Special Reports

The phenomenal growth in global LNG trade flows has been underpinned by a vast fleet of LNG carriers that numbers just shy of 500 vessels. The fleet has done for LNG, what container ships have done for manufactured products like the iPhone. It has made it possible for gas producers to propagate LNG as a global fuel and a global commodity. The global LNG fleet will grow at its fastest rate ever in 2018, with newer and better technologies. But will this be enough to absorb the vast amount of new LNG supply coming next year, mainly from the US, and still keep freight rates at affordable levels?

Blockchain could help make commodity trading simpler, faster and cheaper. Pilot projects and trials are popping up around the world, but real world uses are rare so far. Companies will have to tackle issues such as speed, scale, cost, privacy and liability to make using blockchain viable. This special report from S&P Global Platts explains the technology, examines the projects, and looks at the challenges and opportunities ahead as blockchain enters a critical development phase.

The container market has seen a series of public -- and often heated -- arguments this year over the sharp rise in bunker prices and who should foot the bill. S&P Global Platts container market editor Andrew Scorer and Jack Jordan and Paul Hickin from the oil news team analyze the changing landscape of supply chain logistics, and how the International Maritime Organization's lower marine fuels sulfur cap in 2020 is set to complicate the situation even further.

The International Maritime Organization's decision to tighten sulfur limits on bunker fuel has left shipowners with a dilemma they continue to brush aside. S&P Global Platts weighs up the options and the implications for the shipping industry, the market and refiners as the 2020 deadline approaches.

The world is becoming an ever smaller place and the ability to conduct business with the most competitive companies globally is paramount for survival. The emphasis on customer needs now provides competitive advantage, and in the case of the container market, this may present opportunities for smaller TEU vessels for niche arbitrages in commodities like sugar, scrap or petrochemicals. Can the abandoned smaller TEU vessels become the workhorse for the customer focused container market?