The UAE Has Gulf of Aden Shipping Covered
21.04.2025
Imagery widely reported in social media has shown the deployment of an EL/M-2084 radar within the grounds of an Emirati military base at Bosaso, in Somalia’s Puntland region.
The Israeli-manufactured and widely exported EL/M-2084 radar has a 290-mile surveillance range. Mounted on a berm built for the purpose to give it extra range, the radar has the capability to detect, locate and track the full range of missile, aircraft and drone targets across the full width of the Gulf of Aden, from Aden in the west to well beyond Mukulla in the east. This is a sea area through which the currently under-used Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor passes.
Until recently this was an area in which the Houthis mounted a large number of attacks, but whether through lack of targets or the effectiveness of US air operations against the Houthis’ missile and drone infrastructure, such attacks are much diminished in recent months. Reflecting monitoring by UKMTO in Dubai, the main threat in the area now appears to come from low-level Somali-based pirates.
The EL/M-2084 is a particularly effective radar, as noted by its export success with ‘front line’ nations such as Azerbaijan, Finland, and India. Used at longer ranges for air surveillance, at shorter ranges it can be used for acquisition purposes, tied into air defense systems such as Iron Dome.
Bosaso is one of a string of Emirati light-footprint bases which the UAE maintains to cover the Gulf of Aden and approaches to the Red Sea. The presence of Emirati bases at Bosaso and at Hadibo airport on the island of Socotra is de facto acknowledged by the respective host governments. The status of recently-constructed airfields and associated possible surveillance facilities on the islands of Perim, at the southern entrance to the Red Sea and at Abd Al Kuri, is more contested.
The UAE has not formally acknowledged its military presence at any of these facilities, nor for any in North Africa. Whilst a single EL/M-2084 radar at Bosaso is effective enough on its own, if it were networked with other such systems on Perim and on Abd Al Kuri, the surveillance coverage would intersect and overlap, providing corroboration and triangulation of targets detected, and hence greater precision. However, even the best surveillance on its own is of limited value, unless linked in with systems which can respond, and there is no evidence of active air defense systems being positioned to cover these areas.
Chinese Shipping Company Wants to Lease the Former U.S. Base at Adak
15.04.2025
The head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command supports reactivating the naval airbase at Adak, a remote Cold War station in the Aleutian Islands - but the U.S. military isn't the only interested party, according to Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK). An unnamed Chinese shipping company has also reached out to the current landowner to express interest in negotiating a lease, Sullivan said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Thursday.
Adak was a key naval base throughout the Cold War, providing a logistics and surveillance hub near Russia's eastern shores. After the Base Realignment and Closure Commission process in the mid-1990s, it was shut down, and it ceased operations in 1997. The land is now held by the native Aleut Corporation.
The port's remoteness and austerity are hard to overstate: at 1,000 nautical miles west of Anchorage, it is closer to the capital of Russia's Kamchatka region than it is Alaska's main city. It is the second-rainiest place in the United States, and is subject to extreme winds, including hurricane-force North Pacific winter storms. As of 2022 it had a population of about 150 people, down from 6,000 at its peak.
The U.S. military still holds occasional exercises at Adak, and talk of reviving the base has circulated since at least 2021. The regional security situation is changing: Over the last three years, Russian and Chinese forces have begun operating jointly in the North Pacific and Bering Sea, sometimes crossing over into the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. These transits have received considerable attention, and Adak would be a natural location for an enhanced U.S. deterrent presence, Sen. Sullivan said Thursday.
Adm. Sam Paparo, head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, told the committee that he also favors reactivating Adak. "It is a further western point which would enable . . . [gaining] time and distance on any force capability that's looking to penetrate," Paparo said. "It would enable up to 10x the maritime patrol reconnaissance aircraft coverage of that key and increasingly contested space."
Sullivan suggested that Adak should be reactivated as a matter of urgency, as the U.S. Navy is not the only prospective tenant.
"The Aleut Corporation, these are great patriotic Americans. Alaska Natives serve at higher rates in the military than any other ethnic group in the country. They would love to do a deal with the Navy for a 99 year lease or something like that. But you know who checks in with them once a year?" Sullivan asked. "It's a Chinese shipping company that is, certainly, in my view, a front company for the [Chinese military]. So how embarrassing would it be to the Pentagon or the Navy . . . if somehow they signed 100 year lease with a quote 'Chinese shipping company' that always is out there looking at Adak?"
Sullivan emphasized that the Aleut Corporation would never sign a port lease with a Chinese firm, but asked Paparo his opinion all the same.
"I think it would be bad, because this is the modus operandi in [China's] Belt and Road Initiative," Paparo replied.
Northern Command and Indo-Pacific Command are working on a set of options to reactivate the base, Sullivan said, and he pressed for a final report before the end of the month.
Shipbuilding Orders Rebound as South Korea Looks to Benefit from U.S. Fees
07.04.2025
South Korea’s shipbuilding industry is highlighting a rebound in orders in March after a slow start to the year. It comes as the industry looks for ways to benefit from the proposed U.S. fees on Chinese-built ships.
To combat the growing Chinese domination of shipbuilding, South Korea’s strategy has included a focus on high-value ships and larger, more technologically advanced ships. This includes all forms of gas carriers where South Korea continues to lead the orders despite China’s growth in LNG tankers. In the long term, South Korea looks toward ammonia carriers, ammonia-fueled ships, automation, and other technologies.
Reports are the strategy worked in March 2025 with the South Korean yards garnering 55 percent of the orders based on tonnage according to data from Clarkson Research Service. South Korea recorded orders for 820,000 compensated gross tons (CGT) compared to the Chinese yards booking 520,000 CGT in March. By the number of vessels, however, China continued its lead booking 31 ship orders compared to South Korea’s 17 ships.
This is a strong rebound from February when China booked 70 percent of the orders by tonnage. South Korea’s yards booked just nine percent of the tonnage ordered in February. The reports highlighted that the Korean yards historically have lagged behind the Chinese in the first quarter of the year while also noting that last year South Korea only received 16 percent of the orders for the year versus 70 percent booked in China.
China also continues to hold a strong overall lead in the sector, Clarkson’s data shows Chinese yards have an order backlog of nearly 94 million CGT which is 59 percent of the global total. South Korea’s yards while ranking second have a backlog of just over 36 million CGT or 23 percent of the total.
The South Korean industry is looking toward the U.S. to help drive future business. In February it was reported that the U.S. Trade Representative was proposing fees for Chinese-built ships calling in U.S. ports. The Trump administration has latched on to the concept as part of its plan to rebuild U.S. shipbuilding.
The Korean news outlet CHOSUNBIZ reports fears of the pending fees might already be impacting future shipbuilding plans. Citing reports from Daishin Securities it writes that ExxonMobil canceled orders for two liquefied natural gas bunkering vessels (LNGBVs) intended for China.
HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, South Korea’s largest shipbuilder, reported yesterday, April 3, that it had booked an additional order for an LNG carrier valued at approximately $263 million. The group said it has now received orders for a total of 24 ships worth $4.07 billion, achieving 22.6 percent of its annual order target of $18.05 billion. By ship type, the company has received orders in 2025 for an LNG carrier, four LNG bunkering vessels, an LPG/ammonia carrier, and two ethane carriers, as well as 12 containerships, and four tankers.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative held public hearings on March 24 and March 26, regarding the proposed actions in the Section 301 investigation on China’s targeting of the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors for dominance. It also accepted written comments and for seven days afterward was also accepting rebuttal comments. No timeline was released for completing the review but it is expected the office will issue its final recommendations which Trump will incorporate into the overall plan for U.S. shipbuilding. Combined with the new tariffs, many have warned it could have a chilling effect on global trade and the shipping industry.
CIMC achieves record profit in 2024
31.03.2025
China International Marine Containers (CIMC) announced a record profit of around US$410 million in 2024, translating to an astonishing increase of over 600% compared to the previous year. Additionally, the Chinese box manufacturer increased its revenue by 40% to US$24.5 billion.
According to the company’s statement, there were no significant changes in the Group’s principal operating model, and the products and businesses contributing 10% or more to the Group’s revenue included the container manufacturing business, road transportation vehicles business and energy, chemical and liquid food equipment business and logistics services business.
CIMC Chairman Mai Boliang anticipates a decline in container demand in 2025 following the record-breaking results of 2024. He expects a market correction after China’s container output surpassed 8 million TEUs last year, while uncertainties stemming from US-China tensions could further impact container shipping.
Harnessing Wind, Slower Speeds, Efficient Routing to Reduce Climate Impact
24.03.2025
Discussions underway at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on how to decarbonize shipping ignore effective near-term solutions including slow steaming, more efficient routing and wind-assist retrofits.
The implementation of these advances could be achieved by strengthening the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), the IMO’s energy efficiency measure that has received little attention.
The IMO’s Intersessional Working Group on Air Pollution and Energy Efficiency will meet to revise and improve the functioning of the CII in April. It will make recommendations to the Marine Environment Protection Committee before April 7.
Most of the attention is focused on so-called mid-term measures: an economic element and a marine fuel standard, rather than on strengthening the CII.
Incorporation of so-called short-term solutions will ensure better results for whatever mid-term measures are ultimately adopted. By incorporating wind-assist technologies, slow steaming, and more efficient routing, among others, ships will burn less dirty fuel and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), black carbon and other pollutants, resulting in healthier air and oceans. Slow steaming also will reduce underwater noise pollution and whale strikes.
The CII is a mechanism that rates the energy efficiency of ship operations but provides minimal penalties for those that consistently rank below average. Instead, the measure should incentivize ship owners to improve operational efficiency, enabling shipping customers to recognize the carbon intensity of their shipping supply chain and select better rated ships. Unfortunately, weak enforcement undermines the effectiveness of this provision.
Readily available wind technologies could reduce fuel costs as much as 30 percent, yet initial costs and operational concerns appear to be major reasons for industry resistance.
Shipping companies that prioritize speed and flexibility may resist adoption of slow steaming and wind assist technologies. Although slow steaming can increase voyage times, fuel demands — which make up a large portion of total costs — decrease dramatically with slower speed. Faster speed will not achieve “just in time arrival” if a ship ends up sitting outside a port waiting for a berth.
Wind-assist technologies, like rigid sails and rotors, require significant upfront investment for retrofitting existing vessels or integrating them into new ship designs. The effectiveness of wind-assist technologies depends on variable weather conditions, complicating planning and operations. However, wind propulsion would be a real game changer to avoid burning heavier residual fuels or expensive transition fuels.
While there is growing interest and early industry adopters are experimenting with these technologies, broad implementation could be accelerated by resolving technical and regulatory barriers.
A 2023 white paper by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) concluded that wind-assisted propulsion — including rigid wing sails and rotor sails — offers significant annual fuel cost savings.
ICCT concluded that: ‘Rotor sails are variable in performance based on route, heading, speed, and season, while wing sails consistently generate net positive energy.’
The initial investment to retrofit existing vessels with wind assist technologies can vary significantly depending on technology and vessel design, the ICCT study found. The cost of installing rotor sails can be more than a million dollars per unit, where the installation might be two or more units. Studies suggest that rotor sails can achieve fuel savings between 5 percent to 20 percent, depending on factors like wind conditions, routes and vessel speed.
The initial investment to install rigid wing sails can range from a few hundred thousand to several million dollars, depending on the size and material of the sails. Fuel savings are estimated to be between 10 percent to 30 percent.
However, the long-term fuel savings can be significant, potentially offsetting the initial investment over three to seven years — which can also fluctuate depending on fuel prices. For example, if a shipping company's fuel savings reach even the lower range of 10 percent to 20 percent, this can result in substantial cost reductions as fuel expenses typically are a major portion of operational costs. Combined with the environmental benefits, wind-assist is an increasingly attractive option for many shipping companies to meet decarbonization goals.
The integration of these strategies — wind-assist, slow steaming, and routing efficiency — offers a multifaceted approach to improving maritime operations while adhering to emerging regulatory and market demands for sustainability.
Shipping contributes significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, primarily through the combustion of fossil fuels that power ships. The IMO, in its 2023 revised GHG Strategy, established new absolute emission reduction targets of 20 percent striving for 30 percent by 2030, 70 percent striving for 80 percent by 2040 and net zero by 2050.
Achieving these goals requires more rapid incorporation of slow steaming, wind-assist technologies and routing efficiency throughout the shipping industry. Strengthening revisions to the CII should be adopted at upcoming IMO meetings to create more energy efficient ships, reduce demand for fuel, cut GHG emissions, and help meet near and long-term targets. A strong enforceable CII would be a powerful tool to minimize decarbonization costs, deliver benefits for ocean health, drive uptake of slower speeds, wind propulsion and operational efficiency approaches to ensure the GHG emissions from shipping peak and reduce immediately.