Category Archives: International

Containership charter rates have stormed to new record highs with analysts warning that the scarce tonnage available could see prices remain at extraordinary levels for much of the year. Broking reports that busy Pasha Group had taken the 2,756 teu X-Press Mekong for 50 days from the end of February for a stunning $175,000 a day have been confirmed by liner data provider Linerlytica, the highest rate ever paid for a containership of this capacity. Details of the charter stipulate that the price escalates if it is redelivered late. The prompt delivery of the vessel is understood to have pushed prices higher, with very few vessels now available for swift charter. Pasha Group, and its Jones Act liner Pasha Hawaii, have been sending charter rates northwards repeatedly in the opening weeks of 2022. Pasha had teamed with wholesaler Costco to make some big plays in the charter market, taking seven charters for ships ranging in size from 2,100 to 3,500 teu with most taken on a three-year basis.

Qatar Airways announced a new order for GE9X engines as part of its global launch order of up to 50 Boeing 777-8 Freighters. The commitment, which includes 34 firm 777-8 orders and an additional 16 purchase right options, also includes GE90 engines for an additional order of two Boeing 777 Freighters. The total value of the order with GE is more than U.S.$6.8 billion list price, including spare engines, a new order for GE90-115B engines, and a TrueChoice™ services agreement to cover the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of the engines. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker, said: “With our status as the world’s largest air freight carrier, Qatar Airways has ambitious plans for the future of its cargo operations. As operators of the Boeing 777 family, including the global launch customer of Boeing’s 777-8 Freighter aircraft, we are delighted to have GE as our partners and these contracts for GE engines further cement the strong relationship between Qatar Airways and GE. We are confident that Qatar Airways’ focus to drive towards a sustainable future will be very much supported by the efficiency of the GE9X engines.” The GE90 engine family is the exclusive powerplant on Boeing’s 777-300ER, 777-200LR, and 777 Freighter aircraft. Since its entry into service in 1995, the GE90 engine has accumulated more than 108 million flight hours and has been among the most reliable in the industry with a world class dispatch reliability rate of 99.98 percent.

GEODIS, a global leading transport and logistics services provider, will provide airfreight, ocean freight, contract logistics and customs brokerage solutions for its customers in a wide range of market sectors, including automotive and FMCG from it’s new site strategically located at Brisbane Airport. The new site will have easy access to key locations, being only 14km from the central business district, and 22km from the Port of Brisbane. It will serve the growing logistical needs of GEODIS’ customers. The planned 4,500m2 warehouse facility, which is due to be operational by second half of 2022, will feature 4,000 pallet locations, 1,500m2 of bulk space, and a cool room for perishable goods supply to marine and hospitality logistics customers, especially cruise lines. Stuart Asplet, GEODIS’ Sub-Regional Managing Director, Pacific Regional Director Sea Freight, Asia Pacific said: “At this new facility, GEODIS will showcase its expertise in import and export services including customs brokerage to ensure complete supply chain transparency. GEODIS in Brisbane already has a strong package of solutions for our customers. This new, strategically positioned facility will not only enable us to meet the fast-changing needs of our customers today but will give us ample room to grow our offerings in the market.” BNE Property is delivering the purpose-built warehouse at Brisbane Airport’s Export Park, a precinct home to large-scale warehousing, freight handling, and distribution centres, as well as catering, wholesaling, and storage facilities.

Qatar Airways has ordered up to 50 Boeing 777-8 freighters as the airframer adds a new model to cater for growing cargo demand. The Middle East-based airline ordered 34 of the aircraft with options for a further 16 in a deal that is valued at more than $20bn based on list prices. It is the largest freighter commitment in Boeing’s history by value. Boeing said the B777-8F, which will be part of the B777X family, offers a maximum structural payload of 118 tonnes and a range of 8,167 km. The first delivery is expected in 2027. “With payload capacity nearly identical to the B747-400 Freighter and a 25% improvement in fuel efficiency, emissions and operating costs, the B777-8 Freighter will enable a more sustainable and profitable business for operators,” Boeing said. Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker said: “Boeing has a long history of building market-leading freighter aircraft and Qatar Airways is honored to have the opportunity to be the launch customer for the 777-8 Freighter, an aircraft which will not only allow us to further enhance our product offering for our customers, but also help us meet our objectives to deliver a sustainable future for our business. Today marks a great day in the ever-building and strong relationship between Qatar Airways and Boeing. We certainly push Boeing hard to deliver upon our expectations, and the team at Boeing consistently strives to meet and exceed our expectations, giving the opportunity for us to be here today to launch the most significant new freighter aircraft for a generation.”

Ground handler dnata will invest over €200m investment in a fully automated cargo centre at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS). The 61,000 sq m dnata Cargo City Amsterdam facility, located at Schiphol South-East, will be capable of processing over 850,000 tonnes of cargo annually. Scheduled to become operational in 2024, the facility will handle all types of cargo, including perishables, pharmaceuticals, dangerous goods, mail, live animals, aircraft engines and vehicles. dnata Cargo City Amsterdam will be developed by Schiphol Commercial Real Estate and equipped by Lödige Industries The cargo centre will be fitted with two separate automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS), using technology from Lödige Industries, for import and export with twelve stacker cranes. A total of up to 2,500 pallets will be stored here. In addition, separate storage for ULDs will be serviced by four elevating transport vehicles (ETV). dnata will also make use of seven intelligent automated guided vehicles (AGV) from Lödige Industries to enable flexible and scalable ULD transport within the terminal. Smart gates will automatically record the volume and weight of all incoming consignments by scanning them in 3D, thus significantly speeding up handling and improving the quality of service. All elements will be integrated into a warehouse management system to enable dnata to further grow its operations and service at AMS.

A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk) is strengthening its operations in Bangladesh, where it has served the country’s exporters connect to the global market for almost three decades. Bangladesh has been one of the most important sourcing markets for the garments and apparel industry worldwide. The garment manufacturers exporting to global markets have significantly contributed towards building the country’s economy. Despite the impressive growth of garments’ exports from Bangladesh, the number of warehouses in Chattogram have not increased since 2012 with the sole exception of ISATL that became operational in 2018. Optimizing utilization of available capacity assisted to an extent, however it did not scale enough to meet the trade’s requirements. The logistics ecosystem and the Chittagong Port get stretched, particularly during the peak seasons. In 2021, a fallout of this structural challenge was felt by all the stakeholders involved in import-export trade when the Container Freight Stations (CFS) got clogged with cargo resulting in delayed clearance, stuffing and consequently dispatch of containers to the port. Delay in offloading cargo also led to longer truck waiting time, and delay in despatch of containers to the port, consequently resulting in lack of overall productivity. These challenges have serious consequences on the overall economy of the country given the fact that the Chittagong Port handles in excess of 90% of the total containerized trade to and from Bangladesh. Recognizing these challenges, Maersk Bangladesh has partnered with ISATL to build a 200,000 sq. ft custom bonded warehouse. ISATL are pioneers in constructing and operating warehouses and CFS and operate four CFS within Chattogram and the River Terminal at Dhaka. Under the scope of this partnership, ISATL will construct a brand new custom bonded warehouse …

Geodis has awarded Menzies Aviation a cargo handling contract for its volumes at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The five-year contract includes cargo handling for the import and export of goods on the forwarder’s Amsterdam flights, operating five times a week. A team of over 20 Menzies Aviation professionals will provide these services to the carrier. Menzies already provides ramp transport services for intact ULDs to GEODIS at the airport. Miguel Gomez Sjunnesson, executive vice president Europe, Menzies Aviation, said: “We are delighted to provide cargo handling services to Geodis at Amsterdam, which is a strategic cargo hub for the carrier. This contract win signifies the high standard and secure service our team has already delivered to Geodis on the ramp. We’re looking forward to building a successful partnership with Geodis over the years to come.”

Etihad Cargo has been awarded IATA’s Centre of Excellence for Independent Validators (CEIV) for Live Animals. The UAE national carrier is the first airline in the Middle East and third globally to hold IATA’s CEIV Live Animals, CEIV Fresh, and CEIV Pharma certifications. The certification was awarded following an IATA-led assessment of Etihad Cargo’s dedicated LiveAnimals, for animal transportation, and SkyStables, for equine transportation, products, as well as its logistics’ audit checklist to ensure compliance with standards, requirements, and Live Animals Regulations (LAR). Martin Drew, Senior Vice President Sales & Cargo, Etihad Aviation Group, said: “The transportation of live animals requires specific conditions and the CEIV certification further underlines Etihad Cargo’s experience and committment to animal welfare and safe transportation. Etihad Cargo is proud to have secured certification for its LiveAnimals and SkyStables products. This recognition further endorses the industry-leading service we provide global customers.” The key benefits of CEIV Live Animals certification include improving animal welfare and safety through appropriate quality and risk management, and enhancing standardisation and professionalism in the handling and transportation of live animals in a multimodal environment. The certification also enforces compliance with the IATA LAR, elevating staff competency through efficient and robust training programmes, and enabling increased collaboration among stakeholders and certified trade lanes.

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.”