Pirates release Bangladeshi bulker and its 23 crew after a month-long ransom negotiation

IMO stalwart Katy Ware removed as the UK’s permanent representative and maritime policy expert in international negotiations amid an exodus of maritime experience within the Department for Transport, and ministerial activity is on ice ahead of a general election

There are four known pirate groups stalking the Indian Ocean for ships to hijack and 22 Indian naval assets trying to stop them. That may not be enough to deter the pirates and it will only take one successful ransom to spark a rapid escalation in piracy that stretched navies will struggle to contain

The International Energy Agency’s net-zero scenario has come under fire in recent weeks, notably from oil producers who argue that we should “abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas”. However, BRS has added fuel to the fire by suggesting the critics may have a point and the energy transition is falling significantly behind

The final closure of CMB’s Euronav takeover this week breached Euronext rules on ownership exceeding the 85% threshold. That means that Euronav will exit Belgium’s blue-chip Bel 20 index today, after just two days of trading

In a repeat of the Rubymar incident, where salvors refused to engage due to security concerns, owners of the stricken Barbados-flagged True Confidence have been struggling to salvage the critically damaged vessel after being denied refuge at the port of Djibouti