Week of 10-16 August 2026
I. International Maritime Security
New Escalation in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz
This week was marked by a sharp deterioration in maritime transport security in the Middle East. On 12 August 2026, the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Arsenio Domínguez, issued a statement after a cargo ship, the Tihamah, was struck by a projectile off Al Mokha (Yemen), causing several casualties among seafarers; he called on shipowners and operators to reassess without delay the risks of transit through the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. On 14 August 2026, two vessels belonging to the Emirati oil company Adnoc were targeted in the Strait of Hormuz, followed by a bulk carrier struck by an unidentified projectile on 15 August, according to UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO). The United Arab Emirates denounced acts of “piracy” attributed to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
War risk insurance premiums: the persistence of these attacks maintains strong volatility in “war risk” premiums, already trending upward in recent weeks, with a direct impact on the cost of charter parties and bills of lading covering these zones.
Contractual disputes: reroutings via the Cape of Good Hope imposed by Houthi attacks continue to fuel disputes over the invocation of force majeure clauses, particularly on the question of whether the risk of attack (as opposed to mere fear of it) is covered and whether the additional cost of rerouting is sufficient to establish impossibility of performance.
Stakes for businesses: review of force majeure and rerouting clauses in charter parties and transport contracts, and verification of hull and war insurance coverage for vessels required to transit through these zones.
II. Maritime Casualties and Salvage
Update on the Dismantling of the MSC Baltic III (Newfoundland)
The operation to remove the wreck of the container ship MSC Baltic III, grounded off Newfoundland and Labrador (Canada), continued during the week: teams from Resolve Marine continued hauling the 207-metre hull toward the coast using hydraulic jacks, in preparation for on-site cutting. Nearly all of the 472 containers have now been removed, and anti-pollution resources remain deployed in anticipation of an accidental discharge of residual bunker fuel. Full completion of the operation is not expected before summer 2027.
This case illustrates, as a foreign example, the salvage, limitation of liability, and salvage cost allocation issues specific to maritime casualty law.
III. Maritime Transport and Chartering
Congestion and Auctions at the Panama Canal
The combination of the Iranian conflict, which is diverting traffic toward the Panama route, and an El Niño episode limiting the permitted draft, has led to new record bids for canal transit slots: an LPG carrier chartered by South Korean shipowner SK Shipping paid $4.6 million on 14 August 2026 to secure priority passage, just days after a container ship paid $4 million for the same reason. These additional costs, generated by the Panama Canal Authority’s auction mechanism, are fuelling the same contractual debates as the Cape of Good Hope reroutings regarding their allocation between charterers and shipowners.
IV. French Maritime Law, Port Law, Marine Energy and Fisheries
No legislative text, decree, or ruling specific to the week of 10-16 August was identified in French maritime law, port law, offshore renewable marine energy, or fisheries and marine environment law. For reference, outside the monitoring window: the publication in the Official Journal, in early August, of a decree on major sea and river-sea ports, and the continuation of the AO10 offshore wind tender (10 GW), with bids expected by the Energy Regulatory Commission on 12 October 2026.
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