Freight

The last year has been a chaotic one for the liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade, and it could be a preview of what’s to come in the years ahead as the super-chilled fuel is further commoditized, according to Flex LNG Ltd. CEO Oystein Kalleklev.  Flex owns a fleet of 13 LNG carriers. Like others in…

The rates to charter vessels for spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments hit records this week amid renewed demand from buyers in Asia and the strong prices that are attracting U.S. cargoes and tying up ships for longer journeys.  According to Spark Commodities, LNG tanker rates in the Pacific Basin were assessed earlier this week…

Baltic Exchange CEO Mark Jackson believes the nearly 300-year-old organization “sells trust” to the maritime industry, something that has factored heavily into its entry into the liquefied natural gas (LNG) market.  Founded in 1744, the Baltic had its beginnings in the coffee houses of London where merchants and shipowners met. It provided rules for backroom…

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipping market remains tight as demand from South America to Asia is strong, but analysts said freight rates could diverge from LNG prices in the coming weeks on a variety of factors.  For now, vessel rates are up. While the spot market in the Pacific Basin is “fairly quiet,” demand…

Intercontinental Exchange Inc. said Tuesday its liquefied natural gas (LNG) freight futures contracts launched Monday and were traded by leading industry players on their first day.  The contracts are based on LNG freight spot price assessments by Spark Commodities. ICE said 15 lots of the Spark30S Atlantic and 15 lots of the Spark25S Pacific contracts…

Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE) said Wednesday it plans to launch two liquefied natural gas (LNG) freight futures contracts next month, giving traders, vessel charterers and other market participants another tool to manage increasingly volatile shipping costs in the space. ICE said the contracts would be based on LNG freight spot price assessments by Spark Commodities,…

It took only hours after contracts were launched late last month on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) for the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) freight futures trades to be executed, a sign of the demand for more risk management in the gas export market.

The California Energy Commission (CEC) on Wednesday awarded more than $36 million for clean energy freight transportation in the Los Angeles/Long Beach ports and other clean transportation projects — $24 million for freight transportation and $12 million for other projects. The South Coast Air Quality Management District and Long Beach Harbor Department each received $10 million, and the Los Angeles Harbor Department received $4.5 million to carry out field demonstrations of medium- and heavy-duty cargo handling equipment that have zero and near-zero emissions. Last year, CEC launched the state’sSustainable Freight Action Plan, supported by grants from the statewide alternative/renewable fuel and vehicle technology program. Zero emission and near-zero emission technologies are involved in the program.

Corporate and government sector policymakers are gravitating toward increased use of alternative transportation fuels, including natural gas and renewable natural gas (RNG). The CEO of the nation’s largest gas utility said that in the years ahead all of the alternatives from electric vehicles (EV) to fuel cell technology will be needed.