Energy projects

The US offshore wind buildout will be a boon for Jones Act vessels in the long run, but current equipment shortages, high costs and the restrictive effects of cabotage laws are hampering initial construction.

Although carriers and project forwarders have seen lower wind volumes in some markets this year, the slowdown is bringing the US wind buildout to a more realistic level, stakeholders say.

While long-term optimism supports the MPV market, industry analysts see short-term divergence in time charter rate averages.

Fresh investments among oilfield services giants should bolster the offshore services market, with supply chain spending expected to grow 16% in 2023 and 2024.

The funding shortage for breakbulk port facilities will create severe constraints on both cargo owners and vessel operators as offshore wind construction accelerates and new types of energy projects are developed.

As US project cargo demand — and cargoes themselves — grow, heavy-haul trucking carriers are struggling with permitting delays, infrastructure complications and a rapidly aging workforce.

Multipurpose owners and operators are growing increasingly wary of the breakbulk market’s downward trend as cargoes remain hard to find and the wind energy market falters.

Meeting the Biden administration’s target of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy installed by 2030 will require floating offshore wind, which means building new, specialized port facilities to facilitate development in much deeper waters.

Toepfer’s multipurpose index has maintained its downward momentum due partly to a delay in the emergence of wind cargoes, while Drewry’s index showed some signs of life following a summer dip.

MPV newbuildings are being designed for higher cargo intake and improved efficiency, but any consensus on green fuels and propulsion systems remains elusive.

Beyond the supply chain snarls, permitting bottlenecks and high costs that are hampering offshore wind development generally, the Gulf is a less-than-ideal location for offshore wind compared with other parts of the US.

The wind energy industry must resolve a number of supply chain issues or it has little chance of reaching the US’ 2030 goal for energy generation from onshore and offshore wind.

The joint venture will increase Cosco’s fleet to 18 heavy-lift semi-submersible vessels by the end of 2023.

Expected demand for wind cargo, among other factors, is still driving underlying optimism in the MPV sector, but a wind turbine tech “arms race” could cast a long shadow.

The merger of wind installation vessel operators Cadeler and Eneti, which already have a combined project backlog worth $1.75 billion, was driven by an expected surge in offshore wind farm projects through 2030, Cadeler CEO Mikkel Gleerup told a webinar Friday.

The deal made by the carrier highlights the challenges of securing the supply of green methanol from a global market that is in its infancy.

Changes at Maersk and Combi-Lift reveal interest in capturing a larger share of the project forwarding market.

Vineyard Wind is one of the first commercial-scale offshore wind projects under construction in the US and at completion will generate some 800 megawatts of power.

The drive to decarbonize European inland transport by switching freight from the road to greener alternatives took a step forward this week.

Quarterly earnings reports reveal that wind turbine manufacturers are slowly recovering from a pandemic market battering as orders and revenues ramp up.

As funding opportunities expand, energy security concerns force investors to reevaluate their priorities, attendees at the Journal of Commerce’s Breakbulk and Project Cargo Conference were told.

Despite a temporary lull, heavy-deck carriers and industry analysts see a “mind-boggling” outlook for global offshore wind demand.

EPC projects drive much of the global demand for project and breakbulk logistics services from carriers, forwarders, and other suppliers.

Even as breakbulk volumes ebb from their pandemic highs, several mega-projects planned for South Louisiana are expected to keep project cargo moving at the Port of New Orleans.

The acquisition of Avondale by the port comes just as the state of Louisiana readies to auction its first round of offshore wind leases.

Project and breakbulk carriers and logistics service providers have a healthy to-do list of energy-related cargo projects ahead of them; now the question is whether rates and availability will return to pre-pandemic levels.

Danish power company Ørsted says policymakers must provide a regulatory environment that allows companies to commit to the huge investment required in developing shipping’s fuel of the future.

Ambitious plans to build offshore wind off the coast of the United States has run up against permitting bottlenecks and a lack of investment.

Two years of pandemic-related oil and gas project delays and cutbacks in global supply due to the Russia-Ukraine war are driving demand for project logistics services in the short and long term.

Bottlenecks and a lack of needed infrastructure may put the “aspirational” global offshore wind installation schedule out of reach, an analyst says.

Developers have installed a total of 139 gigawatts of onshore wind energy production across the US, with another 23 GW under construction or in advanced development as of the second quarter of 2022.

The transport of crucial project cargo bound for power generation facilities and renewable energy projects in the US could be stymied by a possible rail strike.

Legislation now under consideration by a Senate committee could put the kibosh on the Biden administration’s ambitious plans to install 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030.

Millions of tons of project cargo freight will be moving soon as energy projects, including Qatar’s massive LNG facility, gather steam, logistics executives say.

Maersk Supply Service has ordered a new wind turbine installation vessel to build offshore wind projects on the US Atlantic seaboard.

As the offshore wind buildout gains momentum, logistics providers are adapting European models to meet the specific needs and constraints of the US market.

Eneti, formerly known as Scorpio Bulkers, is accelerating its transition from bulk carrier to offshore wind specialist with the acquisition of Seajacks International and its fleet of five wind turbine installation vessels (WTIVs).

A Maryland developer has committed to building a 1.2 GW offshore wind project and a multi-million-dollar monopile manufacturing facility.

The Port of Salem, New Jersey, has been awarded a $9 million federal infrastructure grant to help meet offshore wind logistics and manufacturing requirements.

Oslo-based offshore wind specialist Cadeler is investing $651 million in new turbine installation vessels as the global offshore wind industry gains traction.