To develop e-commerce cargo routes between Asia and the US, Global Crossing Airlines (GlobalX) has signed an MoU with FreightCloud. The joint service using GlobalX Airbus A321 freighters may begin early 2023, moving to GlobalX-owned A330 freighters later that year, stated a release. FreightCloud’s financial partner Hudson Highland Partners will provide financing for the collaboration. The partnership will help FreightCloud in developing its Asia to US services by distributing shipments from hubs in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York to destinations across the Americas. Ed Wegel, Chair and Chief Executive at GlobalX. “The partnership will enable our cargo division, XCargo, to participate in the lucrative Asia to US cargo market, first with our narrowbody freighter fleet and eventually with our A330F fleet currently being planned,” the statement read.

The Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) and NEC have collaborated to provide logistics visualization services that would help to streamline India’s complex logistics supply chains and reduce logistics costs. An official statement said, “India’s rapid economic growth has been causing trouble for the country’s aging logistics infrastructure. Transporting goods around the country takes a long time and there are frequent delays. It is difficult to know exactly where shipments are at any given moment. Wishing to avoid the risk of running out of stock, consignors in the manufacturing industry have tended to overstock their inventories. The added costs of navigating complex logistics supply routes and overstocking have created barriers to attracting foreign investment and enhancing international competitiveness.” Piyush Sinha, CEO of DMICDC Logistics Data Services (DLDS), a joint venture company between DMICDC and NEC also stated, “The logistics cost is probably 13 to 14 per cent of total GDP. This must reduce to 7 to 8 per cent to make our exports more competitive.”

The construction work of new Greenfield airport in Dholera, Gujarat has started construction at a cost of Rs. 1,305 crore. Dholera International Airport Company Limited (DIACL) is a JV venture comprising the AAI, the Government of Gujarat, and the National Industrial Corridor Development and Implementation Trust. Dholera airport will serve the Dholera Special Investment Zone (DSIR) with passenger and cargo traffic and is intended to become a freight hub for the industrial region. This airport will service the surrounding region as well as Ahmedabad as a secondary airport. Dholera’s New Greenfield airport is located 80 km from Ahmedabad International Airport. The airport is scheduled to open in 2025-26, with the yearly cargo flow likely to be 20,000 tonnes in 2025-26, rising to 2,73,000 tonnes in 20 years.

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India flagged off the world’s first double-stack long-haul container train virtually, while inaugurating the Rewari-Madar leg of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor. The dedicated freight corridor will aid India’s rapid progress and enhance growth in all areas since modern rail infrastructure offers a basis for employment in all sectors across states, said Modi.

FedEx Express has launched a new route between Asia and Europe, connecting Beijing to the FedEx Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Airport in Paris, France for the first time with 10 connections per week via Osaka, Japan, said a release. This new route will benefit businesses as the cut-off time for same day outbound shipments from Beijing to Europe will be extended, offering more time for customers to arrange their shipments, the company stated. This new route will also provide a one day a week direct connection between Fedex’s CDG Hub and Singapore, offering customers enhanced weekly inbound capacity of almost 50 tonnes.

Blume Global, and Kinaxis® Inc. announced partnership to connect the company’s logistics visibility and transportation management system (TMS) with Kinaxis RapidResponse® concurrent planning platform to attain better alignment between supply chain planning and execution, enabling companies to avoid freight transportation disruptions. “For nearly three years, the supply chain industry has been defined by uncertainty. That is likely to continue. While major disruptions used to occur every few years, we are now facing significant events annually,” said Pervinder Johar, CEO, Blume Global. “Our partnership will give customers around the world access to robust, innovative logistics planning and execution solutions so they can create agile processes that adapt quickly to most challenging circumstances,” he added.

Mahindra Logistics is planning to expand its business operations with the opening of its flagship warehousing facility in a single park at Luhari, Delhi – NCR on June 23. The company has added three Grade-A warehouses totalling 1.4 million sq. ft area to its warehousing capacity in Luhari, Haryana. “The new warehouses are part of our pan-India network of multi-client facilities that manage the fulfilment and distribution of its clients’ services within the e-commerce and consumer industries,” said a company statement. The facilities are designed in line with MLL’s sustainability standards, including Liquid Discharge Management, Renewable Energy and, Waste Management requirements.

DB Schenker is all set to commence a warehouse facility in Badli, Haryana. “We are glad to inform that our upcoming facility in Badli, Haryana is almost ready to use with full compliance. The facility spans a total area of over 6,00,000 sq. feet and is close to the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) expressway within NCR,” stated a company’s statement.

To capture the boom in air cargo demand driven mainly by the pandemic, IndiGo will receive its first freighter plane. The dedicated cargo jet, registered as 9H-AMQ, is an Airbus SE A321 that has previously been used by carriers, including Aeroflot PJSC, Lithuanian Group Avion Express UAB and Thomas Cook Airlines. An IndiGo representative said delivery to India was likely to be in August, although a precise date has yet to be finalised. During the airline’s FQ results call, IndiGo CEO Ronojoy Dutta said that freight increased by 31 per cent y-o-y. “Cargo is strong, and as per indications, cargo will remain strong in the future,” Dutta said.

General Vijay Kumar Singh, Minister of State for Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, while addressing a national conference on ‘Transforming India with Quality and Intelligent Infrastructure at the PHDCCI, said, “India needs to create an infrastructure ecosystem compatible with all industries,” said. He added, “If we want good and quality infrastructure then each one of us must contribute towards it. Good infrastructure contributes to the country’s growth immensely and once we have the quality infrastructure in place, it will ensure the socio-economic growth of the nation. A mindset change is required where sustainable infrastructure is concerned to ensure economic growth.” He also mentioned that cost overrun and delays are the biggest impediment in the sector and to dispose it off, the government has taken some significant steps in this direction.