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The 'Eventin' was disabled and adrift following an engine failure and complete blackout, while en route from the Russian port of Ust-Luga to Port Said with 24 crew members on board, on the afternoon of Jan 10, 2025, in the coastal waters of the Baltic Sea, north of Rügen island. The distance was only 14 miles as of 3 p.m. At the request of the Warnemünde traffic control center, the emergency command in Cuxhaven has taken over overall command of the operation. Actually it was not deemed necessary to evacuate the crew. To avoid further danger, the multi-purpose vessel 'Arkona' of the Federal Waterways and Shipping Administration and the emergency tug 'Bremen Fighter' were deployed to the tanker, as well as the tug 'Brmen' and a specially trained team that can abseil down to the vessel to establish a tow connection. The ship could be towed to Rostock or Denmark. The Federal Police sent the patrol ship 'Bamberg' to the casualty. The Do 228 sensor aircraft is on its way to the sea area to obtain further information. According to current knowledge, the tanker is carrying around 99,000 tons of oil. The tanker belongs to the so-called shadow fleet which consists of tankers that are used by shipping companies to transport Russian oil in order to circumvent EU and US sanctions. Tankers are bought from companies that have no connection to companies in the EU.

The 'Nova Energy', which appeared to be heading to one of the Russia's floating storage unit Koryak FSU to discharge its cargo, and had left Nakhodka Bay where it had been idling for weeks, initially heading to the FSU off Kamchatka, has since turned back south. It was estimated that the 'Nova Energy' was about 70% loaded. Actually it is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 56' E. The Koryak FSU has also taken on cargoes from the 'Pioneer', which is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 55' E in the Sea of Japan, and the 'Metagas Everest' recently, and may now be holding 250,000-cbm of LNG. The 'Pioneer', the 'Nova Energy' and the 'East Energy' have been idling off Russia’s Far East coast for months, laden with LNG from Novatek’s US-sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 liquefaction plant. The sanctioned ships have not been able to offload their shipments to buyers. The 'Nova Energy' and 'East Energy' transported their cargoes through the Northern Sea Route, and the 'Pioneer' transited the Suez Canal southbound. The 'Mulan' has left the North Sea in ballast at the start of Jan 2025, and initally headed northwards into the Atlantic before turning south, now with an ETA at Port Said as of Jan 16. The 'Metagas Energy', which loaded a cargo at Arctic LNG 2 in Oct 2024, and had been idling to the north of Russia, has followed the 'Mulan' into the Atlantic. The 'North Air', 'North Mountain', 'North Sky' and 'North Way' have been drifting in the Barents Sea, before the 'North Air' has started moving west, but is actually NUC in the Barents Sea.

Nine people were arrested on Jan 8, 2025, for their alleged involvement in a shipment of 1,100 kilos of cocaine found in a container in the port of Vigo. They have been brought before the city's investigating court number 4, which is in charge of coordinating the investigations. Among the detainees, of Albanian and Belgian nationality, wee those who allegedly intended to take control of the drugs. The detainees arrived at the City of Justice in Vigo around 10:00 a.m. in National Police vans, accompanied by a large security force that included the presence of agents in the court building. The operation that led to these arrests was carried out jointly by the National Police and the Customs Surveillance Service. The drugs, hidden in a container of fruit that had arrived from Ecuador, were found on board the 'Cape Citius'. After the inspection in the port of Vigo, the ship resumed its course towards Malaga. According to police hypotheses, the suspects were in Vigo to collect the shipment, which had been introduced into the container using the technique known as “blind hook.” This method consists of hiding the drug in the middle of legitimate cargo, such as fruit, without the knowledge of the legal persons responsible for the container or the ship's carrier. On the other hand, investigators are also trying to determine possible links between this shipment and other recent seizures of cocaine. In December, Ecuadorian authorities had intercepted more than 1,200 kilos of cocaine in the port of Guayaquil. The drug, hidden in a container of tuna cans, was destined for the port of Vigo. On that occasion, the agents found 23 black plastic packages containing 1,264 packets of narcotics. In addition, at the beginning of December, 500 kilos of cocaine were seized in another container in the port of Vigo, transported by the ‘Izmit Express’, which had departed from Cartagena de Indias, Colombia. In the previous weeks, the captain of the ship had discovered an additional 23 kilos of cocaine hidden in the holds. The connection with other international seizures is also under analysis. In October, a shipment of 13 tons of cocaine was intercepted in the port of Algeciras, hidden among bananas that came from Ecuador. Meanwhile, in a previous operation, 100 kilos of cocaine were located in an air container in Fuenlabrada, Madrid, linked to an international organization made up of Albanian, Colombian, Moroccan and European citizens. Report with photos: https://enfoques.gal/galicia/comparecen-ante-el-juez-los-detenidos-por-el-alijo-de-cocaina-en-vigo/

The 'Spirit f Tasmania' (IMO: 9936587), which has been delayed in Edinburgh as the port infrastructure in its home port of Devonport is not currently fit to house the ship, has extended its lease in Edinburgh for another 30 days, after the state-owned operator TT-Line had been unable to find a third party to lease the ferry. The lease extension was significantly cheaper than the initial berthing costs for the vessel, at an average weekly cost of $23,915, plus ancillary costs. The ferry had arrived at the Port of Leith in Edinburgh on Dec 4. Both the 'Spirit of Tasmania IV' and the sister ship 'Spirit of Tasmania V', which is still under construction, are too big for the existing infrastructure of Devonport. A delay in the port upgrade meant that it was unlikely that Devonport will be able to receive them until early 2027. The Spirit of Tasmania ferries connect Tasmania with Geelong, Victoria. TT-Line Company moved its Victorian port operations for Spirit of Tasmania from Station Pier, Port Melbourne, to Corio Quay, north of Geelong in 2020.

The oil spill that has been affecting southwestern Russia and the occupied Crimea since mid-December,, continues to spread with pollution detected on new beaches, authorities announced on Jan 9. The 'Volgoneft-212' and the 'Volgoneft-239' were carrying 9,200 tons of fuel oil, about 40% of which may have spilled into the sea. Authorities and volunteers have organized a vast clean-up operation, but the situation continues to cause concern. Since the start of the oil spill, nearly 73,000 tons of contaminated sand have been removed from dozens of kilometers of beach on the coast, but in total, some 200,000 tons of soil may have been affected. Despite the massive clean-up campaign involving thousands of people, the situation could still get worse. Vladimir Putin acknowledged that it was an "ecological catastrophe" and criticized his team's "insufficient" efforts to deal with it. He targeted in particular the Minister of Emergency Situations, Alexander Kurenkov: His spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the extent of the environmental damage was "impossible to calculate at this time". At this stage, the massive pollution has mainly affected the coasts of the Russian region of Krasnodar and the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Moscow in 2014, including Sevastopol, which is located about 250 kilometers from the site where the oil tankers wrecked. Report with photos: https://www.rfi.fr/fr/europe/20250109-naufrage-de-deux-p%C3%A9troliers-en-mer-noire-vladimir-poutine-hausse-le-ton

Due to multiple incidents of sabotage with sea cables and the Russian threat, the Netherlands have sent the Zr.Ms. 'Tromp' from Den Helder to Norway on Jan 4, 2025. It berthed in Haakonsvern on Jan 6. The goal is to monitor safety and keep an eye on suspicious ships to prevent them from doing something. First of all, the ship is used to record suspicious activities at sea as there have been many sabotage actions recently against submarine infrastructure, with the suspicion that Russia is behind it to make life in the Western countries more difficult and to put them under pressure. In order to prove that, it is important that the navy ship is there in time, f.e. when a ship drops anchor and drags it along the seabed, destroying cables or pipes.

On Jan 8, 2025, at around 11:45 a.m., the 'Weser Highway' allided with the port facility in Rostock's seaport, causing significant damage. The Rostock Water Police Inspectorate (WSPI) was notified at around 12:00 p.m. from the Warnemünde traffic control center. The unloaded vehicle carrier, en route into the port, coming from Halmstad and assisted by two port tugs, hit the quay with the port side during the docking maneuver, A staircase and a platform were deformed. The ship suffered several dents above the waterline and paint abrasions. According to initial findings, the unfavourable wind conditions were the cause of the allision. The WSPI Rostock filed an accident report. There was no suspicion of alcohol or drugs behind behind the incident. A temporary sailing ban imposed by the Federal Association for Transport, Postal Logistics and Telecommunications, was lifted after the investigation was finished at around 2:00 p.m. , and the ship sailed again back to Halmstad at around 5 p.m. UTC. The estimated damage to the port facility was around 50,000 Euros.

The 'Nova Energy', which appeared to be heading to one of the Russia's floating storage unit Koryak FSU to discharge its cargo, and had left Nakhodka Bay where it had been idling for weeks, initially heading to the FSU off Kamchatka, has since turned back south. It was estimated that the 'Nova Energy' was about 70% loaded. Actually it is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 56' E. The Koryak FSU has also taken on cargoes from the 'Pioneer', which is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 55' E in the Sea of Japan, and the 'Metagas Everest' recently, and may now be holding 250,000-cbm of LNG. The 'Pioneer', the 'Nova Energy' and the 'East Energy' have been idling off Russia’s Far East coast for months, laden with LNG from Novatek’s US-sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 liquefaction plant. The sanctioned ships have not been able to offload their shipments to buyers. The 'Nova Energy' and 'East Energy' transported their cargoes through the Northern Sea Route, and the 'Pioneer' transited the Suez Canal southbound. The 'Mulan' has left the North Sea in ballast at the start of Jan 2025, and initally headed northwards into the Atlantic before turning south, now with an ETA at Port Said as of Jan 16. The 'Metagas Energy', which loaded a cargo at Arctic LNG 2 in Oct 2024, and had been idling to the north of Russia, has followed the 'Mulan' into the Atlantic. The 'North Air', 'North Mountain', 'North Sky' and 'North Way' have been drifting in the Barents Sea, before the 'North Air' has started moving west, but is actually NUC in the Barents Sea.

The 'Nova Energy', which appeared to be heading to one of the Russia's floating storage unit Koryak FSU to discharge its cargo, and had left Nakhodka Bay where it had been idling for weeks, initially heading to the FSU off Kamchatka, has since turned back south. It was estimated that the 'Nova Energy' was about 70% loaded. Actually it is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 56' E. The Koryak FSU has also taken on cargoes from the 'Pioneer', which is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 55' E in the Sea of Japan, and the 'Metagas Everest' recently, and may now be holding 250,000-cbm of LNG. The 'Pioneer', the 'Nova Energy' and the 'East Energy' have been idling off Russia’s Far East coast for months, laden with LNG from Novatek’s US-sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 liquefaction plant. The sanctioned ships have not been able to offload their shipments to buyers. The 'Nova Energy' and 'East Energy' transported their cargoes through the Northern Sea Route, and the 'Pioneer' transited the Suez Canal southbound. The 'Mulan' has left the North Sea in ballast at the start of Jan 2025, and initally headed northwards into the Atlantic before turning south, now with an ETA at Port Said as of Jan 16. The 'Metagas Energy', which loaded a cargo at Arctic LNG 2 in Oct 2024, and had been idling to the north of Russia, has followed the 'Mulan' into the Atlantic. The 'North Air', 'North Mountain', 'North Sky' and 'North Way' have been drifting in the Barents Sea, before the 'North Air' has started moving west, but is actually NUC in the Barents Sea.

After the salvage of the 'Sounion', last year’s most high profile Houthi vessel attack, has been completed. the tanker will now likely head for scrap, but its owners, Delta Tankers, are also considering to repair it at a shipyard in Türkiye. The commercial salvage operation, that ultimately involved more than 200 personnel, was launched by the vessel insurers, led by the UK firm Ambrey. The salvage operations could only begin once explosive ordnance disposal experts had inspected the vessel and cleared it of any unexploded ordnance or improvised explosive devices, its anchor raised, and a primary towing tug put in position. The scale and complexity of what had happened meant that specialist tugs were mobilised from Greece and firefighting equipment flown in on chartered aircraft, along with specialists from around the world. Firefighting faced huge challenges with the heat and humidity of the Red Sea, meaning operations were primarily conducted at night. The fires were extinguished, cargo tanks patched and pressurised with inert gas, and the vessel declared safe. In early October, it was towed north to Suez for the removal of its cargo, which has now been completed. Reports with photos: https://splash247.com/epic-salvage-of-sounion-tanker-complete/ https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/to-save-the-sounion-ambrey-combined-salvage-with-security-and-politics

On Jan 9, 2025, the 'Otra' was called to assist the fishing boat 'VA 23 K' of fisherman Bjørnar Rønholt Hansen from Kristiansand which sank to the bottom in the middle of the city fjord on the morning. When the skipper was on his way out to work, the engine started misfiring north of Grønningen lighthouse. He thought that maybe there was something in the filter, checked the engine compartment and found that a lot of water gushed in there. Hansen called the MRCC. The fire service quickly came to assist with the fire boat. When it arrived, Hansen had boarded a dinghy that he had in tow. After dewatering attempts failed, at 10.15. the fishing boat went down. At 10.30, only part of the bow was sticking out of the sea. Report with photo and video: https://www.nrk.no/sorlandet/fiskebaten-hans-sank_-_-det-er-livsverket-mitt-1.17199529

The oil spill that has been affecting southwestern Russia and the occupied Crimea since mid-December,, continues to spread with pollution detected on new beaches, authorities announced on Jan 9. The 'Volgoneft-212' and the 'Volgoneft-239' were carrying 9,200 tons of fuel oil, about 40% of which may have spilled into the sea. Authorities and volunteers have organized a vast clean-up operation, but the situation continues to cause concern. Since the start of the oil spill, nearly 73,000 tons of contaminated sand have been removed from dozens of kilometers of beach on the coast, but in total, some 200,000 tons of soil may have been affected. Despite the massive clean-up campaign involving thousands of people, the situation could still get worse. Vladimir Putin acknowledged that it was an "ecological catastrophe" and criticized his team's "insufficient" efforts to deal with it. He targeted in particular the Minister of Emergency Situations, Alexander Kurenkov: His spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the extent of the environmental damage was "impossible to calculate at this time". At this stage, the massive pollution has mainly affected the coasts of the Russian region of Krasnodar and the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Moscow in 2014, including Sevastopol, which is located about 250 kilometers from the site where the oil tankers wrecked. Report with photos: https://www.rfi.fr/fr/europe/20250109-naufrage-de-deux-p%C3%A9troliers-en-mer-noire-vladimir-poutine-hausse-le-ton

The 'William Flores' repatriated 20 Cubans and two dogs to Cuba on Jan 9, 2025, following an interdiction of a migration attempt in support of Operation Vigilant Sentry. A Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 aircrew notified Coast Guard Sector Key West watchstanders of a migrant vessel on Dec. 30, approximately 36 nautical miles south of Key West. Once aboard the Coast Guard cutter, the migrants were processed to determine their identity and are provided food, water, shelter, and basic medical attention before repatriation to their country of origin or return to the country from which they departed. Report with photo: https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4025128/coast-guard-repatriates-20-migrants-2-dogs-to-cuba/

On Jan 9, 2025, the 'Glarea' suffered engine problems while working outside the port of Hanstholm, and requested assistance. At 10.24. p.m. the lifeboat from the Hanstholm Rescue Station proceeded to the ship and assisted it back into the port, where it was safely berthed at around 11 p.m.

The 'Nova Energy', which appeared to be heading to one of the Russia's floating storage unit Koryak FSU to discharge its cargo, and had left Nakhodka Bay where it had been idling for weeks, initially heading to the FSU off Kamchatka, has since turned back south. It was estimated that the 'Nova Energy' was about 70% loaded. Actually it is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 56' E. The Koryak FSU has also taken on cargoes from the 'Pioneer', which is anchored in pos. 42° 45' N 132° 55' E in the Sea of Japan, and the 'Metagas Everest' recently, and may now be holding 250,000-cbm of LNG. The 'Pioneer', the 'Nova Energy' and the 'East Energy' have been idling off Russia’s Far East coast for months, laden with LNG from Novatek’s US-sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 liquefaction plant. The sanctioned ships have not been able to offload their shipments to buyers. The 'Nova Energy' and 'East Energy' transported their cargoes through the Northern Sea Route, and the 'Pioneer' transited the Suez Canal southbound. The 'Mulan' has left the North Sea in ballast at the start of Jan 2025, and initally headed northwards into the Atlantic before turning south, now with an ETA at Port Said as of Jan 16. The 'Metagas Energy', which loaded a cargo at Arctic LNG 2 in Oct 2024, and had been idling to the north of Russia, has followed the 'Mulan' into the Atlantic. The 'North Air', 'North Mountain', 'North Sky' and 'North Way' have been drifting in the Barents Sea, before the 'North Air' has started moving west, but is actually NUC in the Barents Sea.

The 'Sparta', which is used to transport military equipment, has been unable to enter the port of Tartus for more than five days. This puts the evacuation of Russian weapons and equipment from Syria in jeopardy. Russia’s only foreign naval base is located in Tartus. After the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the Russians brought a significant number of trucks with equipment here. The 'Sparta' had left the Russian port of Baltiysk in the Kaliningrad region on Dec 11, 2024, and arrived at the Syrian coast on Jan 5, 2025. Since then, it has been drifting in the waters near Tartus without docking, which may indicate that the ship has not received permission to enter the port from the new Syrian authorities. Therefore, the only way to evacuate Russian military and equipment from Syria is through the Hmeymim airbase, where Russian Defense Ministry planes regularly arrive. Currently, the fate of Russian military bases in the Syrian Arab Republic remains unknown. Russia is negotiating with the new Syrian government on this issue. The scale of the evacuation of the Russian contingent from the country may indicate that it will either be completely withdrawn from Syria or remain in very limited numbers. The Tartus naval base on the Syrian coast of the Mediterranean Sea had been owned by the USSR since 1971. After the collapse of the USSR, it became Russian property and was used to a limited extent to replenish fuel and supplies for Russian Navy ships. With the outbreak of the civil war in Syria in 2012, the Russian Navy began active use of the base. It was modernized to accommodate large displacement ships. After the outbreak of the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, the base became an important hub for the Russian Navy’s military presence in the Mediterranean.

More than three months after the Houthi terrorist attack on the 'Sounion', the tanker has been successfully unloaded. The threat of the spill is over, but the tanker is heavily damaged and the attack raised new concerns of the scope of the Houthi efforts. Officials from Greece’s Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Island Policy confirmed the removal of the oil has been completed at the anchorage south of the Suez Canal. The operators of the tanker, Delta Tankers of Greece, had sent the tanker 'Delta Blue' to receive the oil. The operation had been underway since Oct 7, when a sakvage team of 27 people began work to stop the 18 fires set by the Houthi terrorists after the vessel was abandoned. The operation was made more challenging because the fires which had been burning for more than a month had fatigued the metal plates of the tanker. In addition, there is no power aboard the 'Sounion'. The initial Houthi attack on Aug 21 had damaged the engine room and left it disabled. The subsequent effort at setting off explosives on the vessel also destroyed the navigation bridge and possibly other control areas. The salvage team had to use portable pumps.

The 'Larus' was finally able to leave berth 25 in the port of Brest on the afternoon of Jan 9, being towed by the tug 'Serval' (IMO: 7636365) and heading for Klaipeda for repairs, after the payment of the costs related to its towing by the 'Abeille Bourbon' on the night of Dec 7, 2024, in the middle of the Darragh storm, has been finalized. The 'Serval' came from Douarnenez Bay, where it had been waiting at anchor since Dec 10. On Jan 8 the 'Serval' docked to refuel at the western quay of the fifth basin of the port of Brest. It is manned by six Polish sailors. Preparations for the long tow had continued all morning on Jan 9. The convoy took advantage of a weather window to set sail, at around 1 p.m. and has an ETA as of Jan 22. Report with photo: https://www.letelegramme.fr/finistere/brest-29200/le-convoi-de-remorque-du-petrolier-larus-a-enfin-pu-partir-pour-la-lituanie-6737071.php

The subdistrict court in Middelburg has acquitted the Belgian pilot of the 'MSC Sariska V' of reckless sailing on the Western Scheldt, endangering a tour boat and causing water damage on May 8, 2023. The judge had to decide whether the container ship sailed at too high a speed and did not take sufficient account of other shipping. The Public Prosecution Service already had doubts about the incident, which took place when the ship was passing Terneuzen. 'I am not convinced that the pilot did not show sufficient seamanship. I base that on the radar images and the data from the file. According to the officer, an analysis showed that the MSC Sariska V was sailing at six knots when approaching the Frisia 10, which is not too high a speed for the Western Scheldt. The ship also reduced speed after the report of nuisance from other shipping,' said public prosecutor R. Jacobs during his argument. The officer also took into account the statements of the 59-year-old suspect from Ghent and concluded that acquittal would be appropriate. The experienced river pilot said at the hearing that he had not received any signals in advance about ships that were sensitive to waves, such as the Frisia 10: 'Then I would have slowed down even more. I reduced speed when I saw them in my sights. I also had to take other ships into account.' When approaching the tour boat, the bow wave of the container ship caused a precarious situation on board. The boat started to sway, and water entered via the gangway. The damage amounted to 1,000 Euros. The pilot's lawyer, M. van der Bent, also found that his client was not to blame. 'He anticipated well by reducing speed.' However, subdistrict court judge J. Hopmans determined that the overtaking ship was in principle responsible for a good passage. 'The Frisia 10 is not to blame. Did the container ship slow down sufficiently? That is decisive. It did not go entirely well, but the pilot showed good seamanship at that moment and did not sail in a dangerous manner.' The subdistrict court judge acquitted the pilot.

The 'Algoma Verity' ran aground in the middle of the Delaware River on Jan 8, 2025, at 6.30 p.m. It got stuck just north of the Ben Franklin Bridge in Philadelphia's Fishtown section, roughly between Penn Treaty Park and Petty Island, in pos. 39° 58' N 075° 07' W. The bulk carrier had left the port of Philadelphia at 5:30 p.m. en route upstream to the port of Fairless Hills, Bucks County, with a cargo of 45,000 tons of solar salt when it veered outside the navigation channel. The Philadelphia Fire Department marine unit responded to the grounding at 7 p.m. There were no reports of spills or pollution in the water, and no one was injured. The tugs 'Bart Turecamo' (IMO: 7338808 ) and 'Annabelle Dorothy Mo' (IMO: 9650406) were on scene on the morning of Jan 9. USCG watchstanders issued an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast notice to mariners and deployed a Station Philadelphia 29-foot Response Boat to the area. A team from Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay and the vessel’s representatives were on board the bulk carrier, monitoring the situation and formulating a plan to safely move the vessel to a nearby terminal. A safety zone has been established around the 'Algoma Verity' restricting vessel traffic from the Benjamin Franklin Bridge to the Tioga Marine Terminal. Vessels wishing to transit the area needed to contact the Coast Guard Command Center one hour prior to transit by radio on VHF channel 16 or by calling the command center hotline at 215-271-4807. Reports with photos and video: https://6abc.com/post/cargo-ship-algoma-verity-runs-aground-delaware-river-philadelphia/15780571/ https://www.fox29.com/news/cargo-ship-stuck-delaware-river-near-ben-franklin-bridge https://www.cbsnews.com/philadelphia/news/ship-delaware-river-philadelphia-stuck-coast-guard/