As part of its continued commitment to implementing fuel saving initiatives across ground operations, Emirates SkyCargo, in collaboration with Allied Transport Company, will add hydrogen-powered trucks into its trucking fleet. Currently in production, the trucks will be onboarded to the fleet by Q1 2026.
Emirates SkyCargo’s truck fleet comprises over 60 trucks and serves as a conveyer between Dubai World Central (DWC) and Dubai International Airport (DXB), as well as the wider domestic region. The airline will deploy five hydrogen-powered trucks, marking a key milestone in the company’s gradual transition to alternate fuel vehicles. The addition of these trucks is expected to reduce Emirates SkyCargo’s CO2 emissions, while contributing to better air quality.
The hydrogen trucks, like the current diesel-powered vehicles, can carry up to 28 tonnes of cargo, ensuring no compromise on capacity. They will be refuelled at two dedicated hydrogen fuelling stations in Dubai – Expo City and the Al Qudra Dewa station, and a full tank can provide a range of up to 700 kms, to ensure seamless and low-emission transport for Emirates SkyCargo’s customers.
Badr Abbas, Divisional Senior Vice President, Emirates SkyCargo, said: “The deployment of hydrogen-powered trucks into our fleet marks an exciting development in our strategy to reduce emissions in our ground operations. We will continue to explore more ways to integrate alternative fuels and technologies and scale up efforts that mitigate our environmental footprint without compromising on the high standards of service our customers expect.
Mr. Ali Bin Beyat, CEO of Allied Transport Company, expressed strong confidence in the potential of hydrogen-powered transport, stating: “Through our extensive research, we are confident that achieving significantly reduced emissions is possible with hydrogen trucks, without relying on conventional power sources. In partnership with Emirates SkyCargo, we are introducing Hydrogen-powered trucks across UAE-especially in Dubai-to support a cleaner and sustainable logistics future. This initiative aligns with Emirates SkyCargo’s sustainability goals and supports the UAE’s vision for a greener future.”
The hydrogen trucks are tractor units, compatible with a variety of trailers to accommodate different types of cargo, ensuring that Emirates SkyCargo can meet its diverse customer needs while minimising its environmental footprint.
Reducing emissions is one of the key pillars of the Emirates’ Environmental Sustainability Framework, with multiple initiatives dedicated to efficient operations. In 2023, Emirates achieved IATA Environmental Assessment (IEnvA) Stage One and the IEnvA Illegal Wildlife Trade module certifications, a testament to the airline’s longstanding commitment to impactful environmental sustainability initiatives.
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Kale Info Solutions (Kale) has partnered with México Cargo Handling (MCH) to digitise operations through its GALAXY air cargo community system.
This system will streamline export, import, and transit operations by digitising all shipment data, offering real-time transparency for all stakeholders and eliminating the risk of incorrect shipment data on paper copies.
“At Mexico Cargo Handling we are looking at digital innovation to provide better value to our customers,” said Mathilde de Rocquigny, CEO, México Cargo Handling.
“We are happy to partner with Kale on creating the right digital infrastructure at our facilities to become more efficient, sustainable, and provide better visibility to our customers.”
The cloud-based system means that even warehouses operators will use hand-held devices to make the entire cargo handling process paperless, fulfilling Kale’s commitment to sustainable cargo community solutions.
“We are delighted to work with Mexico City International Airport, our team is geared up to deliver the best-in-class to the airport,” said Amar More, President, Kale Info Solutions.
“Enhancing customer experience, building operational excellence, and free-up talent from routine support tasks to focus on higher value activities around transformation and innovation is the fundamental requirement of every airport cargo ground handler worldwide.”
Kale’s GALAXY system is currently used at more than 120 airport cargo stations across the world, and Kale was commended by the United Nations for its systems which were estimated to reduce up to 10 million paper copies of documents at airports annually.
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Rescuers are attempting to find survivors after the capsizing of a Chinese-operated sand carrier off the coast of Rizal, Occidental Mindoro.
The sand carrier Hong Hai 16 was operating off Barangay Malawaan on Tuesday morning in moderate seas. At about 0520 hours, the vessel capsized; the cause of the casualty is still under investigation.
The vessel had 25 crewmembers. Fourteen have been rescued alive by first responders, including six Philippine nationals and eight Chinese seafarers. Two crewmembers have been confirmed dead and nine remain missing, including three Chinese and six Philippine nationals.
Images courtesy PCG
PCG Special Operations Group Southern Tagalog has dispatched a team of divers with cutting gear to help access the ship. The capsized vessel is floating keel up with an even trim, and is partially submerged. The PCG hopes that some crewmembers may have survived in the engine room.
“The PCG remains on-scene and fully committed to ensuring the safety of all individuals involved, while also preparing for any potential environmental impact,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday.
PCG commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan visited the scene on Tuesday for an aerial and site inspection, and in a statement he said that he had urged the response teams to make every effort to save any survivors.
A similarly named Chinese dredging vessel capsized and floated hull-up for days in Manila Bay in May 2023.
In a stunning move late on Wednesday, April 16, the U.S. Department of Interior announced it has ordered a stop to the construction of Equinor’s Empire Wind offshore wind farm. The project had been approved in 2024 and was underway. The move is drawing sharp criticism from New York State Governor Kathy Hochul and leaving the industry stunned.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum posted a brief message on X writing that Interior in consultation with Commerce is “directing the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to immediately halt all construction activities on the Empire Wind project until further review of information that suggest the Biden administration rushed through its approval without sufficient analysis.”
While the Biden administration did approve several projects late in its term, Empire Wind received approval for its Construction and Operations Plan in February 2024. The project also received its Clean Air Permit for construction in February 2024.
Norway’s Equinor acquired the Empire Wind lease area in 2017 and in June 2024, announced the execution of the Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority for Empire Wind 1 power for 25 years at a strike price of $155.00/MWh. The financial close for the project was completed in December 2024. The expected total capital investments, including fees for the use of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, Equinor reported would be approximately $5 billion including the effect of expected future tax credits. New York had issued its final approvals for the project in May 2024.
New York’s governor who has already been fighting with the Trump administration over congestion pricing for vehicles in Manhattan issued an angry statement saying the federal government should be supporting its efforts for affordable energy “rather than undermining them.”
“This fully federally permitted project has already put shovels in the ground before the President’s executive orders—it’s exactly the type of bipartisan energy solution we should be working on,” said Governor Hochul in her statement. “As Governor, I will not allow this federal overreach to stand. I will fight this every step of the way to protect union jobs, affordable energy, and New York’s economic future.”
The news site FreeBeacon obtained a copy of Burgum’s memorandum to the acting director of BOEM. In it, he contends that “serious issues” were raised on the approval for Empire Wind. He says it was rushed through without sufficient analysis or consultation among the relevant agencies.
Burgum also writes that he is directing BOEM to continue to review the federal wind permitting practices “to both existing and pending permits.”
Work had begun on the redevelopment of the site in Brooklyn which was to be used as the base of the wind farm during construction and its future maintenance operations. FreeBeacon reports rock work was scheduled to begin in the coming weeks at the offshore site along with other preparations. The wind farm was scheduled to provide power starting in 2027.
Empire Wind 1 and Empire Wind 2, both of which were approved in 2024, are located about 12 nautical miles south of Long Island, N.Y., and about 16.9 nm east of Long Branch, N.J. Together the projects would have a total capacity of 2,076 megawatts of renewable energy that BOEM estimated could power more than 700,000 homes each year.
Trump in January 2025 ordered a review of the leasing and permitting practices but most expected it would be a stop to future activity. The administration however also pulled the EPA permit for construction on a New Jersey project. There are several other projects currently in the construction phase. The Biden administration had approved a total of 11 offshore wind farms and left others in review at the end of its term.
The first large vessel designed to transport liquified carbon dioxide (LCO2) was launched in South Korea as the industry for the transport and storage of captured carbon begins to take shape. The vessels are being built for Greece’s Capital Maritime Group which in 2023 announced plans to expand into the developing market.
The launch took place at the HD Hyundai Mipo shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea. With a capacity to transport 22,000 cubic meters of liquified carbon dioxide, the vessels have about three times the capacity of the first LCO2 carriers. Norway’s Northern Lights project took delivery at the end of 2024 of two 7,500 cbm LCO2 carriers built in China and which are currently undergoing commissioning. They will operate in connection with the storage project started as a partnership between Equinor, Shell, and TotalEnergies.
Capital Gas Ship Management Corp. will be managing the four gas carriers being built in South Korea and will place them into the commercial market. The new company will be known as Capital Clean Energy Carriers.
The vessels will measure approximately 525 feet (159.9 meters) in length with a beam of approximately 90 feet (27.4 meters). The vessels are equipped with three “Bi-lobe type storage tanks” that can maintain a low-temperature environment of around -55 degrees Celsius. According to Hyundai, this allows it to stably transport various liquefied gas cargoes such as LCO2, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and ammonia (NH3).
The design also enhances the vessels’ environmental performance. They are fitted with Selective Catalytic Reduction systems to reduce Nox emissions. They can use shore power and have ice-resistant design technology (Ice Class 1C) which will improve navigation stability. Capital also reported in 2024 that it was exploring adding onboard carbon capture systems to the vessels.
The construction order was originally placed in 2023 for two vessels and later increased to four gas carriers. HD Hyundai reports the vessel will complete outfitting and trials for delivery at the end of this year. The others are set for delivery in 20026.
The companies cite data from Clarson Research to illustrate the potential market for LCO2 transport. The analysts have written to achieve carbon neutrality, more than six gigatons of carbon will need to be captured and stored annually by 2050. They estimate that 20 percent will need to be transported by sea for storage or reuse. It is estimated that 2,500 LCO2 carriers will be required to meet future demand.
North Korean exports of artillery ammunition to Russia, for use in its war against Ukraine continue. But volumes shipped in recent weeks have fallen back from previous peaks, suggesting that initial consignments may have come from stockpiles, now depleted, with more now being met directly from production.
The traffic between North Korea and Russia has been tracked by the Open Source Centre (OSC), led by James Byrne, formerly Director Open Source Analysis at the UK’s Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies. North Korean ammunition is shipped in containers from Raijin to the Russian ports of Danube and Vostochny in the Vladivostok area. By monitoring the four Russian flagged RO-RO container ships carrying the containers – MV Angara (IMO 9179842), Lady Mariia (IMO 9220641), Maya-1 (IMO 9358010) and Lady R (IMO 9161003) – then counting the containers on board and measuring volumes, OSC has been able to accurately gauge the number of artillery shells being shipped. All four of the Russian ships are US-sanctioned, and several have also been used for hauling military cargoes to and from Tartus in Syria.
MV Maya-1 has recently come off the Sea of Japan route, loaded cargo in China, transited the Suez Canal in February and conducted a turn-round in Kaliningrad, leaving on April 10 for an unknown destination. It has apparently been unimpeded whilst in transit or during its port calls, despite being sanctioned.
OSC tracked 64 trips by the four Russian ships between September 2023 and March 2025. Traffic peaked in January 2024, when seven cargoes were shipped. By March 2025, only three cargoes per month were being shipped. Over the entire period, the 64 sailings sighted shipped a calculated 15,809 containers, with each container likely to have held 224 boxes of 152mm artillery shells, or other loads made up of rockets, 122mm or mortar rounds. Using these figures, OSC estimates that up to 6 million shells might have been shipped to Russia by North Korea by the end of March 2025.
Once unloaded at the Russian ports, the containers are moved by train directly to Russia ammunition depots servicing the Ukrainian front line. The main receiving depot at Tikhoretsk, 60 miles south of Rostov, was attacked by Ukrainian drones on September 21, 2024, with an estimated 90% of the stockpile destroyed. In 2025, Ukraine is planning on producing 3000 of its own-design Bars, Peklo and R-360 Neptune missiles, the latter of which has a range of more than 600 miles, and all of which are capable of attacking Moscow
Ukrainian defense intelligence estimates that North Korea is providing half of the ammunition currently being consumed on the Ukrainian front line. Batches of the Korean ammunition have to be proofed and separate range tables drawn up, as the performance of the Korean ammunition is inconsistent and inferior to Russia’s own production. The North Korean shells are also prone to exploding in the breach, if loaded into barrels which are hot from high intensity fire missions.
Russia is also known to receive shipments of 122mm and 152mm ammunition shells from Iran, albeit in lesser volumes. Iranian exports have tended more towards the supply of drones and missiles. Iran ships weapons through the Caspian ports of Bandar-e Anzali and Amirabad to either Kaspiysk in Dagestan or the Volga-Don trans-shipment port at Olaya. On January 2 this year, Iranian social media images showed Iranian air defense and truck-mounted Fath-360 tactical ballistic missile systems (comparable in capability to the M142 HIMARS) at the dockside at Bandar-e Anzali prior to loading.
Saronic, a start-up launched in 2022 to focus on autonomous vessels for defense systems, acquired Gulf Craft, a Louisiana-based shipbuilder, to accelerate its growth into autonomous shipbuilding. The company says it gives it an immediate capability in shipbuilding as it also unveiled its concepts for a next-generation 150-foot vessel named the Marauder.
Gulf Craft located in Franklin, Louisiana is a custom builder of aluminum boats. Established in 1965, the company builds ferries, offshore support, and other commercial vessels.
“Today marks a significant milestone in Saronic’s expansion into autonomous shipbuilding and lays the foundation for our vision of our larger, next-generation shipyard, Port Alpha,” said Saronic CEO Dino Mavrookas. “While we actively search for a home for Port Alpha, this acquisition gives us the immediate capacity to meet urgent customer needs for larger autonomous vessels and the flexibility to scale to address emerging commercial and defense applications of these advanced systems.”
Saronic announced in February 2025 that it had completed its next round of funding raising $600 million in its Series C round. Having invested in developing and expanding its manufacturing capabilities for its small ASVs over the past two years, the company outlined its vision for a new shipbuilding base that it calls Port Alpha. It said the new shipyard would be capable of delivering new classes of autonomous ships at the speed and scale needed to protect and defend the maritime domain.
The company reports the acquisition of Gulf Craft provides a strategically located shipyard on the Gulf Coast that will serve as the prototyping and production hub for its medium unmanned surface vessel (MUSV) fleet. The yard provides the infrastructure and skilled workforce it says will be needed to develop, rapidly iterate, and scale the production of Saronic’s MUSVs today and into the future. Saronic has retained Gulf Craft’s workforce and expects to create more than 500 new jobs over the next 3-4 years. In addition to bringing on skilled shipbuilders, welders, and electricians, Saronic anticipates creating new roles for engineers, technologists, and naval architects to develop and scale production of its MUSVs.
Gulf Craft builds aluminum commercial vessels at its shipyard in Louisiana (Gulf Craft)
The acquisition adds nearly 100 acres to Saronic’s footprint, supporting both immediate MUSV development and production as well as capacity for significant expansion. Saronic plans to invest more than $250 million directly into the shipyard, which will encompass large facility upgrades that will enable it to apply a first-principles approach to shipbuilding. This includes modernizing infrastructure, acquiring new machinery, and updating the facilities while focusing on building a production system engineered for speed, scalability, and quality. These upgrades will support a rapid capacity ramp-up, enabling Saronic to deliver up to 50 unmanned ships per year.
The company also unveiled Marauder, a 150-foot Autonomous Surface Vessel (ASV) designed to support a wide range of missions for the U.S., its allies, and commercial customers. With a payload capacity of 40 metric tons, the autonomous ship is designed to travel up to 3,500 nautical miles or loiter for 30+ days, depending on mission requirements.
Meet the newest member of Saronic’s family of Autonomous Surface Vessels. Bayou-born. Mission-ready. Marauder.
— Saronic (@Saronic) April 16, 2025
At 150-feet, Marauder is a medium unmanned surface vessel (MUSV) that will integrate the same proven autonomy stack used across Saronic’s existing ASVs. This new vessel… pic.twitter.com/A51DKOSl2t
Marauder is designed to be fully unmanned and will integrate the autonomy stack used across Saronic’s existing family of ASVs. The vessel incorporates Saronic’s vertically integrated approach, disciplined engineering philosophy, and strong domestic supplier network.
As part of its long-term vision, Saronic says it intends to invest over $2.5 billion to develop Port Alpha, which it calls the world’s most advanced shipyard, designed to produce hundreds of unmanned vessels annually. It looks to align its operations with the national efforts to revitalize the U.S. shipbuilding industrial base and capitalize on the U.S. Navy’s growing interest in future autonomous systems.
On Wednesday, a fire broke out aboard a ro/ro cargo ship at the port of Zeebrugge, Belgium, prompting an immediate – and successful – emergency response.
Ro/ro fires are a serious issue, and the growing popularity of electric cars has made the potential consequences more severe. Fires can spread rapidly within enclosed ro/ro decks, and EV fires are even harder to put out. New industry guidance calls for operators to respond with evacuation, ventilation shutdown and initiation of CO2 flooding very early in the firefighting process – before the fire can spread or injure anyone.
At about 1500 hours, a fire broke out aboard the ro/ro cargo vessel Delphine at the CLdN terminal in Zeebrugge. The blaze started on the third deck, which contained 60 electric vehicles and 40 conventional cars. The captain opted to fully evacuate the ship’s 26-member crew, but stayed aboard to coordinate as firefighters and other first responders from shore came aboard to assist. Four firefighting tugs also arrived on scene to provide cooling water on the starboard side.
Forse brandweerinzet in haven van Zeebrugge. Er woedt brand op een schip met o.a. elektrische auto’s.
— Aart van Oosten (@yellow_flame) April 16, 2025
via https://t.co/fQc7F5f1tp
Alarmering via https://t.co/tspq2kFNhN pic.twitter.com/fX6ktq5JQ3
To defeat the fire, the master ordered the space closed off and the CO2 system was activated. The fire suppression system worked as designed, and the fire was brought under control, according to port vice-chairman Dirk de Fauw. “There was a lot of smoke from the electric cars, which also made the extinguishing work more difficult,” he said.
The fire department is aware of the possibility of a reflash and is standing by overnight, de Fauw told local VRT. The fire department said in a statement that it was trucking in a fresh supply of inert gas to release into the hold in order to displace any intrusion of oxygen.
“The vehicles are no longer burning, but as soon as fresh air comes onto the deck we will have a resurgence,” the brigade told HLN. “We have to avoid that. For that reason, we will blow nitrogen into the deck that we will have brought over from Antwerp. Although it is still not certain that the situation will be under control.”
Responders believe that 60-70 vehicles in the hold have burned out, but the full extent of the damage remains to be seen. No injuries or pollution have been reported, and containment barriers have been deployed to keep any contaminants from spreading.
Top image: Port of Zeebrugge (Sebaso / CC BY 4.0)
The Norwegian Storting (Parliament) has confirmed the requirements and schedule for the regulations to move passenger and ferry shipping to zero emissions while sailing within the country’s World Heritage fjords. The first phase is set to start in 2026 and progress as technology becomes available for larger ships to sail with zero emissions.
The process of developing the regulations began in 2018 with the Norwegian Maritime Authority. Implementation however has been delayed as they worked to define the scope of the regulations and waited for technology to advance to the level required to maintain shipping while achieving the goals.
“The process of developing zero-emission requirements for the World Heritage fjords has been long and demanding, both for the industry and for the Norwegian Maritime Authority,” said Alf Tore Sørheim, Director General of Shipping and Navigation. “Now that new provisions have been adopted, it is important to highlight that they provide the clarity the industry has long awaited. This ensures predictability and offers the opportunity to comply with the requirements.”
The first phase is just eight months away. As of January 1, 2026, passenger ships of less than 10,000 gross tons will have to meet the zero-emission requirement for the World Heritage fjords, which include Geirangerfjorden, a primary destination for the cruise industry, as well as Nærøyfjorden, Aurlandsfjorden, Sunnylvsfjorden and Tafjorden. All passenger ships, including ferries, must meet the requirement, but for larger ships of 10,000 gross tons and above it will be phased in with the requirement to sail with zero emissions as of January 1, 2032.
The Minister of Climate and Environment, Andreas Bjelland Eriksen, describes the legislation as a significant breakthrough for the World Heritage fjords. It is a key step in Norway’s overall sustainability programs and a commitment to the tourism industry.
The authorities note that the zero-emission requirement is technology-neutral and does not prescribe specific solutions. It is up to the operators in the World Heritage fjords to use energy sources that do not emit carbon dioxide (CO?) and methane (CH?). However, when such energy sources are used, there are requirements for greenhouse gas emission reductions, in accordance with the EU regulatory framework.
As part of the final test of the regulation, the government determined that passenger ships may use biogas as an alternative fuel, but that when biogas is used as an alternative fuel, it must be kept separate from fossil fuels until it is bunkered. In addition, the biogas must be bunkered within the final month before the ship enters the World Heritage fjords, and the amount bunkered must correspond to the amount expected to be used during the voyage through the fjords. Biogas sourced from the gas grid, accompanied by a certificate based on a mass balance system, does not meet the requirements for operating in the World Heritage fjords.
It also includes a requirement that ships must use shore power where available. The Storting also agreed to create shore-side electricity in the city of Flåm. It is allocating NOK 100 million ($9.5 million) in support of a shore power project.
Norway is at the forefront of developing technologies including batteries for its ferries as well as alternative fuels. In 2022, coastal ship operator Havila ran the first demonstration of a passenger ship operating solely on batteries in Geirangerfjord. Competitor Hurtigruten has also released its concept designs for a zero-emission passenger ship.
