Foreign-flagged tanker Skylight after an Iranian strike earlier this month (Omani social media)

Trump Urges Foreign Ships to Resume Oil Deliveries to Asian Markets

Switch to Digital Speeds Up Certification for Commercial Divers

Published Mar 9, 2026 10:17 PM by Pat Zeitler

Commercial divers have begun 2026 with an exciting new system for certification. While many of the requirements remain the same, the real upgrade is in digital verification and approval time, which can now be measured in days. This approach is a light speed advancement in efficiency from the previous system in which the credentials of a diver were manually verified, sometimes taking up to 60 days. To keep this all in perspective, the USCG recommends that mariners start their license...

Russia Moves to Capitalize on Energy Market Turmoil From Iran Conflict

Published Mar 9, 2026 10:17 PM by The Maritime Executive

Russia stands well-positioned to take advantage of spiking oil prices and turmoil in the energy markets, both on its short-term revenue and its long-term strategy. On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that Russia stands ready to aid European customers with supplies of sanctioned oil and gas, so long as Europe's governments do not put any political strings on the arrangement. "If European companies and European buyers suddenly decide to reorient themselves and provide us with long-term, sustainable cooperation, free...

A small craft burns after being hit by a missile strike in the Eastern Pacific (Southern Command)

U.S. Strikes Suspected Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing Six

Published Mar 9, 2026 8:55 PM by The Maritime Executive

U.S. Southern Command has conducted another strike on a suspected smuggling boat in the Eastern Pacific, destroying the vessel and killing six male suspects, the command announced Sunday. The strike was the 45th lethal attack on a suspected drug smuggling boat since September. To date, the campaign has resulted in at least 157 fatalities, according to the New York Times, plus an unknown quantity of drugs destroyed. The Trump administration claims that the strikes (and a ramp-up in nonlethal Coast...

Report: Saudi Aramco Shuts Down Two Supergiant Offshore Oil Fields

Published Mar 9, 2026 8:46 PM by The Maritime Executive

Saudi Arabia has joined Kuwait and Iraq in beginning the process of drawing down oil production, a response to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a shortage of storage options. The Wall Street Journal has confirmed that Saudi Aramco has shut down the Safaniya and Zuluf fields, taking two million barrels per day of production offline. Safaniya is the world's largest offshore oil field, containing more than 30 billion barrels of oil in proven reserves, and Saudi Aramco...

Shipping

False AIS signals purporting to show traffic to and from the Strait of Hormuz, March 9. Real traffic could resume soon, under the right conditions (MarineTraffic)

Op-Ed: End in Sight for the Strait of Hormuz Blockade

One doesn’t want to sound too sharp and all-knowing, nor does one want to telegraph to the enemy any warning on which he can act. But after ten days of war, the shape of the end-game is beginning to take shape, even if both Israel and the United States (collectively the alliance) have said that a conclusion of the war is not yet imminent. Even if the task may not yet be complete, the alliance has the wherewithal to complete...

Tugs & Salvage

U.S. Strikes Suspected Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing Six

Government

Pakistan Begins Escorting Shipping as Fuel Austerity Measures are Enacted

Pakistan became the first nation outside the Arabian Gulf region to announce sweeping austerity measures due to the skyrocketing price of oil while also announcing it is escorting merchant ships. In a televised speech, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, said the country faces difficult decisions just a day after the finance ministry had said its petroleum supplies remained at “comfortable levels.” The Pakistan Navy launched a security mission named Operation Muhafiz-ul-Bahr (Protector of the Seas) and released photos...

Corporate News

Kongsberg Maritime, Seadrill, and Hanwha Drilling Forge Alliance

[By: Kongsberg Maritime] This collaboration represents a shared commitment to defining a global operating model for the future of DP operations for the industry. The initiative will develop the technical and regulatory foundations required for the safe adoption of remote DP and establish a new industry standard. By combining Kongsberg Maritime’s automation and communications technologies with the operational expertise of Seadrill and Hanwha Drilling, the partnership will create centralised, repeatable processes that ultimately reduce cognitive load on rig crews, improve...

Cruise Ships

Norwegian Takes Delivery on New Cruise Ship in Long-Term Growth Plan

Fincantieri and Norwegian Cruise Line celebrated the delivery of the Norwegian Luna, the second ship in the company’s Prima Plus class and the midpoint of a six-ship order, which will later be followed by five even larger cruise ships. The new ship, a sister to the Norwegian Aqua introduced in 2025, seeks to expand on the brand’s renewed emphasis on choice and flexibility while expanding its appeal to families. At 156,300 gross tons, the Norwegian Luna is, however, more in...

Ports

The operator of the port of Piraeus is majority-owned by China COSCO (Apaleutos25 / CC BY SA 4.0)

China Splits Port Investments Between High- and Low-Income Countries

The protracted port dispute in Panama involving the Chinese operator CK Hutchison has revealed how strategic harbors could act as a flashpoint in global power competition. In a world where geopolitical tensions continue to rise, control over critical ports is being seen as a means to assert sea power - particularly when it comes to Chinese control. Last week, AidData, a research lab at the College of William and Mary, released a new dataset capturing the unprecedented rise of Chinese...

Shipping

Op-Ed: End in Sight for the Strait of Hormuz Blockade

Tugs & Salvage

U.S. Strikes Suspected Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing Six

Government

Pakistan Begins Escorting Shipping as Fuel Austerity Measures are Enacted

Corporate News

Kongsberg Maritime, Seadrill, and Hanwha Drilling Forge Alliance

Cruise Ships

Norwegian Takes Delivery on New Cruise Ship in Long-Term Growth Plan

Ports

China Splits Port Investments Between High- and Low-Income Countries

Offshore

Report: Saudi Aramco Shuts Down Two Supergiant Offshore Oil Fields

Shipbuilding

Third US Training Ship State of Maine Delivered to MARAD

The third newly built U.S. training ship for the merchant marine, the State of Maine, was handed over to TOTE Services and delivered to the U.S. Maritime Administration. It will be the fifth training vessel, and the first purpose-built vessel, to be operated by the Maine Maritime Academy, located in Castine, Maine. The handover to the U.S. government took place at the Hanwha Philly Shipyard, and the vessel is scheduled to depart for Maine in the coming days. Once it...

Environment

Study: Ocean Warming Puts "Constant Negative Pressure" on Fish Populations

A new meta-study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution suggests that ocean warming has an outsize impact on the total amount of fish in the water, enough to have major implications for global fisheries. The study, led by researchers at Spain's Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, looked at hundreds of thousands of studies of fish populations in the Northern Hemisphere over a period of nearly 30 years, spanning 1993-2021. The vast data set covered more than 1,500 fish species and...

Business

Building Resilient, Low-Carbon Supply Chains With ITS

Sustainability and resilience in shipping are not the result of a single decision. They come from daily practice, informed choices and the systems that help people make them. Other transport sectors already use connected digital networks to support safe and efficient movement. Maritime has begun to digitalise, but it has not yet built the joined up systems that allow data, infrastructure and operations to work together. Without that connection, the industry struggles to respond to growing pressure. Ports and shipping...

Maritime Industry Conferences and Events

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Trump Urges Foreign Ships to Resume Oil Deliveries to Asian Markets

Switch to Digital Speeds Up Certification for Commercial Divers

Russia Moves to Capitalize on Energy Market Turmoil From Iran Conflict

U.S. Strikes Suspected Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing Six

Report: Saudi Aramco Shuts Down Two Supergiant Offshore Oil Fields

Op-Ed: End in Sight for the Strait of Hormuz Blockade

U.S. Strikes Suspected Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing Six

Pakistan Begins Escorting Shipping as Fuel Austerity Measures are Enacted

Kongsberg Maritime, Seadrill, and Hanwha Drilling Forge Alliance

Norwegian Takes Delivery on New Cruise Ship in Long-Term Growth Plan

China Splits Port Investments Between High- and Low-Income Countries

Collaborative Delivery Models Reshape Port Infrastructure Development

IMO Approved Echosounder and Speed Log System With a Single Sensor

Hamburg Maritime Forum 2026: An Ambitious Landmark Edition

Op-Ed: End in Sight for the Strait of Hormuz Blockade

U.S. Strikes Suspected Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing Six

Pakistan Begins Escorting Shipping as Fuel Austerity Measures are Enacted

Kongsberg Maritime, Seadrill, and Hanwha Drilling Forge Alliance

Norwegian Takes Delivery on New Cruise Ship in Long-Term Growth Plan

China Splits Port Investments Between High- and Low-Income Countries

Report: Saudi Aramco Shuts Down Two Supergiant Offshore Oil Fields

Third US Training Ship State of Maine Delivered to MARAD

Study: Ocean Warming Puts "Constant Negative Pressure" on Fish Populations

Building Resilient, Low-Carbon Supply Chains With ITS

Maritime Industry Conferences and Events

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Maritime Industry Conferences and Events