The Conversation - Maritime

During the recent conflict between Iran and Israel, Iran threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s major shipping routes. Would that be possible, and what effects …

Moving people and things around the world by sea has a big climate impact. The shipping industry produces almost 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions – roughly the same as …

The Iranian parliament has approved the closure of key shipping route the Strait of Hormuz, in a move that could further escalate the Israel/Iran war. The strait lies between Iran …

The unexpected attack by Israel on Iran, a major oil-producing nation, may undermine anaemic global economic growth and hinder central banks’ ability to cope in an already uncertain market. Iran …

If war breaks out someday between the United States and China, one of the major concerns for Australia is the impact on its trade. Our trade routes are long and …

The UN’s International Maritime Organization has just agreed to start charging ships for the greenhouse gases they emit. After decades of ineffective incremental tweaks to shipping emissions, the breakthrough came …

You’re probably reading this article on a device assembled in Asia, using materials shipped there from all around the world. After it was made, your phone or laptop most likely …

The Panama Canal is one of the most important waterways in the world, with about 7% of global trade passing through. It also relies heavily on rainfall. Without enough freshwater …

Ships transport around 80% of the world’s cargo. From your food, to your car to your phone, chances are it got to you by sea. The vast majority of the …

If you look at a map of lightning near the Port of Singapore, you’ll notice an odd streak of intense lightning activity right over the busiest shipping lane in the …

Temu has made a remarkable entry in the global e-commerce landscape, quickly becoming the fifth largest online marketplace in France. Critics claim Temu’s ultra-competitive pricing relies on unfair practices. Yet …

The world’s major shipping companies say they won’t be sending vessels back to the Red Sea any time soon despite a pledge by Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen not to …

On his way to the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro in November, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Peruvian President Dina Boluarte to officially open a new US$3.6 billion …

Shipping generates 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This could increase to 10% if current trends continue, according to Transport & Environment – a non-profit organisation dedicated to decarbonising transport …

Imagine you are a blue whale swimming up the California coast, as you do every spring. You are searching for krill in the Santa Barbara Channel, a zone that teems …

A dockworkers strike that froze operations at East Coast and Gulf Coast ports for 2½ days was paused on Oct. 3. The Conversation U.S. asked Anna Nagurney, a scholar of …

Getting any product to consumers, whether it’s a can of sardines or a screwdriver, requires that supply chains function well. The availability of labor is essential in each link of …

Whether you’re buying a can of sardines or a screwdriver, getting products to consumers requires that supply chains function well. The availability of labor is essential in each link of …

In 1993, X-Files fans began using the term “relationshippers” to describe fans who were invested in a romantic relationship between the two leads, Fox Mulder and Dana Scully. Although the …

The intensifying great power competition between the People’s Republic of China and the United States has meant the possibility of future war in the Indo-Pacific region has become a regular …

Australian transport emissions are still growing. As a result, transport is expected to be our biggest-emitting sector by 2030. So, cutting transport emissions is crucial to Australia’s net-zero strategy. Studies …

In the past few days, two well known survivors of the battle between marine mammals and vessels have been spotted in Australian waters. I’m talking about Bladerunner the humpback and …

In the past few days, two well known survivors of the battle between marine mammals and vessels have been spotted in Australian waters. I’m talking about Bladerunner the humpback and …

The concept of a freeport – an area where normal tax and customs rules don’t apply – has existed for centuries. Over time, different terms have emerged. They include export …

America’s first large-scale offshore wind farms began sending power to the Northeast in early 2024, but a wave of wind farm project cancellations and rising costs have left many people …

America’s first large-scale offshore wind farms began sending power to the Northeast in early 2024, but a wave of wind farm project cancellations and rising costs have left many people …

A new tentative agreement was reached on July 30 between the two groups involved in a labour dispute affecting British Columbia ports with the help of the Industrial Relations Board. …

In 2011, pirates carried out 212 attacks in a vast area spanning Somali waters, the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, actions that the World Bank …

Ships carry around 90% of traded goods and emit about 3% of global CO₂. The International Maritime Organization (IMO), the UN agency responsible for regulating shipping, recently set out plans …

Germany and some other EU countries are hastily setting up new floating gas terminals at their ports to help cope with the severe reduction in natural gas exports from Russian …

Global warming is making weather patterns more extreme and increasing inequalities across regions. However, economic growth is still possible, with economies showing a range of responses to the impacts of …

Reports of lengthy shipping delays for vessels traveling through the Panama Canal this year have highlighted the critical but often overlooked role that fresh water plays across global supply chains. …

Over the weekend, the Australian government revealed that last Tuesday its navy divers had sustained “minor injuries”, likely due to sonar pulses from a Chinese navy vessel. The divers had …

In the vast expanse of the world’s oceans, a transformation is underway. The international shipping sector, made up of thousands of massive cargo ships laden with many of the goods …

Every year, parcel delivery companies – think UPS and FedEx – hire tens of thousands of seasonal driver helpers to handle the deluge of presents that arrive with the holidays. …

An Iranian fishing vessel, Almeraj 1, was reportedly hijacked by Somali pirates in November 2023. According to media reports, the pirates demanded US$400,000 in ransom and threatened to use the …

The US is reportedly considering strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen that have been menacing commercial ships in the Red Sea since the conflict began in Gaza. The Pentagon has …

Attacks on international cargo ships in the Red Sea from Houthi-controlled Yemen have seen several cargo vessels hit by missiles and drones in recent days. In response, global shipping companies …

Humans are racing to harness the ocean’s vast potential to power global economic growth. Worldwide, ocean-based industries such as fishing, shipping and energy production generate at least US$1.5 trillion in …

Recent attacks on commercial vessels by Houthi militia in the Red Sea have put the vital shipping region in the spotlight. The Yemen-based rebels claim to be targeting Israeli-linked vessels, …

Automotive giants Tesla and Volvo have announced pauses to the production of their electric vehicles (EVs) in Europe. Electric vehicles are seeing record sales and demand worldwide, but a lack …

Attacks by Yemeni Houthi rebels on merchant ships in the Red Sea have hit world trade. Between November and December 2023, the number of containers travelling through the Red Sea …

As the Houthi militant group in Yemen ramps up its attacks on vessels in the Red Sea – ostensibly in response to what it calls Israel’s “genocidal crimes” in Gaza …

The United States and the United Kingdom are launching ongoing missile and drone strikes against the Yemeni armed group Ansarallah, commonly known as the Houthis. A faction in the ongoing …

British people are known around the world for their love of tea. This is borne out by the statistics: a staggering 50 billion cups of tea are consumed on average …

When the container ship MV Dali, 300 metres long and massing around 100,000 tonnes, lost power and slammed into one of the support piers of the Francis Scott Key Bridge …

The MV Dali, a 984-foot, 100,000-ton cargo ship, rammed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge when leaving Baltimore harbor on March 26, 2024, causing a portion of the bridge to …

The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on 26 March was a shocking and tragic event. Six people remain unaccounted for in the disaster, which saw the …

On March 26, the container ship Dali in Baltimore’s industrial harbour struck an interstate highway bridge, causing it to catastrophically collapse. Eight highway maintenance workers were thought to be on …

Catastrophic collapses of major bridges are thankfully rare. Notable examples in the last couple of decades include the failure of the I35-W in Minneapolis in August 2007, and the collapse …