Category Archives: International

CDB Aviation has ordered an additional twelve A330-300 P2F conversions with Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH (EFW), expanding its fleet of this type to fourteen aircraft. The lessor, a wholly owned Irish subsidiary of China Development Bank Leasing, is also on track to launch the A330-300 P2F freighter type in China in 2022, with lease commitments from Sichuan Airlines and Jiangxi Cargo Airlines. “We have strategically positioned our platform to be the A330 P2F program frontrunner among lessors,” commented Patrick Hannigan, CDB Aviation’s chief executive officer, adding that the A330 P2F marked the lessor’s first entry into the air cargo space. CDB Aviation’s first two A330-300 P2Fs are currently being converted in EFW’s facility in Dresden, Germany, and will be re-delivered to its launch operator, Mexico-based MasAir, in early 2022. Andreas Sperl, EFW’s chief executive officer, said: “The A330 P2F program is proving highly popular, and we now have over eighty aircraft on order. EFW is leading the overall A330 P2F programme, which is a collaboration between ST Engineering, Airbus, and EFW.”

Chennault International Airport in Louisiana, US is nearing completion of a $4m facility to enter into the air cargo sector. Construction of the 10,000 sq ft air cargo pass-through facility began in June 2021. It is expected to be completed this summer, according to Chennault Airport executive director Kevin Melton. “We believe there is value for companies to move goods through Chennault,” said Melton. “We provide a low-cost alternative to the larger markets where expense, ground delays, and airspace delays affect the efficient flow of goods.” The facility is anticipated to be certified for international cargo by federal agency U.S. Customs and Border Protection. As the facility is being built, ongoing discussions are planned with potential ground handling partners on such related issues as ramp handling, warehouse operations and securing unique ground equipment to service large aircraft.

AirAsia X (AAX) has secured full belly space utilisation for one third of its widebody A330-300 fleet as it strives to boost its air cargo revenue. Teleport, the logistics venture of Capital A (formerly AirAsia Group), will use the additional capacity from AAX for an initial period of one year. AAX is the medium haul, low-cost affiliate of the AirAsia Group and operating an all widebody A330-300 fleet. In 2021, the airline was successfully restructured and is now relaunching service as a combination carrier with equal emphasis on both cargo and passengers. The company aims to boost its regional presence by working in partnership with global freight forwarders. It recently announced a strategic partnership with global logistics leader GEODIS, to mount several weekly dedicated cargo flights throughout Asia Pacific for an extended period. CEO of AAX, Benyamin Ismail said, “We are also in discussions with several other major global clients that have air cargo requirements, particularly to where we have established bases and flying rights. It’s just two months post our restructuring and the appetite for expansion of our cargo operations is significant. This dovetails neatly into one of the core pillars of our combination carrier strategy. For the foreseeable future, cargo revenue will underpin our route strategy and passenger revenue for the first time, will be ancillary.”

Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), operator of Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport) has been awarded the prestigious PEER (Performance Excellence in Electricity Renewal) Platinum certification by Green Building Certification Inc. (GBCI), the foremost authoritie on sustainability in building design, construction, and operations. This honor makes BIAL the first airport operator in the world to receive an outstanding score of 92/100 for its airport power infrastructure. To ensure that the BLR Airport’s power system continues to support its sustainable development goals, BIAL sought PEER certification to analyse and improve the airport’s power system performance and was awarded the ‘Platinum Rating’ based on GBCI’s rigorous certification and review process. GBCI is the one of the world’s leading sustainability and health certification and credentialing body and is responsible for administering the LEED green building program. BIAL has demonstrated exceptional performance through its commitment to build sustainably. About 98% of the project’s distribution circuit is protected with distribution redundancy and auto restoration. It also has a 6.8 MW onsite solar PV system that supports essential services during grid failure and long-term blackout and 100% of its energy mix comes from renewable energy. Hari Marar, MD & CEO, BIAL, said, “We are proud to receive this recognition from GBCI for our relentless efforts in the energy conservation and energy resilience domain. As the operator of a world-class airport, BIAL has undertaken a variety of steps to deploy onsite renewable energy generation systems, offsite renewable power procurement, to meet our long-term goal of becoming Net Energy Neutral in 2020-21. Certified with PEER Platinum Rating will only motivate us to keep fast tracking our sustainability journey, even as we keep enhancing our infrastructure to meet the …

It’s raining roses at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (BLR Airport). Enhancing its reputation as the airport of choice for perishables in India, BLR Airport cargo witnessed a near two-fold increase in rose shipments in the run-up to Valentine’s Day this year. BLR Airport facilitated the movement of approximately 5.15 lakh kgs of roses to 25 international and domestic destinations vs. 2.7 lakh kgs shipped in 2021. The demand for roses during the Valentine’s season in the domestic market has seen a considerable rise this season. Domestic shipments have witnessed a significant improvement, having increased to 3.15 lakh kgs (~6.5 million stems) vs. 1.03 lakh kgs in 2021, recording over 200% growth. Around 2 lakh kgs (~7.3 million stems) were exported to international destinations this year vs. last year’s 1.7 lakh kgs. “Bengaluru is the biggest exporter of roses in India. At BLR Airport, we take pride in becoming a channel to aid the local community, growers and shippers by facilitating shipment of their produce while maintaining freshness. Our cargo infrastructure, powered by technology, provides rapid distribution of perishable cargo, making BLR Airport the preferred cargo airport in South India. We will continue to work with our cargo partners to introduce new initiatives and facilities that cater to constantly evolving demand,” said Satyaki Raghunath, Chief Strategy & Development Officer, BIAL. The top domestic destinations for roses include Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Guwahati and Chandigarh. Among the top international destinations were Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, London, Amsterdam, Kuwait, Auckland, Beirut, Manila, Muscat and Dubai. Aided with robust cold-chain infrastructure, operated by Air India SATS and Menzies Aviation Bobba Bangalore, and adequate airline capacities to key markets globally, BLR Airport has transformed itself as …

Lufthansa Cargo is taking part in a new project by the German government to digitalise air cargo. The Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure’s (BMVI) “Digital Test Field Air Cargo” project is being coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (IML). Within the project, Lufthansa Cargo said it is focusing on intensified data exchange between all partners in the transport chain, even beyond the roles that have been typical in the transport process to date. This data exchange is the basis for all data-driven optimisations and AI-based applications. For example, digital accompanying documents from manufacturers to consignees will be made available to all parties by using IATA’s new, open ONE Record standard. This standard was co-designed by Lufthansa Cargo. Likewise, temperature data, position data and photos of the entire transport chain are to be made available in order to identify and solve problems earlier. This can increase transparency and make processes and capacities more efficient through better forecasts and higher data quality. Eventually, this also leads to a reduction in CO2 emissions, said Lufthansa Cargo.

In the last 4 months, Amazon India has fortified plans (announced last year) to expand warehousing operations by 40% and has leased a total of 2.5 million sq.ft. space, spread across Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The US based e-com giant is also currently negotiating with Blackstone Group’s Horizon Industrial Parks to lease another half a million sq.ft. of warehousing space in Delhi and Alipore. Amazon has been signing deals with an aim to augment its warehouses across India, owing to the increasing e-com demand ever since the pandemic struck. Since late 2021, it has sealed 2 major deals with ESR for 6 lakh sq.ft. warehouse space at Bhiwandi and 1 million sq.ft. warehouse space at Shamshabad in South Hyderabad. It signed another major deal with LOGOS, for 1 million sq.ft. warehouse space at Devanahalli Industrial and Logistics Park. Amazon, with this expansion in warehousing capacity, will be spreading its wings over 15 states, supporting 8.5 million sellers throughout the country.

APM Terminals Pipavav (Gujarat Pipavav Port Ltd) announced the financial results for the third quarter ended December 31, 2021. The company reported a net profit of INR 437.64 million for Q3FY22 as against INR 543.27million in Q3FY21. Revenue from operations for the quarter under consideration stood at INR 1,685.61 million as against INR 1,984.00 million in Q3FY21. EBITDA for the quarter was at INR 866.94 million as against INR 1,100.21 million during the same quarter last year. EBIDTA margin stood at 51% in Q3FY22 as against 55% in Q3FY21. For the nine-months, the Company reported net profit of INR 1,212.03 million compared to INR 1,527.02 million in the corresponding period of last year. Revenue from operations for the period reduced 3% to INR 5,228.78 million. EBITDA was INR 2,836.08 million as against INR 3,084.26 million in the nine-month period that ended Dec 31, 2020. The container cargo business for the quarter stood at 157,256 TEUs, bulk business was 0.67 MT and liquid business was 0.24 MT. 7,359 cars were handled under RoRo category for the quarter under review.

Commenting on the Monetary Policy Statement, keeping the Repo Rate unchanged, Dr A Sakthivel, President, FIEO said that the RBI has struck a nice balance between growth & inflation and evaluating the two, has not tinkered with the rates. At the same time, extension of the Emergency Credit Linked Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) by the Hon’ble Finance Minister in the Budget 2022-23 will augment further the flow of credit to the exports sector. The President, FIEO said that RBI also acknowledged the challenges of containers and labour shortage and high freight rate, which had led to revision in the trade growth projection for 2022-23 at 6%. He added that the demand side of Indian exports is extremely encouraging and the export sector is all set to repeat its spectacular performance in the next financial year as well despite logistics constraints. Dr Sakthivel hoped that since the countries globally are now opening up, the logistics issues will be taken care of leading to reduction in the cycle of exports. At the same time, we should look into setting up container manufacturing in our own country to add another feather in our “Atma Nirbhar” strategy particularly as coastal manufacturing in the country is also gaining traction. The FIEO chief said that while the current value of Rupee is providing support to exports, we have to be watchful as recent capital outflows in many emerging economies have resulted in deprecation of their currencies significantly making them much more competitive.

Seven Mercedes-Benz Actros tractor units will be added to GEODIS’ fleet of prime movers in the Asia-Pacific Region (APAC). The leased vehicles are equipped with the latest security and safety technology and will be utilized on the logistics operator’s owned network in Southeast Asia. Supplied by the manufacturer’s Malaysian distributor, Hap Seng Trucks Distribution Sdn Bhd and leased from Euroasia Total Logistics (ETL), the new Actros 5 models will be the first of their type to be sold by Mercedes-Benz in Malaysia. GEODIS has recently expanded its road network in the region with service destinations in Vietnam added to its existing full and partial load service linking Singapore with Malaysia and Thailand. The network will eventually connect with Chinese markets on a day-definite, door-to-door basis delivering a road transport alternative to the more costly air, and slower ocean, options. Lakshmanan Venkateswaran, Sub-Regional Managing Director – South East Asia of GEODIS said, “The rapid expansion of our road mode offerings along the spine of Southeast Asia’s economic backbone has resulted in more than 50% increase in volumes since the service’s inception in late 2019. Linking Singapore to Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok, and now into Vietnam our owned network brings reliable transit-times and cargo security. This new equipment will further enhance these service attributes and aid the fast-growing businesses of our high-tech, retail, ecommerce and FMCG customers.”