Category Archives: Shipping

VO Chidambaranar Port Trust (VOC Port Trust), Tuticorin, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with National Technology Centre for Ports Waterways & Coasts (NTCPWC), IIT Madras, for Operation, Manning and Maintenance of Vessel Traffic System & Development of Indigenous Vessel Traffic Software (VTS) at VOC Port Trust. The duration of the MoU for maintenance and updating of the entire system shall be for a period of five years, extendable by another five years, says a press release from VOC Port Trust. NTCPWC would maintain the existing Vessel Traffic Service, develop indigenous Vessel Traffic System software for VOC Port, that would facilitate identification, tracking, analysis of shipping traffic, real-time information for Pilots, monitoring of meteorological warnings, and integration of existing Automatic Identification System (AIS). In addition, NTCPWC will also carry out assessment of the existing VTS functionalities, hardware, software, identify suitable upgrade and provide technical proposal to VOC Port for the VTS system upgrade and maintenance.

Federal Bank launched an exclusive NR savings account scheme for Seafarer segment. This scheme is specially curated and crafted for the mariners and offers best in class services clubbed with state-of-the-art digital banking platforms that allows the mariners to execute banking transactions seamlessly, irrespective of the geo coordinates and time zone differences. The scheme is available in both NRE SB and NRO SB variants. The facilities offered in the scheme are preferential exchange rate for monthly inward remittances, premium debit card with domestic airport lounge access, linked zero balance NRO account and bespoke financial planning and customized wealth management products and services. Officially launching the account scheme, Shalini Warrier, Executive Director of the Bank remarked “Federal Bank has always been a pioneer in the Non Resident customer segment. With a market share of over 6.6% in this business, along with a market share in excess of 17% in personal inward remittances to India, the Bank lives by the mantra of “Digital at the fore, human at the core”.

Chennai Port crossed yet another milestone despite the ravaging pandemic, when the container vessel MV CMA CGM BERLIOZ berthed at Chennai International Terminal Pvt. Ltd (operated by PSA international) and handled 8,819 TEUs comprising 4,645 import TEUs and 4,174 export TEUs. This surpassed the previous record of 8,397 TEUs handled by MV APL ENGLAND on December 8, 2020. Port Chairman Sunil Paliwal and Deputy Chairman S. Balaji Arunkumar, lauded the workers and management of Chennai International Terminal as well as the officials and workforce of Chennai Port for the achievement and wished them more such landmarks in future, informed a port release.

As part of Operation Samudra Setu II, INS Shardul, the Indian Navy ship of the Southern Naval Command, arrived in Kochi on 27th May with four ISO containers carrying 87 MT of liquid medical Oxygen from Kuwait and the UAE. Operation Samudra Setu-II was launched by the Indian Navy for shipment of medical Oxygen-filled cryogenic containers and associated medical equipment from various countries in support of the nation’s fight against COVID-19. The deployment of frontline warships including destroyers, frigates, tankers and amphibious ships of the Navy for the operation forms a significant part of the multiple lines of efforts, by the Government of India and the Indian Navy to supplement the Oxygen requirement in the country, a Defence release said. “As part of the operation, INS Shardul embarked 319 Metric Tonnes (MT) of liquid medical Oxygen from Kuwait and UAE including 11 International Standardisation Organisation (ISO) containers, two semi-trailers and 1200 Oxygen cylinders.” “The ship arrived at New Mangalore Port on May 25, where it disembarked 231.77 MT of liquid medical Oxygen comprising seven ISO containers, two semitrailers and 1200 Oxygen cylinders”, it said.

The first export rake with reefer containers from Siliguri’s Dabgram ICD has reached Kolkata Dock System marking the opening up of direct access between Syama Prasad Mookerjee port and north Bengal. Reefer containers are refrigerated units that carry perishable items. The first rake operated by a private container train operator has brought 28 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEUs) of deep-frozen reefer cargo weighing over 500 tonnes on 29th May, the port authorities said. This direct rail connectivity opens up direct access of SMP, Kolkata to north Bengal and northeastern India, Port Chairman Shri. Vinit Kumar said. The port has an exclusive partnership with ICD Siliguri operated by Pristine Mega Logistics, the operator of the facility that will help boost trade opportunities in the region.

More than 6,000 oxygen concentrators, 500 oxygen cylinders, 60 cryogenic oxygen tanks, and several medical supplies and ventilators were transported into the country by A.P. Moller – Maersk through its ocean and air freight solutions for various institutions and corporates contributing to medical relief activities. Maersk has offered its ocean transportation service to institutions and organisations participating in medical relief at a nominal rate of 1 USD per container. All air freight shipments to India facilitated by Maersk are being done on a zero-profit basis. “The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us several lessons – empathy being one of the most important ones of them all. The crisis has urged us all to go beyond our business and support the society when it needs it the most. 15 of our top executives from different functions voluntarily got together in the early days of the second wave and put together ‘Project Oxygen War Room’, or POWR as they called it, to help society fight the virus”, said Vikash Agarwal, Managing Director, Maersk South Asia

“The sharp increase in demand has led to a shortage of containers across the world. Severe imbalances — such as with exports from Asia but also owing to congestion in ports and delays in hinterland transports — are causing containers to be tied up in transit for considerably longer periods of time. More boxes are currently needed overall to manage the same transport volume,” Hapag-Lloyd said in its announcement Wednesday. Just last month Hapag-Lloyd said it had ordered 150,000 TEUs of standard and refrigerated containers from a Chinese manufacturer to be delivered this year. The majority of the containers are expected to be delivered in the third quarter.

APM Terminals Pipavav (Gujarat Pipavav Port Ltd) today announced the financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2021. The company reported a net profit of INR 654 million for Q4FY21 as against INR 472 million in Q4FY20. Revenue from operations for the quarter under consideration stood at INR 1,934 million as against INR 1,619 million in Q4FY20. EBIDTA for the quarter was at INR 1,156 million as against INR 1,004 million during the same quarter last year. EBIDTA margin stood at 60% in Q4FY21 as against 62% in Q4FY20. The container cargo business for the quarter stood at 195,236 TEUs, bulk business was at 1,028,977 MT and liquid business was 161,719 MT. 4,858 cars were handled under RoRo category for the quarter under review. For the full year ended March 2021, the company reported a net profit of INR 2,181 million. Total Income from operations for FY21 stood at INR 7,335 million. EBIDTA for FY21 was at INR 4,221 million and EBIDTA margin stood at 58%.

Global logistics company DP World operated International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT) at Cochin recently added a new weekly Far East West Africa India Express service (FEW3) operated by Maersk Line. The new service with a fixed-weekly sailing will deploy 13 vessels of 4,500 to 5,500 TEUs capacity. The new service offers direct connectivity from West Africa to Cochin Port and from Cochin Port to Far East Ports. The service started with the maiden call of vessel M.V. KMARIN AZUR on 7th May 2021. Inclusion of this service will boost Cashew, Raw Cotton and Timber trade from Kerala and Tamil Nadu. With this new service customers can connect their cargo directly from Cochin to global markets instead of transhipping at Colombo Port thereby, providing overall cost advantage by reducing the transit time by 7-10 days.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) has announced that it plans to procure a new-building Panamax bulker to transport woody biomass for energy as its main cargo, in light of stronger demand for carbon neutral biomass fuels, especially by power companies in Japan. The new vessel’s specifications are in pre-compliance with the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) phase 3, the environmental regulations that will be adopted in 2025. The specifications also call for reinforced mooring equipment and a wide-opening hatch design to boost the efficiency of cargo handling and is more suitable for the transportation of woody biomass for energy for Japanese power companies. It is slated for delivery at Oshima Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in 2023. Woody biomass for energy is a plant-derived fuel, and regarded as one that can realise a carbon neutral state, based on the concept that burning these fuels does not increase the CO2 concentration because carbon previously absorbed by trees is returned to the air.