Category Archives: Shipping

APM Terminals Mumbai, also known as Gateway Terminals India (GTI) will invest US$115 million in infrastructure development that will increase the container handling capacity. The company is investing in Ship-to-Shore (StS) cranes and Rail Mounted Gantry (RMG) cranes. The investment is aimed at enabling GTI to accommodate changing customer needs for larger vessel capability. With this investment, the container handling capacity of GTI will increase by 10% to 2.18 million TEUs. Explaining the rationale behind investment, Girish Aggarwal, COO, GTI said “The investment will allow us to cater to the larger vessels safely and efficiently at our terminal. This in turn will assist our customers to drive operational efficiency towards the Indian trade.” According to Aggarwal, “The terminal’s initiative is a step forward in supporting Government’s initiative to improve ‘Ease of Doing Business.” GTI is a joint venture between APM Terminals and domestic rail operator Container Corporation of India (Concor) operating at Nhava Sheva. The terminal includes a berth line of 2,336 feet, 128 acres of yard space, and modern service equipment — including 10 twin-lifting quay cranes, 40 rubber-tire gantry cranes, and three rail-mounted quay cranes.”

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.

Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal took a comprehensive review of initiatives taken by the various ports for facilitating Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) and Operational Efficiency Through Technology (OETT) to boost growth under PM Gati Shakti National Plan in presence of Union MoS Shantanu Thakur, Secretary Dr Sanjeev Ranjan and chairmen of all major ports. PM GatiShakti – ‘National Master Plan’ aims to lay foundation for holistic infrastructure that will pave the path for integrated growth of the country’s economy. Urging the chairmen of all the Major Ports to put emphasis on promotion of Atma Nirbhar Bharat mission and skill development, the Union Minister said, “Integrated efforts which are being taken by ports and others will add speed to development works around the country. PM Gati Shakti will help the people, farmers, fishing community and strengthen India’s economy.” During the review, Secretary Dr Sanjeev Ranjan spoke on multi-modal connectivity, highlighting the seven pillars of growth under PM Gati Shakti, Smart, Mega and Green Ports, EoDB and Maritime India Vision(MIV) 2030.

The carrier’s latest effort around that pro-customer approach is a multi-modal end-to-end containerised cargo provision – involving truck, rail and barge services – for a last-mile delivery from West India to Mongla Port in Bangladesh. Mongla is Bangladesh’s busiest cargo gateway after Chittagong Port. “The cargo is moving from the shipper’s factory to ICD Mihan in Nagpur by road, after which it is connected to Kolkata on rail,” said a spokesperson for Maersk (India). From Kolkata, the cargo will head to Mongla on a barge facilitated by Maersk. In conjunction with India’s public rail company, the Container Corporation of India (Concor), the carrier set up the first such train trip from the Nagpur ICD to Kolkata Port on 3 February. “This multimodal solution is designed to improve transit time, reduce supply chain inefficiencies and lead time, promote sustainability and cost efficiency,” Concor said in a statement. “This is an end-to-end solution for container movement from customer factory, including first-mile connectivity, customs clearance, rail movement and barge connection.” The unique cross-border offering is a step further towards Maersk’s expanding multimodal profile in the Indian market as it works to meet trade expectations on service levels.

APM Terminals Pipavav has achieved productivity milestone in limestone discharge in bulk operation. The Port discharged the limestone vessel “MV El Matador’ within 46 hours, at the discharge rate of 31,263 MT per day. The vessel was berthed on arrival without any pre-berthing delay with singular focus on faster vessel turnaround considering strong vessel line-up in waiting. Limestone and other mineral cargoes are mostly handled with conventional mode at all Indian ports; wherein above operational feat is certainly one of the highest minerals discharge record against industry standards. The breakthrough productivity was achieved with the usage of Port’s state-of-art Gottwald Shore cranes & vessel cranes and seamless co-ordination at the Port ensuring safe and efficient operations. Commenting on Company’s initiatives, Jakob Friis Sørensen, MD, APM Terminals Pipavav, said, “We are proud of another productivity achievement at our port. Discharging the minerals at the rate of 31263 MT per day is an outstanding feat and shows our infrastructure capabilities, flawless planning, and co-ordination among our teams at the Port. We are committed to extend the best services to our customers by moving their cargoes safely and in the least possible time at our port through continuous infrastructure development.”

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.

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 …

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.”

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).

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”.