptain.com/sweden-says-ship-broke-baltic-sea-cable-by-accident/
6. Greek shipping magnates top tanker newbuild order rankings in 2024. Veson Nautical says Greece accounted for over a quarter of all orders in record year for sector
A record number of new tankers were ordered in 2024 with 435 orders placed across the year, an increase of around 31% year-on-year according to according to Veson Nautical’s ‘2024 End- Of-Year-Report’.
https://cyprusshippingnews.com/2025/02/04/greek-shipping-magnates-top-tanker-newbuild-order-rankings-in-2024/
7. Global Shipping Rates plunge 18% in three weeks. Global shipping rates have plummeted by more than 18 percent since the beginning of the year. Experts in the shipping industry attribute the sharp decline to factors including U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policies and an oversupply of global container ships. They predict shipping rates could drop by more than half this year.
https://cyprusshippingnews.com/2025/02/04/global-shipping-rates-plunge-18-in-three-weeks/
8. New Women in Transport Network points to variety of economic, environmental, financial and social gains resulting from more gender equality in the sector. A new report published today calls for a greater focus on women’s employment in transport and proposes actionable steps to address barriers to women’s education, employment, and promotion in the sector.
https://cyprusshippingnews.com/2025/02/04/new-women-in-transport-network-points-to-variety-of-economic-environmental-financial-and-social-gains-resulting-from-more-gender-equality-in-the-sector/
9. Maersk launch its new ocean network. Maersk A/S , an entity under A.P. Moller – Maersk, and Hapag-Lloyd launch their operational collaboration Gemini Cooperation. The ambition is to deliver a flexible and interconnected ocean network with industry-leading schedule reliability above 90 percent once fully phased in.
https://cyprusshippingnews.com/2025/02/04/maersk-launch-its-new-ocean-network/
10. AD Ports Group starts Port and Logistics operations in Luanda, Angola. AD Ports Group, a leading facilitator of global trade, logistics and industry began its long-term management and development of a major multipurpose terminal and an associated logistics business with local partners in Luanda, Angola, driving forward its expansion in sub-Saharan Africa.
https://cyprusshippingnews.com/2025/02/04/ad-ports-group-starts-port-and-logistics-operations-in-luanda-angola/