Founder and Editor, The Maritime Gazette
Maritime journalist, PR and communications specialist
Luke Smout is a maritime journalist, PR and communications specialist, and the Founder and Editor of The Maritime Gazette. He leads the publication’s editorial direction across shipping, ports, vessels, maritime business and public policy, translating complex maritime developments into clear reporting and useful reference coverage for readers in the United Kingdom and internationally.
Luke Smout leads The Maritime Gazette’s editorial standards, reporting development and public-facing maritime communications. The publication uses verifiable factual records, writes in its own editorial voice and corrects material errors transparently.
Luke’s professional focus combines maritime journalism with PR and communications work, with an emphasis on clear public information, sector context and responsible editorial practice.
Sources indicated on 6 November 2026 that ammonia and methanol bunkering both made practical gains during the previous week, with two ammonia‑capable vessels receiving green ammonia and one named case at Ulsan.
Follow Luke Smout’s latest Gazette reporting alongside the connected archive of maritime coverage below.
Read this reportLloyd’s Register’s Fuel for Thought: Ports report, published via reports on 6 November 2026, warns a rapid build‑up of alternative‑fuel ships is outpacing port readiness.
reports says hours spent searching for data, checking systems and copying into spreadsheets are reducing time for commercial and operational decision-making.
Sources report 19 ethanol-capable dual-fuel dry bulk vessels have been ordered, the first such inclusion in the sector’s newbuilding pipeline and a development that raises questions about future competition for cargo.
A weekly report from shipbroker Banchero Costa, cited by reports on 6 November 2026, says global seaborne LPG exports have fallen in 2026 while US exports continued to grow.
S&P Global Energy CERA’s fleet outlook, reported on 6 November 2026, warns incoming tanker deliveries could undermine the recent freight rally and the high prices seen in the secondhand market.
Sources indicated on 6 November 2026 that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said two oil tankers caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, following separate claims about five other vessels the previous day.
Meyer Werft will consolidate all activities in its new offshore converter segment into NEPTUN Offshore GmbH & Co. KG, creating a distinct organisational and legal structure.
Sources report Oldendorff Carriers has reflagged two Capesize bulk carriers to Germany, with the Alice Oldendorff already transferred and the Gina Oldendorff due to follow.
MarineLink reported on 6 November 2026 that the Marshall Islands‑flagged oil products tanker MT Velos Sapphire was struck in the Gulf while en route to Bahrain; one seafarer was killed, the ship's manager said.
Lion Shipbrokers’ Week 45 market note, published by reports on 6 November 2026, recorded forty‑eight second‑hand vessel sales and reported that values remained firm.
A workshop in Accra on 6 November 2026 brought together international and regional agencies to push forward digitalisation efforts in ports across nine West and Central African countries, the report said.
CM Energy is supplying an integrated cable-handling and marine equipment package for a new Asso.subsea vessel, a deal MarineLink said broadens the supplier’s role in Europe’s offshore wind sector.
The Baltic Dry Index climbed by 65 points to 2,805 on Friday, 6 November 2026, according to a report from reports citing the London-based Baltic Exchange.
A joint EY‑FICCI report recommends a decade‑long vessel procurement pipeline to give long‑term demand visibility and speed the industrial scale‑up of India’s shipbuilding and ship‑repair sector.
Sources report that thousands of sailors are stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, suffering unpaid wages and increased danger as the US–Iran conflict disrupts shipping routes.
The IMO has launched a survey to gather information on the level of implementation and use of Maritime Single Window systems and to understand their impact on administrative workload, sources indicated on 6 November 2026.
Wärtsilä will deliver dual‑fuel engines and thrusters for the first FLNG units under construction at Samsung Heavy Industries for the U.S.‑based Delfin LNG project, a report said on 5 November 2026.
After under a year of live use with shipowners and managers, AskChief has reached 100 vessels and is now opening its specialised AI for Technical and HSQE teams to the wider market, sources indicated on 5 November 2026.
A large majority of MEPs on the European Parliament’s ENVI Committee voted on 4 November against adding Shree Ram and YSI Recyclers to the 16th List of European ship recycling facilities and urged the European Commission not to approve beaching yards under the EU Ship Recycling Regulation.
Sources indicated that MPC Oceanic Group AG will acquire a 41% stake in Marlow Navigation, creating a long-term strategic partnership while leaving Marlow operationally independent.
A The report dated 5 November 2026 finds that improvements at container terminals are being undermined by underinvestment in the roads, railways and inland connections that move cargo away from ports.
Fujairah’s low-sulphur marine gasoil sold at an approximately $430/mt premium to Singapore this week, widening by about $180/mt since early September as October prices reached levels not seen since late 2021, sources report.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and the army said separate statements reported five oil tankers and a tugboat had caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, sources indicated on 5 November 2026.
Xeneta’s Ocean Outlook Report, presented by Chief Analyst Peter Sand at the Xeneta Summit in Munich on 5 November 2026, forecasts a 30 per cent decline in global ocean container spot rates in 2027 as capacity tied to Red Sea transits returns, sources indicated.
Dorian LPG said record results for the three months to 30 September 2026 were driven by market strength and ship resale gains, and announced an irregular cash dividend of roughly $53.7 million payable in late November.
Sources indicated on 5 November 2026 that an Inmarsat Maritime Safety Data Hub is intended to help shipping reduce incidents by improving the quality and use of safety data.
A weekly broker bulletin reported 51 vessel contracts in the seven days to 5 November 2026, signalling elevated newbuilding demand across several ship types.
A The report dated 5 November 2026 says seven sanctioned Russian tankers routinely falsified AIS positions to appear drifting near the Bosphorus while analytics from Windward showed them bound for Novorossiysk.
Teaching Chief Mate Ms Yu Jiajia of Dalian Maritime University’s Navigation College has been selected for the 2027 IMO Gender Equality Award, sources indicated on 5 November 2026.
Lloyd's Register has awarded Approval in Principle to Petrobras for the conceptual design of the REVIT I TUPI FPSO, a move reported on 5 November 2026 and presented as a step in the operator’s Tupi Field redevelopment strategy.
MarineLink reported on 5 November 2026 that CM Energy is contributing to an ongoing integrated cable-lay installation for ASSO Subsea, described as an international subsea contractor that specialises in submarine cable installation and protection.
Leif O. Høegh will mark his family’s 100 years in shipping in 2027 and has reflected on Höegh Autoliners’ ‘‘first mover’’ legacy, sources indicated on 5 November 2026.
A Klaveness Combination Carriers subsidiary has put one CLEANBU vessel on a three‑year time charter with immediate effect, the company said in a report published on 5 November 2026.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and Qingdao Port have signed a work plan to explore methanol bunkering pilots on a direct Singapore–Qingdao route and to study pooled methanol demand under the Singapore–China green shipping corridor.
A Joint IEA‑IEF‑OPEC Technical Workshop on 5 November 2026 brought together stakeholders and experts to examine maritime energy flows, with shipping and insurance placed centre stage in discussions of market stability.
Maersk has lifted its full‑year earnings outlook after stronger commercial and operational performance amid resilient trade flows and congestion‑driven capacity limits.
Sources report the Baltic Dry Index at 2,740 on 5 November 2026, an increase of 46 points; the index is compiled in London by the Baltic Exchange and covers dry bulk cargoes including coal, grain and iron ore.
Sources report that Democrats winning both chambers in the 3 November 2026 US midterms could indirectly affect how the United States engages at the International Maritime organisation, a development experts link to a wider return to climate action.
BIMCO convened representatives from shipbuilders, owners and class societies in Tokyo on 28–29 October to concentrate on regulatory clarity, decarbonisation and digitalisation as practical drivers for future ship design.
