Category Archives: Shipping

German shipping and logistics group, Harren & Partner is proud to announce the acquisition of the jack-up vessel, Thor. The fleet now counts four highly sophisticated offshore ships. Thor is a 2010-built dynamic positioning (DP2) jack-up crane vessel ideal for maintenance projects at offshore wind energy plants as well as wind turbine installations. With a 500-tonne capacity, this highly versatile vessel also has a strong track record. The high-outreach and fully-equipped offshore crane can accommodate up to 56 people. Thor is 107.82 metres long and sails under the Madeiran flag.

Economic and Social Commission for Asia and The Pacific (ESCAP) is conducting a research study to offer policy recommendations for gender equality and women’s empowerment in the maritime sector, taking into consideration regional and national contexts in Asia and the Pacific. As part of this work, a dedicated research team led by Sanjam Sahi Gupta, an International Consultant, Founder, Maritime SheEO, and Ex-President WISTA (India) will work with countries in the region to assess their current activities, identify key opportunities, and challenges, and ultimately support the design of a road map towards gender equality and women’s empowerment. The outcomes of this effort will help the Member States build gender policy in the maritime sector by facilitating regional exchanges of best practices and lessons learned.

The Kerala Maritime Board (KMB), the nodal agency for all maritime-related activities in Kerala, is pulling out all stops to woo investment for the development of port infrastructure in the State which has a 590-km long coastline with 17 minor and intermediate ports. The State has the scope for developing coastal shipping as an alternative in order to divert goods traffic from congested roads. N.S. Pillai, who took over as chairman of the KMB, said the board will be taking a slew of measures to develop coastal shipping. “Crew exchange will soon be a reality in the Kollam port as the work on setting up six Immigration Check Points (ICP) is expected to be completed in two weeks. Once the furnishing works are completed, the board will request the Customs to deploy the staff required for facilitating immigration activities,” said Pillai.

Global Maritime Consultants Group (GMCG) has been appointed as regional national partner for the Barbados Maritime Ship Registry (BMSR). Following a realignment at the registry, GMCG will be using its extensive global network to offer ship owners the BMSR services and continue to develop the registry’s growth and profile. The Barbados Maritime Ship Registry is on the Paris MoU White List and accredited to ISO:9001 with a growing maritime reputation as a provider of inspections and assured ship registration services. BMSR has been a member of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) since 1971 and has a comprehensive network of Appointed Nautical Inspectors across the world’s major maritime locations.

Shipping giant AP Moller Maersk has launched its new air cargo business as it looks to meet customer demand for supply chain security. The company said that its new Maersk Air Cargo business will be operational in the second half of the year and will utilise Denmark’s Billund Airport as its main hub and offer daily flights. The new airfreight company is the result of the existing in-house aircraft operator, Star Air, transferring its activities into Maersk Air Cargo.

With the Centre aiming for rapid ramp-up of India’s infrastructure and logistics sector, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways (MoPSW) has identified nine high-impact infra projects worth Rs 1,913 crore as part of the Pradhan Mantri GatiShakti-National Master Plan (NMP). The high-impact projects will be closely monitored through 2022-23 (FY23). “In totality, we have identified 101 projects estimated to cost around Rs 62,627 crore under GatiShakti. We aim to complete these by 2024, while the target for the nine high-impact projects is by the end of this fiscal year,” said a senior official.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) organised a stakeholders’ meet chaired by Shri Sanjay Sethi, IAS, Chairman, JNPA, on the completion of seven years of Sagarmala. During the meeting, the Chairman apprised the various projects initiated by JNPA which are in line with the Sagarmala initiative in the presence of Shri Unmesh Sharad Wagh, IRS, Deputy Chairman, JNPA and HoDs. Sethi said, “All the stakeholders play a crucial role in JNPA’s landmark achievements. They are an integral part of the port. Stakeholders’ views and opinions on various ongoing projects are valuable to us. I want to take this opportunity to thank all the stakeholders for the proactive and constant support in maintaining the country’s growth and ensuring seamless trade.”

Nexxiot announced the launch of the new Nexxiot Cargo Monitor, a revolutionary sensor device which delivers unbeatable connectivity and data performance in a compact, easy-to-use design. It promises to revolutionise global cargo shipping by delivering unprecedented real-time visibility of the location, status, and condition of shipments anywhere in the world. The Nexxiot Cargo Monitor can be used to monitor the transportation of high-value and sensitive products, including perishables, pharmaceuticals, textiles, conditions-sensitive industrial products, electronics and more. Nexxiot’s proprietary, purpose-built software provides a seamless user experience to identify cargo-damaging shocks, excessive humidity, condensation, temperature, cargo provenance, and security issues. The sensor can also connect to Wireless Maritime Services (WMS) which provides connectivity on ocean vessels at sea via cellular and IoT networks.

In a landmark achievement, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) handled 5.68 Million TEUs during FY 2021-22 against 4.68 Million TEUs in 2020-21, a 21.55 percent increase. This performance is the highest ever at Jawaharlal Nehru Port for any financial year compared to 5.13TEUs in 2018-19. The total traffic handled at JNPA during the April-2021 to March-2022 of the FY 2021-22 is 76 million tonnes, which is 17.26 percent higher as against 64.81 million tonnes for the same period of last year. During FY 2021-22, JNPA handled 6,278 container rakes and 1,007,667 TEUs as compared to 6,092 rakes and 921,512 TEUs in previous year.

In a major milestone, the Paradip Port Authority has achieved the highest record of handling 116.13 million tonnes of cargo in the 2021-22 financial year, surpassing the previous record of 114.55 million tonnes in the 2020-21 fiscal. Officials said that despite a 30 per cent drop in iron ore traffic due to international market conditions and poor demand, they managed to improve their cargo handling by focusing on other commodities.