Poland to sell Gdansk shipyard

Poland's Gdansk shipyard will be sold to Ukrainian firm Donbass in a $US400 million deal to avoid bankruptcy, the head of the yard said.

The yard has been under threat since the European Union demanded that it cut capacity or repay an estimated 1.3 billion euros in state subsidies it received since Poland joined the bloc in 2004. The yard's chief executive said Industrial Donbass Union, one of Ukraine's biggest financial and industrial groups, would acquire an 83 per cent stake with the possibility of buying the remaining 17 per cent from the state. The deal to save the politically sensitive shipyard, which could be expected to win approval from Poland's competition watchdog, comes days before Poland is due to hold an early parliamentary election on October 21.

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Mega container ship to join IRI fleet

The first mega container carrier that Iran has ordered will join the country's container fleet in five months.

The first container carrier will enter the fleet of the Islamic Republic of Iran with a stowage capacity of 6,500 TEU containers in the next five months, said the deputy managing director for technical affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines, Qassem Nabipour. At the moment, four container carrier vessels with a capacity of 4,900 TEU containers and six vessels with the stowage capacity of 6,500 TEU containers are being built in Korea, the first of which will join the company's fleet in five months. The Korean company will deliver all the 10 vessels currently on order to the company's fleet by December 2008. The company's stowage capacity will reach two million TEU containers per year when all the 10 vessels are added to the fleet, he explained.

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Diana Shipping acquires two Capesize Dry Bulk Carriers

Diana Shipping Inc., a global shipping transportation company specializing in dry bulk cargoes, today announced that it has signed two Memoranda of Agreement with unaffiliated third parties for the purchase of two Capesize dry bulk carriers.

The carriers MV ''Thalassini Niki'' and MV ''Thalassini Kyra'' will be renamed MV ''Salt Lake City'' and MV ''Norfolk'' respectively. The ''Thalassini Niki'' is a 2005 built Capesize vessel of 171,810 dwt and latter a 2002 built Capesize vessel of 164,218 dwt. The agreed-upon prices for the two are US$140 million and US$135 million, respectively. The Thalassini Niki is chartered as of September 28, 2007 to Refined Success Ltd., guaranteed by Cosco (H.K) Shipping Co Ltd. for a period of 59 to 61 months, at a daily rate of US$55,800 less 5% commission. Thalassini Niki is expected to be delivered to the company on or about November 30, 2007. The employment of both vessels is anticipated to generate approximately US$225 million of gross revenues for the minimum scheduled period of the charters.

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Cruise ship boom under way

Not less than 30 new vessels will debut across the globe in the next five years and many of today's major cruise lines - big and small - are also refurbishing their fleets and expanding via the acquisition route to meet today's growing demand.

Some, like Azamara Cruises (owned by Royal Caribbean), are defining a new cruise niche altogether. The new line caters to the deluxe cruise market - the country-club set which, until now, has been the exclusive domain of yet another relative newcomer: Oceania Cruises. Royal Caribbean not only unveiled the world's largest passenger vessels two years in a row - the 2006 launch of Freedom of the Seas was and Liberty of the Seas this year, but they've also poured millions into the refurbishment of their existing fleet. Not to be outdone, the world's most popular cruise line, Carnival, unveiled a new vessel earlier this year - Carnival Freedom - and is poised to debut yet another mega-liner, Carnival Splendor, by summer of 2008. Other cruise brands owned and operated under Carnival's broad umbrella - Princess, Holland America, Costa and Seabourn - are also building new ships to debut in the years ahead.

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Bharati Shipyard plans JV

Bharati Shipyard reportedly plans to set up a modern shipbuilding yard along India's eastern coast in a 50:50 joint venture with Apeejay Shipping, according to local media reports.

The proposed shipyard, expected to start operations in 2009, would build ships and also be a ship repairing business. India's shipbuilding industry is expected to touch the $20 billion milestone by 2020.

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