Khorramshahr-4 ballistic missile (Fars News / CC BY SA 4.0)

Iranians Feint an Attack on Diego Garcia

Analysis: Foreign-Flag Waiver Doesn't Put Jones Act Fleet at Risk

Published Mar 22, 2026 2:05 PM by Erik Broekhuizen / Poten & Partners

On March 18, 2026, the Trump administration announced the approval of a 60-day Jones Act waiver to allow foreign-flagged ship to move cargoes between U.S. ports. The Jones Act (official name: Merchant Marine Act of 1920), is a federal statute that requires the use of U.S.-flagged, U.S.-built, U.S.-owned (at least 75%) and U.S.-operated (at least 75% crewed by U.S. citizens) vessels to move any cargo between U.S. ports. The White House referenced the need to "ensure that U.S. airfields and...

Chouest Expands in the U.S. Gulf With Acquisition of Diving Company CEES

Published Mar 22, 2026 2:05 PM by Pat Zeitler

Champagne Energy and Environmental Solutions (CEES) has joined Edison Chouest Offshore. The acquisition, announced on March 19, will give Chouest Group the tools to provide turn-key offshore decommissioning services. CEES was founded by Robbie Champagne in 2008 as C-Dive LLC. Based out of Houma, Louisiana, Robbie leveraged his experience, industry contact sand his "sixth sense" for the business to accelerate his company’s growth during a time when diving hegemons like Caldive, Global Industrial Solutions LLC and Epic Divers and Marine...

Op-Ed: Arctic Metagaz Explosion Shows That LNG Carriers Have Risks

Published Mar 21, 2026 10:51 PM by Elissama Menezes, Andrew Dumbrille and Dr. Sian Prior

A recent explosive event involving a liquified natural gas (LNG) carrier laden with Russian Arctic gas should serve as a wake up call. The Arctic Metagaz, a 23 year old LNG carrier reportedly linked to Russia’s so-called "dark fleet," exploded and caught fire in the Mediterranean Sea in early March while en route to Port Said. Russia's foreign ministry claims that the explosion was caused by a Ukrainian drone strike, but Kyiv has not claimed responsibility. Fortunately, the crew escaped...

A still from an Israeli drone video of the attack on IRINS Deylaman off Bandar Anzali, March 18 (Israel MoD)

Israel Protects Azerbaijan With Strike on Iran's Caspian Fleet

Published Mar 21, 2026 7:42 PM by The Maritime Executive

Israel's strike on Iranian naval assets in the Caspian Sea, which took place on the evening of March 18, were the first attacks on the Iranian Navy's Northern Fleet, but unusual in one other regard: on the surface, the assets destroyed did not immediately threaten Israel, which is normally a target qualification requirement. Although Israel did not publish the names of the vessels destroyed either in Bandar Anzali harbor or at sea, video of the attack is of sufficient quality...

Shipping

Securing the Strait: The Need to Reclaim the Disputed Islands

Predictably, given that their control over the Strait of Hormuz is their strongest negotiating card, the Iranian regime has ignored President Donald Trump's demand that they reopen the waterway to international traffic. President Trump says that constructive talks are now underway with Iran, something that Iran denies, although President Trump has followed up by suspending his threat to destroy Iran's power infrastructure. Any such attempt would no doubt in turn bring an Iranian response in kind, albeit with the power...

Tugs & Salvage

Iranians Feint an Attack on Diego Garcia

Although the incident has been accompanied by much disinformation and confusion, it is evident that on or before March 20, Iran's IRGC attempted to fire two ballistic missiles at the US Naval Support Facility on the island of Diego Garcia in the British Indian Ocean Territory. US sources reported that one missile had been shot down by an SM-3 missile, probably launched from an Arleigh Burke destroyer, and that the second "broke up in flight." Having reached a range of...

Government

Little Change at Strait of Hormuz After Trump's 48-Hour Threat

President Donald Trump has given the Iranian government until Monday evening to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which he has previously said that the U.S. does not need. If Iran does not reopen the strait, Trump said, the U.S. will "obliterate" Iran's electrical power plants. For its part, Iran claims that the strait is already open - for the right ships. A trickle of tonnage is getting past, according to tracking services, most of it using an Iranian-controlled lane past...

Corporate News

Avondale Global Gateway Named Recipient of Louisiana FastSites Investment

Avondale Global Gateway (AGG), in partnership with JEDCO, announced it has been selected as an inaugural recipient of an investment through Louisiana Economic Development’s FastSites program, a statewide initiative that accelerates site readiness and positions Louisiana to compete for transformative industrial projects. AGG participated in the program’s official launch in Baton Rouge, where CEO Adam Anderson was invited to speak alongside state leaders, highlighting the site’s strategic importance to Louisiana’s economy. “Public investments that improve the readiness of maritime and...

Cruise Ships

China Floats Second Cruise Ship and Orders Ships for International Market

China marked the next milestone in its efforts at expanding the domestic cruise industry with the float-out of its second large domestically built cruise ship. Built for China’s Adora Cruises, the ship will enter service this year, and the company reported it intends to order two more cruise ships and take an option for a third newbuild. The second cruise ship, named Adora Flower City, is an enlarged version of the first domestically built ship, which was based on a...

Ports

Ukraine Attacks Russia’s Baltic Oil Terminals and Starts Fire at Primorsk

Ukrainian and Russian officials are both acknowledging a large attack overnight from March 22 to March 23, focusing on Russia’s oil infrastructure on the Baltic. It comes after Ukraine protested the Trump administration’s waiver of Russian oil sanctions as Ukraine urged Europe to keep the pressure up on Russia. Operations at both the ports of Primorsky and Ust-Luga were reportedly suspended as the barrage unfolded. The governor for the Leningrad region, Alexander DroZdenko claimed that more than 70 aerial targets...

Shipping

Securing the Strait: The Need to Reclaim the Disputed Islands

Tugs & Salvage

Iranians Feint an Attack on Diego Garcia

Government

Little Change at Strait of Hormuz After Trump's 48-Hour Threat

Corporate News

Avondale Global Gateway Named Recipient of Louisiana FastSites Investment

Cruise Ships

China Floats Second Cruise Ship and Orders Ships for International Market

Ports

Ukraine Attacks Russia’s Baltic Oil Terminals and Starts Fire at Primorsk

Offshore

Chouest Expands in the U.S. Gulf With Acquisition of Diving Company CEES

Shipbuilding

Fincantieri Floats for Viking "First Hydrogen-Powered Cruise Ship"

Fincantieri marked another milestone in cruise ship development as it floated out the Viking Libra (54,300 gross tons), which is being billed as the “world’s first hydrogen-powered cruise ship.” It advanced the ambitions for zero-emission shipping and the long-held vision of Viking CEO Torstein Hagen to produce a hydrogen-powered ship. According to the companies, the project has been developed with strong attention to environmental aspects to ensure the ship will be capable of navigating and operating with zero emissions, allowing...

Environment

Op-Ed: Ships Should Meet the Polar Code Before Entering Canadian Arctic

The United Nations International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted the Polar Code in November 2014 to reduce loss of life at sea caused by inadequate preparedness for operations in polar regions, which are more isolated and challenging than lower-latitude waters. The Code entered into force on January 1, 2017 and initially applied to seagoing vessels of 500 gross tonnage (GT) and above, as well as certain vessel classes such as cruise ships. On January 1, 2026, the IMO expanded the categories...

Business

Analysis: Foreign-Flag Waiver Doesn't Put Jones Act Fleet at Risk

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Iranians Feint an Attack on Diego Garcia

Analysis: Foreign-Flag Waiver Doesn't Put Jones Act Fleet at Risk

Chouest Expands in the U.S. Gulf With Acquisition of Diving Company CEES

Op-Ed: Arctic Metagaz Explosion Shows That LNG Carriers Have Risks

Israel Protects Azerbaijan With Strike on Iran's Caspian Fleet

Securing the Strait: The Need to Reclaim the Disputed Islands

Iranians Feint an Attack on Diego Garcia

Little Change at Strait of Hormuz After Trump's 48-Hour Threat

Avondale Global Gateway Named Recipient of Louisiana FastSites Investment

China Floats Second Cruise Ship and Orders Ships for International Market

Ukraine Attacks Russia’s Baltic Oil Terminals and Starts Fire at Primorsk

Port Everglades: A Diversified Cargo Gateway Built for Performance

One Net Unifies Four Maritime Tech Brands Under One Umbrella

Could Earlier Warning Systems be the Answer to Risk Reduction in Terminals?

Securing the Strait: The Need to Reclaim the Disputed Islands

Iranians Feint an Attack on Diego Garcia

Little Change at Strait of Hormuz After Trump's 48-Hour Threat

Avondale Global Gateway Named Recipient of Louisiana FastSites Investment

China Floats Second Cruise Ship and Orders Ships for International Market

Ukraine Attacks Russia’s Baltic Oil Terminals and Starts Fire at Primorsk

Chouest Expands in the U.S. Gulf With Acquisition of Diving Company CEES

Fincantieri Floats for Viking "First Hydrogen-Powered Cruise Ship"

Op-Ed: Ships Should Meet the Polar Code Before Entering Canadian Arctic

Analysis: Foreign-Flag Waiver Doesn't Put Jones Act Fleet at Risk

Maritime Industry Conferences and Events

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