By Jonathan Saul, Parisa Hafezi and Marianna Parraga LONDON/DUBAI/PANAMA CITY, July 26 (Reuters) - Somewhere on its journey from the waters off Iran, around Africa's southern tip and into the Mediterranean, the Grace 1 oil tanker lost the flag under which it sailed and ceased to be registered to Panama. Iran later claimed it as its own. The ship carrying 2 million barrels of … [Read more...]
Iran’s Tanker Seizure Sparks Questions Over Owners and Flags
(Bloomberg) --Escalating tensions in the Middle East’s biggest shipping chokepoint is raising speculation over who is responsible for tankers ensnared in the hostilities. The latest ship that’s been thrust into the spotlight is oil tanker Stena Impero, seized on Friday by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in the Strait of Hormuz. While the 49,683 deadweight-ton vessel is U.K. … [Read more...]
Panama to Pull More Flags from Vessels Violating Sanctions
By Marianna Parraga and Elida Moreno PANAMA CITY, July 12 (Reuters) - Panama will withdraw its flag from more vessels that violate sanctions and international legislation, the country's maritime authority told Reuters, following the removal of about 60 ships linked to Iran and Syria from the Panamanian registry in recent months. After the re-imposition of sanctions on … [Read more...]
IMO Works to Clamp Down on Illicit Shipping Practices
By Jonathan Saul LONDON, April 4 (Reuters) - The United Nations' shipping agency is working on tougher measures to clamp down on rogue shipping companies trying to use flag registries fraudulently to conceal their activities, officials said. All commercial ships have to be registered - flagged in a particular country - partly to comply with safety and environmental … [Read more...]
Liberia Overtakes Marshall Islands as World’s Second Largest Ship Registry
Liberia has surpassed rival Marshall Islands as the world's second largest ship registry in terms of gross tonnage, according to leading shipping analyst Clarksons in its Clarksons World Fleet Monitor January 2019. Panama continues to hold the top spot as the largest registry in the world. Hong Kong and Singapore hold the fourth and fifth spots, … [Read more...]