Maritime Logistics has seen positive markets continue through the end of the year, resulting in good financial performance for the division. Gas and product tankers remain strong and support a weaker dry-cargo market. We expect both markets to begin to return to mean over the next 18-24 months as the inefficiency of trade disruptions is ameliorated. Nonetheless we are confident of good performance for 2024.
We have ordered the construction of a battery-powered coastal tanker, which will be chartered to TotalEnergies. Although the battery will have a conventional diesel generator for redundancy, our expectation is that the vessel will primarily use stored electric power from shore to operate. Delivering in 2025, the vessel’s GHG emissions will be greatly reduced compared to existing tonnage and is the first of its kind in the GCC. The successful conclusion of this project follows many years of careful planning by our Head of Coastal, Capt Nazeef Siddiqui, to get the economics, power logistics, and innovative technology together in a commercially viable project.
Falcon Majestic, one of our older medium-range product tankers, recently underwent drydocking in China. Our Fleet Manager Krishanpal Singh was on-site and photographed her splendid new paint-jo Tristar-MTM Ship Management, a JV with MTM Ship Management in Singapore, has taken four of our vessels into management and Sanjay Sachdev, who manages the JV on behalf of Tristar, has been busy handling issues which inevitably occur with new companies. Our office in Mumbai is slowly filling up with new staff. We expect to continue handing over more ships from January, starting with our medium-range product tankers.
Our principle of ensuring a zero-incident safety culture is occasionally challenged by the hierarchical nature of seafaring so a determined campaign reinforcing safety remains our primary focus, and results in safety seminars similar to one recently held in Delhi for about 100 senior crew members.
The fifth edition of the Tristar Safety at Sea Conference took place in early November. With a physical audience in Dubai and virtual audiences livestreamed from New Delhi, Mumbai, Manila, Myanmar and from vessels around the world, we were able to welcome hundreds of attendees to promote the physical and mental health of seafarers. The conference was opened by Mr. Kitack Lim, the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, and featured speakers from Shell Maritime, Bahri Ship Management, marine insurers, and health innovators, as well as senior officers serving on Tristar vessels.