Turkish-Owned RoPax on Fire After Russian Attack on Odesa Region

Ukraine Expands Caspian Sea Strikes Hitting Russian Vessels Carrying Arms

Published Dec 12, 2025 3:20 PM by The Maritime Executive

  Days after Ukraine claimed its first-ever strike on an oil platform in the Caspian Sea, the Special Forces are reporting that they have expanded the attacks. They are claiming strikes on two Russia-flagged cargo ships reported to be carrying arms and military equipment. The Special Operations Forces released reports saying that with the aid of resistance fighters, it had been able to track the two vessels. It did not say how the vessels were struck or provide details on...

Stranded Shadow Tanker to be Towed to Secure Location

Published Dec 12, 2025 1:02 PM by The Maritime Executive

  Bulgarian officials expect the standard shadow tanker Kairos will be towed on Sunday, December 14, from its position off the coast to a more secure location, while a long-term determination of the vessel’s fate remains unclear. The government had said it expected to sign a contract on Friday for the removal of the tanker, but the situation may be complicated by the collapse of the government and the resignation of the Prime Minister. The Ministry of Transport reported that...

CBO: Better Planning Could Cut Down U.S. Navy's Drydock Delays

Published Dec 11, 2025 10:46 PM by The Maritime Executive

  The U.S. Navy surface fleet's maintenance-delay woes continue to worsen, according to a new review by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). Challenges during yard periods have been building for years, and are a key impediment to generating readiness and deterrence. Known difficulties in planning and parts procurement are exacerbated by an aging fleet, CBO found in a review of maintenance data for destroyers and amphibs - and some vessels have experienced man-hour labor overruns in the range of 40 percent,...

NTSB: Finding Loose Wire in Dali's Switchboard Took a Month

Published Dec 11, 2025 9:09 PM by The Maritime Executive

  The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has reported the probable cause of the container ship strike that took down the Francis Scott Key Bridge: a loose wire buried inside a switchboard. The agency has now released its complete report, detailing the findings of its forensic team - and the challenging, monthlong effort to find one loose wire on a 10,000-TEU boxship. In the early hours of March 26, 2024, as the container ship Dali got under way outbound from...

Shipping

Ferry pier at Herfol, center right, and old post office, center (Google Maps / Airbus)

Norwegian Ferry Overshoots Pier and Hits Old Post Office

  On Thursday, a ferry overshot its berth and crashed into an old building alongside the pier on the island of Herfol, Norway.  At about 0930 hours on Thursday morning, operator Norled confirmed that the ferry connection for Herfol was temporarily suspended due to an operational incident. The suspension notice has since been lifted and is not mentioned on the firm's site.  On arrival at the port, the ferry Ternen kept going too far alongside the pier. It appears to...

Tugs & Salvage

Winter Storms Are Taking Toll on Wrecked MSC Baltic III and Salvage Efforts

The Canadian Coast Guard released a series of pictures showing the damage to the hull of the MSC Baltic III, which has been grounded in a remote part of Newfoundland since February 2025. The hull shows significant additional damage after having been pounded by the high surf during a storm in early November and again in early December. It was the same high surf and winter weather which had driven the ship ashore in February after it lost...

Government

Five Crewmembers Rescued After Going Overboard from Cargo Ship

The Korean Coast Guard is reporting the rescue of five crewmembers from one cargo ship that somehow all ended up in the water. There were no details on the unusual circumstances for so many crew to end up in the water, especially when the vessel was not reported to be in distress. The Coast Guard station off the southwest coast of Sepgwipo on Jeju Island received the call at around 4:45 p.m. local time. It said that five...

Corporate News

Saildrone Completes Pioneering Mapping Mission of Cayman Islands’ EEZ

[By: Saildrone] Saildrone, the global leader in autonomous deep water mapping solutions, has completed its mission to map the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Cayman Islands, using a Saildrone Surveyor uncrewed surface vehicle (USV). Over the course of approximately 300 mission days, Saildrone surveyed approximately 90,000 square kilometers of seabed, in depths ranging from 20 meters to 7,000 meters, executing over 900 sound-velocity profile casts to ensure accurate bathymetric data. One of the priorities of the mission was to...

Cruise Ships

PortMiami Starts Winter Cruise Season with New Daily Record

The 2025-2026 cruise season started with a bang for PortMiami, with the port, which likes to call itself the cruise capital of the world, setting its third record this year for the number of passengers handled in a single day. It is the start of what promises to be a very busy season as the cruise industry continues its dramatic growth. The port highlights that on November 30, it set a new daily passenger record with 75,201 passengers...

Ports

Turkish-Owned RoPax on Fire After Russian Attack on Odesa Region

A Turkish-owned RoPax transporting cargo to Ukraine was set on fire during a midday Russian attack on the Great Odesa region. Reports indicate that one person, possibly a dockworker, was injured, but there are no fatalities. The Ukrainian Air Force had issued the alert at around 1500 local time, reporting high-speed targets coming from the south. It is believed that at least two ballistic missiles had been fired, as well as a launch of drones. It followed an overnight...

Shipping

Norwegian Ferry Overshoots Pier and Hits Old Post Office

Tugs & Salvage

Winter Storms Are Taking Toll on Wrecked MSC Baltic III and Salvage Efforts

Government

Five Crewmembers Rescued After Going Overboard from Cargo Ship

Corporate News

Saildrone Completes Pioneering Mapping Mission of Cayman Islands’ EEZ

Cruise Ships

PortMiami Starts Winter Cruise Season with New Daily Record

Ports

Turkish-Owned RoPax on Fire After Russian Attack on Odesa Region

Offshore

Norway Approves Applications for Two Floating Wind Projects

  Norway’s Ministry of Energy reports that it will award two project areas in the Utsira Nord region off the coast of Stavanger after having reviewed the applications received in the award program. Norway previously reported that two consortia had been formed and each submitted bids, which have now been confirmed. The area which is 1,010 square kilometers, would place wind turbines at least 7 km (4.3 miles) from shore.  Because of the water depth and the challenges along the...

Shipbuilding

CBO: Better Planning Could Cut Down U.S. Navy's Drydock Delays

Environment

Public-Private Partnership Develops First Methanol-Powered Cement Carrier

  A new project supported by the Norwegian government, along with German shipping company Hartmann Group, will demonstrate new opportunities in sustainable shipping, distributing cement in Norway’s domestic market. The vessel, which is due to enter service in the first quarter of 2028, will primarily use green methanol as its fuel, reducing CO2 emissions and demonstrating the emerging potential for sustainable shipping in smaller segments of shipping. In early 2025, Heidelberg Materials Norway, part of one of the world's largest...

Business

Hanwha Gets Nods from Australia to Increase Investment in Austal

Australia’s Treasurer Jim Chalmers said that the government has decided to let South Korea’s Hanwha Group increase its investment to become the largest investor in shipbuilder Austal. The reports said the government will place restrictions on the operations to ensure the confidentiality of sensitive information pertaining to national security matters. Austal’s CEO, Paddy Gregg, said the company had not yet been officially notified by the government about the approval and the terms of the restrictions. He, however, said...

Maritime Industry Conferences and Events

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Turkish-Owned RoPax on Fire After Russian Attack on Odesa Region

Ukraine Expands Caspian Sea Strikes Hitting Russian Vessels Carrying Arms

Stranded Shadow Tanker to be Towed to Secure Location

CBO: Better Planning Could Cut Down U.S. Navy's Drydock Delays

NTSB: Finding Loose Wire in Dali's Switchboard Took a Month

Norwegian Ferry Overshoots Pier and Hits Old Post Office

Winter Storms Are Taking Toll on Wrecked MSC Baltic III and Salvage Efforts

Five Crewmembers Rescued After Going Overboard from Cargo Ship

Saildrone Completes Pioneering Mapping Mission of Cayman Islands’ EEZ

PortMiami Starts Winter Cruise Season with New Daily Record

Turkish-Owned RoPax on Fire After Russian Attack on Odesa Region

Understanding Hazardous Area Classification on Ships and Offshore

Why Financial Wellbeing Is Central to Seafarer Welfare

Estonia's Digital-First Ship Registry: A Modern Maritime Flag

Norwegian Ferry Overshoots Pier and Hits Old Post Office

Winter Storms Are Taking Toll on Wrecked MSC Baltic III and Salvage Efforts

Five Crewmembers Rescued After Going Overboard from Cargo Ship

Saildrone Completes Pioneering Mapping Mission of Cayman Islands’ EEZ

PortMiami Starts Winter Cruise Season with New Daily Record

Turkish-Owned RoPax on Fire After Russian Attack on Odesa Region

Norway Approves Applications for Two Floating Wind Projects

CBO: Better Planning Could Cut Down U.S. Navy's Drydock Delays

Public-Private Partnership Develops First Methanol-Powered Cement Carrier

Hanwha Gets Nods from Australia to Increase Investment in Austal

Maritime Industry Conferences and Events

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Maritime Industry Conferences and Events