Category Archives: International

On the back of rising customer demand for green transportation and technical cap, the container shipping giant A.P Moller Maersk prepone decarbonization plans by a decade. The company now plans to achieve net zero-emission in its’ business by 2040. With the sea responsible for transporting about 90% of world commerce, global shipping accounts for 3% of the world’s CO2 emissions, and the sector is underneath rising scrutiny to become greener and cleaner. “When we set the target back in 2018, it was truly a moon-shot target, where truth be told we didn’t have a lot of very specific plans,” said Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, Chief Executive of Fleet and Strategic Brands, Maersk. But since then, several technological advances on the vessel aspect in tandem with growing demand for carbon-neutral supply chains from large corporates such as Amazon and IKEA have been observed. Maersk set a 2030 interim target for a 50% reduction in emissions per transported container, and a 70% cut in absolute emissions from fully controlled terminals.

Ethiopian Cargo & Logistics Services, has launched a new feature that enables customers to make online reservations for their cargo. The platform enables customers check flight schedules, space availability, loadability of freight and make real-time booking of their shipment in single and convenient way on cargobooking.ethiopianairlines.com. Ethiopian Cargo & Logistics Services is rolling out the online booking subsequent to its introduction of the mobile application to heighten its customer’s experience. The Mobile App which is available for Android and IOS, brings convenience to customers with a real-time update through a range of self-service features. On the Mobile App, customers can check flight schedule, submit enquiry, receive notifications when the shipment is ready, book charter flights and track shipments. Ethiopian Airlines GCEO, Tewolde GebreMariam, said “We are pleased to offer our customers with convenience in their experience of air cargo booking. We are committed to start walking the long walk of taking out paper from entire air cargo process by digitalizing the logistics value chain. Taking out paper from logistics value chain is not only convenient and hassle free service for customers but also it delivers more efficient operational excellence and achieves long term sustainability goals. Our online booking platform will be crucial in empowering direct cargo customers and forwarders with reliable access to our cargo capacity inventory. Besides, our cargo division has proved to the world that it is a genuine partner in times of dire need by delivering lifesaving PPE’s (personal Protective Equipment) and hundreds of millions various vaccines to all major continents of the world.” Ethiopian provides its customers with fully automated cargo service using the latest technologies for data, information and market intelligence with 100% e-AWB from …

Supply chain visibility platform project44 received an investment totaling $420 million from a syndicate led by Thoma Bravo, TPG and Goldman Sachs Asset Management. project44 had raised $202 million equity in May 2021 (at an approximate valuation of $1.2 billion), and has an annual run rate of $100+ million, 1,000+ team members, 1,000+ customers, and 1+ billion packages tracked annually. “Today, project44 is helping companies solve supply chain challenges ranging from inflationary pressure and lockdowns to unpredictable weather and bottlenecks at ports,” says Jett McCandless, Founder & CEO, project44. “Our growth over the past year speaks to these macroeconomic tailwinds and the competitive edge we can provide to our customers. With ongoing support from our investors, we can offer even more value to our customers and solidify our position as the global network that powers the future of the supply chain.”

IT hardware firm Lenovo has signed up to use the “carbon neutral” freighter service offered by DB Schenker and Lufthansa Cargo. The tie up will see the computer company transport cargo, including include laptops, notebooks, and PCs, on Lufthansa Cargo’s Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) powered B777 freighter flight between Shanghai and Frankfurt. The partners have calculated that by using the flights, Lenovo will save around 20 tons of conventional kerosene per flight and, thus, 62 tons of greenhouse gases weekly. In addition, the around 16 tons CO2 resulting from the production and transport of the SAF are offset by compensatory measures. Ashwin Bhat, chief commercial officer, Lufthansa Cargo, said: “Our joint effort with DB Schenker to avoid CO2 emissions is continuously growing stronger. An increasing number of customers realise that we need to work together across industries to achieve our shared goal.” Gareth Davies, head of global logistics at Lenovo, added: “Sustainability is critical to our business and mission of delivering smarter technology for all. We are proud that we are further enhancing our solutions through this collaboration with DB Schenker and Lufthansa Cargo.”

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for global air cargo markets showing slower growth in November 2021. Supply chain disruptions and capacity constraints impacted demand, despite economic conditions remaining favorable for the sector. As comparisons between 2021 and 2020 monthly results are distorted by the extraordinary impact of COVID-19, unless otherwise noted, all comparisons below are to November 2019 which followed a normal demand pattern. • Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs*), was up 3.7% compared to November 2019 (4.2% for international operations). This was significantly lower than the 8.2% growth seen in October 2021 (9.2% for international operations) and in previous months. * Capacity was 7.6% below November 2019 (-7.9% for international operations). This was relatively unchanged from October. Capacity remains constrained with bottlenecks at key hubs. • Economic conditions continue to support air cargo growth, however supply chain disruptions are slowing growth. “Air cargo growth was halved in November compared to October because of supply chain disruptions. All economic indicators pointed towards continued strong demand, but the pressures of labor shortages and constraints across the logistics system unexpectedly resulted in lost growth opportunities. Manufacturers, for example, were unable to get vital goods to where they were needed, including PPE. Governments must act quickly to relieve pressure on global supply chains before it permanently dents the shape of the economic recovery from COVID-19,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.

Envirotainer, the global market leader in secure cold chain solutions for air transportation of pharmaceuticals, announced that Delta Cargo has approved the Envirotainer Releye® RLP for usage on their fleet of aircrafts. With this approval, Delta Cargo can now transport the Releye® RLP on their wide-reaching global network, increasing the capacity to meet the ever-growing need for temperature-controlled, high-quality, connected ULD solutions. The Releye provides outstanding environmental performance, delivering up to 90% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to available passive solutions, based on life-cycle analysis. The Releye® RLP uses rechargeable batteries to power its electric heating and compressor cooling system and can power its system for over 170 hours on a single charge. With its unique feature set, the Releye® RLP sets a new standard for secure cold chain solutions bringing a temperature-controlled air freight container to market with a new footprint, industry-leading autonomy and fully integrated live monitoring. “The introduction of the Releye® RLP, in combination with our CEIV certified pharma network, provides our customers with more choice when looking for reliable container options to support the growing demand for pharma and vaccine shipments” said Jannie Davel, Managing Director Cargo Commercial at Delta Cargo.

The movement of heavy cargo ships from Varanasi and Haldia to Pandu port in Assam through riverways is expected to begin by mid-2022,said Union minister, Sarbananda Sonowal. “Dredging work at critical junctures in the Ganga and Brahmaputra rivers has already been initiated by his ministry to facilitate the movement of large cargo ships. By mid-2022, I am hopeful that cargo ships of 2,000 metric tonnes from Haldia and Varanasi will start sailing to Pandu. This is going to be a major boost to trade and industry of the North-eastern region,”, he said. Support from experts in Tezpur University, IIT Guwahati, and IIM Shillong will be sought to make the dredging work successful in the Brahmaputra, the minister said. Further he added that the PM has instructed concerned authorities to make arrangements to dredge a stretch of 2-2.5 metre in the two rivers so that cargo vessels, passenger ships, and seaplanes can utilize it. “The potential of the Brahmaputra as well as other rivers of Northeast is huge and people will get direct benefit from the development of river tourism, cargo transportation, and an alternative economic transportation system,” Sonowal said.

DB Schenker extended its one-of-a-kind Flight Operations in the Indian logistics industry, providing a direct flight connecting Bengaluru to Munich and Chicago Rockford (wheels up-wheels down in less than 24 hours). The weekly flight operations initiative is a part of the Global Flight Operations Program which further marks the company’s leadership in Air Freight services in India. Along with providing a world class land transport network to EU and US, DB Schenker also specialises in handling of temperature-controlled shipments within ‘thermal blankets’ and ULD movement. DB Schenker has efficiently deployed weekly flight operations for both Imports & Exports between India & United States & Europe. The new B777 “flight operations” initiative is aimed at simplifying the logistics services of the fast-growing industries in India, offering seamless capacity to support customers’ requirements. The cargo will be secured from departure to arrival with no extra handling requirement during the transit. The temperature sensitive cargo in the ULD’s will be covered with protective material to maintain temperature in transit from Bengaluru (BLR). Door to Door transit time via DB Schenker in India flight operations would remain 5 days approximately for Europe & US bound shipments.

The transportation of manufactured goods and commodities from the world’s most crucial port has slowed down dramatically after a suspension of trucking services in several parts of East China’s Zhejiang. There are strict controls on the movement of trucks carrying goods to or from the Beilun district in Ningbo after several Covid-19 cases were reported in the area, informed A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S. This COVID-induced suspension and restrictions on truckers in some areas in and around Zhejiang, has put a stop on operations at some of the yards and warehouses at Ningbo port. The curbs began last week after the Beilun district reported an outbreak of Covid-19 which led to the closure of colleges, warehouses, and firms close to the port.

The Jammu and Kashmir government signed a MoU with hypermarket and retail giant LuLu Group to set up a food processing and logistics hub in Srinagar. The MoU was signed in Dubai in the presence of Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha and LuLu group chairman MA Yusuff Ali by principal secretary, industries & commerce, J&K UT, Ranjan Prakash Thakur and Ashraf Ali MA, executive director, LuLu Group. “Relations between India and UAE are long-standing and deep rooted. People-to-people contact and trade have seen momentum in the recent years under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Lt Governor Sinha said. “The world-famous GI tagged saffron has been launched at LuLu Hypermarket, which I see as a major step towards boosting Jammu Kashmir and Dubai partnership. LuLu group is already importing apples from Jammu Kashmir and with saffron, we are adding Kashmir’s finest spice to the basket. I am certain this new beginning will take our trade to unprecedented levels. Trade between Jammu & Kashmir and Dubai has remained steady, despite Covid-19 challenges and it reflects the resilience of our deep economic linkages. The MoU will further expand Jammu Kashmir-Dubai collaboration and Jammu Kashmir-Lulu Group partnership,” he said.