TURKISH MARITIME MAGAZINE

Tugboat veered from the course A Singapore-registered tugboat, Asta, is believed to have been hijacked in the South China Sea at the weekend.		CSSSA tops charter list FRENCH oil giant Total’s shipping arm, CSSSA, topped the list of suezmax charterers in the fourth quarter of 2009, taking 29 vessels to carry 3.8m tonnes of oil.

China To Increase LNG Imports China will increase its imports of liquefied natural gas to relieve the current gas shortage, Xinhua news agency reported Sunday, citing Zhang Guobao, head of the National Energy Administration.		J. Ray McDermott in agreement FloaTEC Singapore Pte Ltd J. Ray McDermott has signed a contract worth about $1b with the Papa-Terra Joint Venture.

W.Africa' rates continue to slide Owners hoped US Gulf weather-related delays would help to soak up excess tonnage POOR weather in the US Gulf last week failed to support the West African suezmax market, with rates continuing to slide further towards operating cost levels.		Z-drive tug has been delivered A 87-ft Z-drive tug has recently been delivered from the Jiangsu Wuxi Shipyard Co., Ltd. in China to a Peruvian owner Trabajos Maritimos S.A.

Gardline to benefit Round 3 first Gardline Marine Sciences Ltd of Great Yarmouth in the UK is one of the first companies to benefit from the Round 3 offshore wind farm site allocation announced this month.		Two-year forecast for Maersk Danish financial house Danske Market Equities is forecasting the parent company of ocean carrier Maersk Line will return to profitability in 2010 due largely to better container shipping freight rates.


Agreement for shipbuilding facility Qatar Gas Transport Company Ltd. (NAKILAT) has signed a joint venture agreement with Damen Shipyards Qatar Holding B.V.		Sailors fear job loss Despite the threat posed by piracy, sailors are more fearful of a ban on manning ships passing the pirate-plagued Somalia coast as it would put their families’ livelihoods at risk.

China Shipping volumes rise 18% SHIPPING giant China Shipping Group reported a better-than-expected 18.1% increase in cargo shipping volume in January.		Pacific rates plunge into darkness Rates for capesize bulk carriers trading in the Pacific region as having “plunged into a dark abyss”; seven days later, they find themselves in an even darker one, having dropped from $11 per tonne into single figure territory,

Container shipping looks up The prospects for the container shipping market are looking much better than 12 months ago, as both volumes and rates have been rising recently and the increases "appear to be to be resilient."		Dry bulk overcapacity looms Most analysts seem to agree that one the biggest hurdles lying ahead for a recovery of the dry bulk shipping sector is the looming oversupply of vessels, as evidenced by the huge global orderbook.

Ship finance has long way to peak The industry will have to wait for several years before the ship finance market returns to its peak, a senior official of DVB Bank, specialist in the international transport finance business, has warned.		Ciane to return to Turkish Cicek The Italian shipowner Ciane Spa has purchased a second double-hull bunker tanker from the Turkish shipbuilder Çiçek Shipyard.


All segments see sharp rise The number of freight derivative transactions was up 119% on the previous month, to 2 086, while the volume of lots was up 69%, to 44 931 , with the overall trade value increasing 40% to USD 912 million.		IPTA will be held in London The second IPTA/Navigate chemical/products tanker conference will be held in London on 9-10 March.

TVD is open for operators INTERTANKO's Terminal Vetting Database (TVD) is now open to tanker owners/operators, terminal owners/operators, PSC authorities and others with a legitimate interest in improving safety.		Otto to grow offshore division Otto Marine has successfully raised S$95m through a share placement as it looks to grow its offshore services division.

Rates increased in USA trades Evergreen Line has announced a rate restoration on its Northern Europe to USA trades.		Ship engine plant opened Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Bach Dang Shipyard have opened a joint venture ship engine manufacturing plant in Vietnam.

Piracy doesn't pay! How do we transmit a message to the effect that piracy is not a profit centre for the poor of Somalia, but a serious crime which attracts punishment?		Capacity to over 3m tonnes Vinalines aimed to raise its capacity by a further 350,000 tonnes this year to over 3m tonnes by building and buying more vessels.