Environmental sustainability and decarbonisation in particular are central to Qatar Airways Cargo’s corporate strategy. In November 2021, it became the first cargo airline to join the IATA CO2NNECT platform and has since been working on developing a fully integrated carbon offsetting solution for its customers. The initial milestone was recently reached with the introduction of a cargo carbon emission calculator. Available under the eServices menu on the airline’s website: https://www.qrcargo.com/calculate-emissions, the calculator quickly determines the shipment’s total CO2 emissions in kilos or pounds, depending on customer preference. The user simply enters the shipment’s origin, destination, flight date, and weight to obtain the different flight options and their respective carbon emissions. “Following our joint Qatar Airways Cargo-IATA project pilot to launch a new voluntary carbon offsetting programme for air cargo shipments, Qatar Airways Cargo is now proud to unveil our Emission Calculator,” Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer Cargo of Qatar Airways Cargo, announces. “To improve a situation, it is important to establish the status quo. This calculation tool enables our customers to get a better overview their shipments’ carbon footprint with us. It is the first step in our plan to offer a complete offsetting capability as part of the CO2NNECT programme we have entered into with IATA.”

The CMA CGM Group,created history with the largest vessel to ever visit an Indian port. APL Raffles, a 17,000 TEU containership part of the CMA CGM Group’s fleet, made her first call at Adani – CMA Container Terminal in Mundra. APL RAFFLES is 398 meters long, 51 meters wide and boasts of 85,704 HP engine. The vessel arrived in Mundra from the Middle East Gulf for an ad hoc call. It will then proceed to Singapore before heading to China. Atit Mahajan, MD – CMA CGM India, said, “This is an important milestone for us, as India has been waiting to welcome large vessels and given the current boom in the global supply chain, the timing could not be better. This ad hoc call reaffirms our Group’s commitment to support and align with the growing market demand and needs of our customers. I would like to congratulate our operational teams for managing a vessel of this capacity with perfection and smoothness. I would also like to congratulate Adani Ports and our terminal partners Adani – CMA Container Terminal, for their efficient and capable infrastructure to complement this achievement.”

Atlas Air will expand its charter partnership with freight forwarder Flexport to add a third Boeing 747-400 freighter from September. This long-term charter agreement will broaden Flexport’s network of dedicated freighters to include service from Asia to Los Angeles (LAX), Miami (MIA) and soon, Chicago (ORD). The additional freighter will increase Flexport’s dedicated airfreight capacity from Atlas Air by 50% and allow for “enhanced schedule flexibility” as new origins and destinations are added in 2022 and beyond. “We look forward to enhancing our long-term relationship with Flexport as we continue to support the growth and expansion of its network with dedicated freighters,” said Michael Steen, executive vice president and chief commercial officer, Atlas Air Worldwide. “Atlas Air is strategically positioned to serve Flexport with an unparalleled fleet of widebody freighters and our vast global footprint. Our team is pleased to deliver even more value to Flexport and its customers through the world-class service they can depend on from Atlas Air.” “We’re thrilled to expand our partnership with Atlas Air Worldwide to bring additional capacity to Flexport clients amid a turbulent time in airfreight,” said Neel Jones Shah, executive vice president and global head of airfreight at Flexport.

Lufthansa Cargo’s handling operation at its Frankfurt hub has been “significantly” affected by Omicron infections amongst staff. “Loose freight via the Frankfurt hub from US & Canada and Europe (incl. Germany) that has not yet been delivered can unfortunately no longer be accepted by us and transported in a timely manner,” Lufthansa Cargo said. Around 15% of volumes handled at its Frankfurt facility will be affected by the embargo. However, direct deliveries as well as outbound deliveries in Frankfurt are still possible. Certain product groups may also continue to fly, this includes urgent freight (same day shipments), valuable freight, animals, organ donations, mail and temperature-controlled shipments. “Cargo that has already been accepted by us will be handled as soon as feasible,” Lufthansa Cargo added. The carrier also stressed that all shipments routed through its hubs in Munich, Vienna and Brussels are not affected and these facilities are operating normally. “Due to its high transmissibility, the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus continues to keep us on our toes and the infection figures have reached new record levels,” Lufthansa Cargo said.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) composite scheme to acquire Sarguja Rail Corridor Pvt Ltd(SRCPL) effective from its appointment date of April 1, 2021. APSEZ said that the company will now consolidate all its rail assets under a single business entity Adani Tracks Management Services Pvt Ltd. “This consolidation allows APSEZ, which is targeting 2,000 km of track length by 2025, to participate in Indian Railways PPP (public-private partnership) projects without having to compete with similar businesses in the Adani portfolio, a position that is in full alignment with the equity interest of minority shareholders,” it said. The statement said that once consolidated, SRCPL will add Rs 450 crore or five percent of APSEZ’s total Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization).

Blue Dart Express Limited, declared its financial results for the quarter ended December 31st, 2021. The company posted ₹1,222 million profit after tax for the quarter ended December 31st, 2021 (previous year, profit after tax for the corresponding quarter was ₹938 million). Revenue from operations for the quarter ended December 31st, 2021 stood at ₹12,548 million with a growth of 21% over the same quarter from the previous year. EBITDA for the quarter is ₹ 2,117 million, a growth of 15% over the same quarter last year. EBITDA margin stood at 16.8%, Moreover, Blue Dart’s strong financial performance over the preceding quarters have paved the way for the Express Logistics Provider’s credit rating to be reviewed by the ICRA as well as India Ratings and Research to AA+. True to its promise of being an Investment of Choice, the company has also proposed to reward shareholders with an interim dividend of ₹25/- (Rupees Twenty Five) per share, which will be paid in February 2022.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) has several green project initiatives. Union Minister, MoPSW, Sarbanand Sonwal, chaired a meeting with all major ports, CSL and IWAI to review the progress on various green initiatives implemented as per Maritime India Vision 2030 for the developments of green ports and green shipping in India. Highlighting JNPT’s green port initiatives, Sanjay Sethi, IAS, Chairman, JNPT, said, “JNPT has prepared an action plan covering all Port activities, including cargo handling, storing, evacuation and many other activities related to environmental protection. JNPT provides shore power supply to tugs and port crafts, the induction of these E-RTGCs, and many such initiatives. We have installed solar panels at JNPT inducted electric vehicles. JN Port has prepared an action plan covering all activities of the Port including cargo handling, storing, evacuation and many other activities related to environmental protection.” Under the Maritime India Vision 2030, JNPT intends to use 60% of renewable energy, Adoption of Multi Fuel (CNG/Electric / LNG), Shore Power, LNG Bunkering, Energy Efficiency Smart Lightning, Green Belt Cover, Water Conservation/Sewage Treatment, Upcoming solar plants of 2.5MWp. Jawaharlal Nehru port is committed to sustainable development, and the Port takes adequate measures to maintain ecological balance. The total land available with JNPT is around 3402 hectares out of this, 1147 hectares area (34%) of the Port is under green cover, including mangroves. The Port’s ecosystem consists of rich and diversified flora and fauna. To address the Global climate change problem at the port level, the Port has taken the initiative to acquire “Green Port Status”.

The Union Budget 2022, scheduled for 1st February 2022, is an even that the logistics sector is looking forward to, so as to get some respite from critical pain points currently plaguing the industry. A few amendments in existing policies could propel the industry which is already showing signs of recovery post the pandemic. The Indian logistics industry contributes significantly to the economy as it is unarguably one of the key sectors attracting foreign investments and generating employment. As the Union Budget 2022 draws closer, we have compiled a list of measures pertaining to GST and policy amendments that we believe would boost the sector Tax reforms: * ‘Export Service’ for Air/sea export freight The existing policies have exempted air/sea export freight from GST till September 2022. If the recipient of the export freight is located outside India, the air/sea freight is considered an export of service. At the same time, the air/sea freight is exempted from GST if the recipient is within India. That means ITC (input tax credit) cannot be claimed on such service resulting in significant ITC loss for logistics companies. We believe that considering all air/sea export freight as export of service irrespective of the location of the recipient would be a welcome step. * Grievance mechanism for Assessees Assessees are required to bear the GST charges levied by vendors. But in some instances, the vendors fail to pay the amount for no fault of assessees which means the assessees have to bear the losses. There are no measures in place to address such issues faced by Assessees. Including provisions in GST to assist assessees faced with such issues would certainly be a breather for the …

The first ever virtual India-Central Asia Summit was held to strengthen the ties between the participant countries. The focal point of the agenda was to cement the trade links and connectivity through the Chabahar Port in Iran. The Port is being developed by India and will be crucial in providing sea-land access to the landlocked Central Asian countries along with the INSTC. The plan is to develop Joint Working Groups (JWGs) at the Port for free movement of goods and services between India and the Central Asian countries. India also proposed to include the Turkmenbashi Port within the framework of the INSTC. Addressing the summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “The Summit revolved around three main objectives. First, to make it clear that cooperation between India and Central Asia is essential for regional security and prosperity. From the Indian point of view, I would like to emphasise that Central Asia is central to India’s vision of an integrated and stable extended neighbourhood. The second objective is to give an effective structure to our cooperation. This will establish a framework of regular interactions at different levels and among various stakeholders. And the third objective is to create an ambitious roadmap for our cooperation.”

The A300 served as the foundation for the Beluga ST jets, which were followed by the Beluga XL, which was built using six A330s. According to sources, the aircraft which was originally used only for the movement of oversized Airbus components like wings, will now be available as five Beluga ST freighters which can be leased by companies to transport their own capacious cargo. Airbus is reviewing plans to contribute all five of its Beluga STs into chartering outsize freight operations by the mid 2020s. This will eventually result in establishing a new Airbus business to manage this part of Beluga’s operation. Multi-purpose pallet system, portable onboard freight loader and newer outboard platforms are just a trailer of the new ideas being implemented by Airbus to support the new role of Beluga STs. The new multi-purpose pallet system requires minimum modifications regardless of the cargo it holds, and is made up of 2 meter modules with 20cm tie-down points. Similarly, the portable onboard freight loader will be used for less than 12 meters long & 20 tonnes in weight payload.