Weekly Edition 25th of June 2009

Show of force Japanese Navy allowed to fire on pirate ships

JAPANESE warships participating in the international counter-piracy effort off Somalia will be allowed to use force and to protect merchant vessels irrespective of flag, after the country’s parliament voted to overturn pacifist restrictions imposed in the wake of the Second World War, writes David Osler.

Pirates’ details put on Interpol

FINGERPRINTS and photographs of 23 Somali pirate suspects have been entered into Interpol’s global database, making them accessible to police forces in any of the organisation’s 187 member states, writes David Osler.

Portuguese warship captures eight Somali pirates

A PORTUGUESE warship today captured eight Somali pirates involved in an attack on a boxship and then let them go again.

Cutting down to the Swire

SWIRE Shipping will concentrate on its core Australasia-Pacific business after deciding to close its two round-the-world services and cut some 200 of its 550 liner trades staff.

Brisbane escapes NZ-Asia cull

SOUTHBOUND weekly Brisbane calls have survived a major shake-up of New Zealand-North & East Asia services, where three strings are being merged into two due to a substantial fall in NZ imports.

OVSA changes as string pulled

THE OCEANIA Vessel Sharing Agreement (OVSA) has officially abandoned its fortnightly PSW-2 string, the remnant of the old USL/ANL service, between Australia/New Zealand and West Coast North America. The third OVSA string was created last August after the CMA CGM Group joined the OVSA and folded in the hitherto weekly USK/ANL operation.

WA considers u-turn on grain trains

THE WESTERN Australian Government could reconsider a request for a $45m investment into the state’s troubled grain rail network after the closure of four branch lines last week.

Recognition for achievements and success in Australian transport

EXCELLENCE, achievement and endeavour will be recognised at the 14th annual Lloyd’s List DCN Australian Shipping and Transport Awards which will take place on November 26 at the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth.

DP World names new chief for Australia

 

BBI faces UK port blow

BABCOCK & Brown Infrastructure (BBI) may have to cut its estimated £450m ($937m) price tag for the north east UK ports and logistics operator, PD Ports.

Petronas secures gas from Gladstone hub

MALAYSIA’S Petronas has sent the strongest signal yet of the viability of plans for a liquefied natural gas hub at Gladstone, signing a deal with Santos that could be worth up to $40bn at current prices.

Rowsthorn welcome to a Brisbane berth

ASCIANO managing director Mark Rowsthorn officially opened Patrick’s Berth 10 Autostrad Terminal in Brisbane on Tuesday.

Australia trumps Brazil in latest round of iron ore export stakes

AUSTRALIA trumped Brazil in 2008 to regain its status as the world’s largest exporter of iron ore.

Track condition contributed to derailment: ATSB

AN INVESTIGATION has found that worn tracks contributed to the derailment of 21 wagons from an Interail Australia freight train in Victoria last year.

Tasmanian Government in rail freight takeover

THE TASMANIAN Government has agreed to assume control of the state’s rail network from Pacific National Tasmania (PNT) by November 30.

Derailments seven times more likely in Tasmania

TASMANIA has seven times the derailment rates of other states and had lost 16% of its freight tonnage in five years, the Tasmanian Auditor-General’s contract management special report revealed last week.

Toll takes on Cambodia’s rail network

AUSTRALIAN logistics services provider Toll Holdings has formed a partnership with the Royal Government of Cambodia to operate the country’s rail network.

Classic Maritime takes two Fortescue relets

GEORGE Economou’s Classic Maritime has chartered two capesize vessels from Fortescue Metals Group.

Positive Boeing sees long-term growth in Asia-Pacific air cargo

ANNUAL growth in air cargo traffic will be almost lower than forecast over the next 20 years because of the slump in airfreight which started about two years ago, according to Boeing.

ConocoPhillips replaces rig on Browse project

CONOCOPHILLIPS has contracted the semi-submersible Transocean Legend to drill a well in the Browse basin off Western Australia after a similar Transocean rig was forced to pull out.

Supply chain: the more action, less talk option

RATHER than drumming up more ideas, Australia needs to sit up and start implementing existing strategies to ensure the sustainability of the nation’s supply chain.

Finesse, not force with pirates

The hijack of Maersk Alabama has made it almost certain that some US-flag ships will carry firearms. The head of the company that operates Biscaglia, the first US-owned ship hijacked off Somalia, sees this as a bad idea –and a bad omen, writes Rajesh Joshi

Reasons that arresting pirates involves tribulations: but few trials

Problems of jurisdiction are preventing suspected pirates from facing the dock, writes Richard Spector

Ports face shake-up if box terminals are sold

PORTS are set for a radical shake-up of their business model as pressure grows on loss-making shipping lines to sell off non-core container terminal assets in order to survive the global downturn.

Data centre delays threatening long-range tracking deadline

SHIPOWNERS are being warned to ensure their vessels are compliant with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirements for long-range vessel tracking before the end of June – even though the data centres the positions get reported into may not be up and running.

Container freight rates may be bottoming out

FREIGHT rates for containerised cargo appear to be bottoming out after plunging by more than a quarter from last year’s highs, latest Neptune Orient Lines figures show.

Tasports to press on with Bell Bay but still to find funding

Island state Tasmania’s lifeline is its ports. So today’s planning decisions will be crucial to future prosperity, reports ROB McKAY

Trade secret: diversifying to survive

THERE is nothing like diversity to help the bottom line during an economic downturn.

Hobart port no longer a hospital case but its wharves need rehab

THE PORT of Hobart and the industries and sectors that rely on it dodged a bullet in May when the proposed $2bn waterfront hospital plan was finally abandoned.

Steady growth for apple isle logistics outfit

AS WITH their road-haulage and shipping brethren in other parts of the country, Tasmanian operators have turned to supply-chain services to broaden their scope as well as to retain and attract customers.

Out of box: delivering special needs

THE AUSTRALIAN Antarctic Division’s (AAD) operation in Hobart is something of a logistical gem.

Food for thought: expanding inside and out

IT DOES a Tasmanian company no harm to be expanding within and without the state.

Ramping up to impress visiting customers

IT IS a story to gladden those brave hearts that believe the land and sea transport sectors can work together for the common good.

Ferry firm has confidence in the resilience of Tasman crossing

LIKE all businesses, TT-Line has seen its operations caught in the draught of the global financial crisis, with both passenger and freight figures adversely affected.

Rail set for change of track

THE GREAT Tasmanian rail stoush had threatened to leave all involved diminished before it ended.

Container trade faces US$25bn black hole

MARITIME consultant Drewry has added to the gloom on global container volumes for 2009, revising this year’s -5.3% teu forecast throughput to -10.3%, with minimal growth in 2010.

China weathers downturn

 

Lines in Suez return

GRAND Alliance lines are likely to follow the rest of the industry and switch back to Suez Canal transits, rather than divert ships around southern Africa.

Mystery bulker order

GRAND China Logistics’ surprise 30-bulker newbuilding order at Zhoushan Jinhaiwan Shipyard is reported by local media to be worth as much as Yuan13.7bn (US$2bn.

European steel mills now importing Brazilian ore

STEEL mills in Europe have started importing iron ore from Brazil for the first time since January, boosting sentiment for a recovery in transatlantic trade for capesize bulk carriers.

Crude tankers keep trading through slump

DESPITE the recent rates slump, fewer crude oil tankers are without employment than any other vessel type in the global merchant fleet.

Capesize fleet tied up

CONGESTION at China’s iron ore ports has hit a new high, with 87 capesize bulk carriers at anchor waiting to discharge cargoes, according to Simpson Spence & Young.

Dip in Chinese ore imports seen

A NEW monthly survey of shipowners, shipbrokers and market analysts forecast that iron ore imports into China would weaken in summer months but remain at historically high levels.

China ore mines closing

CHINA’s iron ore mines face a massive shakeout, with a “severe fall” in domestic production set to boost shipments from Brazil and Australia, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

Warning of escalating costs of war on piracy

SHIPPING and international commerce face what amounts to a piracy tax to keep trade flowing off East Africa, according to a study drawn up for the Lloyd’s insurance market.

Taiwan shipping corruption probe

BOTH shipping lines and officials from Taiwan’s port of Kaohsiung have denied wrongdoing after 46 executives were indicted for corruption for inflating container volumes to meet bonus targets.

Specialised vessels sector faces short-term shortages

Strong demand to be undermined by order cancellations, writes Martyn Wingrove

Newbuilding loans on a ‘knife edge’

FINANCIALLY-pressed owners are increasingly escalating their negotiations with banks, leading banking sources say.

Seafarer’s body found as ship freed by pirates

SOMALI pirates shot dead a Ukrainian seafarer on board a general cargoship operated from the Netherlands, the country’s defence ministry has confirmed, writes David Osler.

Bid to grant immunity to seafarers who kill pirates

US Bill would also allow armed merchant crews entry into foreign ports

Pirates to release Belgian dredger

SOMALI pirates may shortly release hijacked Belgian dredging vessel Pompei and its 10-man crew, perhaps as soon as this week, according to Reuters reports.

More damages: the Exxon Valdez aground.

ExxonMobil fined extra US$1bn on spill payout

Germany abandons hijacked Hansa Stavanger rescue mission

GERMANY sent 200 crack anti-terror police to the Horn of Africa last month in an attempt to rescue a German-owned containership hijacked by Somali pirates, but abandoned the mission for fear of triggering a bloodbath.

Casualty Briefs 25th-June 2009

 

Onshore job market avoids widespread redundancies

EMPLOYMENT in commercial shipping-related jobs ashore has weathered the global economic downturn relatively well.

Long Beach air plan

LONG Beach has earmarked US$2.4m to try out a “sock on a stack” system that is touted to reduce 95% of nitrous oxide, sulphur oxide and particulate matter released by idling ships at quayside.

Bangkok venue for Asia air cargo catch-up

ALMOST 50 representatives from across the Asia-Pacific gathered in Bangkok for the Federation of Asia Pacific Air-cargo Association’s (FAPAA) 36th Executive Council Meeting this month.

How to unlock growth potential

WHILE there has been much debate in the media regarding federal and state funding of infrastructure development and as important as that is to create an economic stimulus and to prepare us to make full use of the economic recovery when it comes, there is another vital ingredient in the mix if we are to achieve our growth potential.

Somalia ransom payments soar to $3m

RANSOM payments for ships hijacked off Somalia have hit a new high of $3m and prices are expected to continue rising as third party agents acting on behalf of both shipowners and pirate gangs manipulate negotiations.