Monday, September 21, 2026
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VLCC tanker built in China

Trafigura to Spin Out Publicly Traded VLCC Tanker Company Volare Shipping

Published Sep 21, 2026 4:38 PM by The Maritime Executive

Commodities trading giant Trafigura is spinning out a newly public company, Volare Shipping, which will be an operator for VLCC tankers. The move comes as the crude oil tanker market is enjoying a major boom, and the new company positions Trafigura for further growth in the shipping sector. Trafigura highlights that it has built one of the world’s leading shipping operations. It currently manages approximately 500 vessels across multiple segments, including around 250 oil tankers. It reports that the operations...

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Meyer Weft German shipbuilder

Report: MSC Explores Acquiring Germany’s Controlling Stake in Meyer Werft

Published Sep 21, 2026 3:31 PM by The Maritime Executive

MSC Group is reported to be exploring acquiring the controlling ownership stake in Germany’s Meyer Werft shipbuilder, Bloomberg reported. The story says the company has ongoing discussions with Germany’s federal government and the state of Lower Saxony, which together acquired 80 percent ownership of Meyer Werft in 2024 as part of a financial rescue package. Meyer Werft got into financial trouble in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused major shifts in its operations. While the yard was able...

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Kotka

U.S. Coast Guard Sets Up Long-Range Medevac for Critically-Ill Seafarer

Published Sep 20, 2026 11:18 PM by The Maritime Executive

Over the weekend, the U.S. Coast Guard arranged a long-range rescue for a boxship crewmember who was suffering from a serious, growing infection. Last week, the 1996-built boxship Kotka (ex names Maersk Kotka, Knud Maersk) was under way on a long voyage from Colombo, Sri Lanka, bound for New York. On Wednesday night, the master of the Kotka contacted shoreside authorities and reported that a crewmember had developed a "severe, non-ambulatory infection" that was not getting better with onboard medical...

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Drug boat

U.S. Southern Command Destroys 70th Suspected Drug Boat

Published Sep 20, 2026 10:12 PM by The Maritime Executive

On Saturday, U.S. forces in the Caribbean destroyed another suspected drug-running vessel with an airstrike, killing four people. It is the 70th publicized instance of use of lethal force against a drug boat in the region, and highlights the dual-mode structure of U.S. counternarcotics operations in the region: lethal when aerial assets are the sole means of engagement, nonlethal when Coast Guard or Marine Corps boarding teams are involved. The strike targeted a small vessel operating on "established narco-trafficking routes"...

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MORE STORIES BY CATEGORY

Offshore

Ampelmann

RWE Speeds Up Offshore Turbine Servicing With Heavy-Lift Drone Deliveries

Heavy-lift drones have attracted widespread public attention in Ukraine, where they are a common platform for a variety of defense applications, but they are also making big inroads in the commercial market - including offshore wind. Dutch walk-to-work gangway firm Ampelmann has just finished up a maintenance project at RWE's Triton Knoll project, augmenting its traditional SOV equipment product line with a direct-to-nacelle drone lift service. Over the course of six weeks, Ampelmann's drone fleet moved more than nine tonnes...

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Shipbuilding

Meyer Weft German shipbuilder

Report: MSC Explores Acquiring Germany’s Controlling Stake in Meyer Werft

MSC Group is reported to be exploring acquiring the controlling ownership stake in Germany’s Meyer Werft shipbuilder, Bloomberg reported. The story says the company has ongoing discussions with Germany’s federal government and the state of Lower Saxony, which together acquired 80 percent ownership of Meyer Werft in 2024 as part of a financial rescue package. Meyer Werft got into financial trouble in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused major shifts in its operations. While the yard was able...

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Environment

Carleen

Executive Interview: Carleen Lyden Walker, Co-Founder & CEO, NAMEPA

Carleen Lyden Walker is one of the best-known figures in maritime – founder of her own marketing business, co-founder of NAMEPA, former IMO Maritime Ambassador, Chief Evolution Officer of SHIPPINGInsight and a fierce advocate for all things maritime. She's a frequent speaker and participant at maritime conferences around the world, advocating for seafarers' rights, environmental stewardship and the role of women in maritime while raising the profile of an industry that touches every aspect of human life. Welcome, Carleen, we're...

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Business

VLCC tanker built in China

Trafigura to Spin Out Publicly Traded VLCC Tanker Company Volare Shipping

Commodities trading giant Trafigura is spinning out a newly public company, Volare Shipping, which will be an operator for VLCC tankers. The move comes as the crude oil tanker market is enjoying a major boom, and the new company positions Trafigura for further growth in the shipping sector. Trafigura highlights that it has built one of the world’s leading shipping operations. It currently manages approximately 500 vessels across multiple segments, including around 250 oil tankers. It reports that the operations...

Continue Reading...