OTTO N. THORLAKSSON

Britain's Prince William on Sunday called on world leaders and businesses to take urgent action to protect the planet's oceans, saying it was a challenge "like none we have faced before."Speaking ahead of the U.N. Ocean Conference, which begins in France on Monday, William said rising sea temperatures, plastic pollution and overfishing were putting pressure on fragile ecosystems and the people who depend on them."What once seemed an abundant resource is diminishing before our eyes," William, heir to the British throne, told the Blue Economy and Finance Forum in Monaco."Put simply: the ocean is under enormous threat, but it can revive itself.

The crew of a ship carrying around 3,000 vehicles, including 800 electric vehicles, abandoned it off the coast of Alaska after a fire broke out onboard, its operator Zodiac Maritime said on Wednesday.The 22 crew members were safely evacuated from the ship after they failed to put out the fire, Zodiac said as it focuses on salvaging the vessel.They were evacuated via lifeboat and were being transferred to a nearby merchant vessel Cosco Hellas in tandem with the U.S. Coast Guard.The vessel, Morning Midas, was located 300 miles (482.8 km) southwest of Adak in Alaska, the Coast Guard said on its X account.

KR (Korean Register) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI) to jointly develop a very large ethane carrier (VLEC).The new VLEC to be developed under the partnership will have a cargo capacity exceeding 100,000 m3.It will be designed to maximize cargo volume while minimizing changes to the main specifications of conventional vessel designs.Additionally, the vessel will be capable of transporting a variety of cargoes, such as LPG and propylene, enhancing operational flexibility and market responsiveness for shipowners.Under this joint project, HHI will take the lead in the vessel’s basic and hull design.

Classification Society DNV has granted Approval in Principle (AiP) certificates to Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding for three new vessel designs.The AiPs highlight the ongoing collaboration between the two organizations and reinforce their shared commitment to supporting the continued development of Chinese shipbuilding and the maritime industry’s low-carbon transition and technical advancement.The three AiPs represent the continuing advancement of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding in key shipping segments, to meet the global demand for energy as well as the more efficient transport of goods through alternative fuels.

The third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) will be co-hosted by France and Costa Rica in the French city of Nice from June 9 to 13 with the aim of "accelerating action" on protecting the world's oceans.The conference will cover climate change, pollution, biodiversity and making humanity's access to marine resources more sustainable.The oceans are "not doing very well," UNESCO's head of marine policy Julien Barbiere said, citing increasing temperatures, sea level rise, pollution of various kinds and conflicts over fishing and mineral resources as main issues to be tackled during the conference.