Subscribe to RSS feedWeekly Edition 22nd July
Strait challenge all set
BASS Strait operators will have new competition as soon as the end of this month when a long-mooted Melbourne-Bell Bay service gets underway.
Heavy-lift specialist makes gains beyond its weight
GERMAN-owned heavy-lift specialist SAL has more than doubled its Australian volumes this year on the back of new contracts with many of its existing customers.
Industry call to back ports strategy plans
TRANSPORT groups have called on Labor and the Coalition to support the National Ports Strategy and review industrial relations laws if they win office at the upcoming Federal election.
TasRail Krafts Bell Bay comeback
FOOD giant Kraft says the decision to reopen the Bell Bay rail line in Tasmania will help it compete in the global market.
Additional ship on order for SeaRoad
THE ADVENT of Agility Shipping will not dissuade SeaRoad Shipping from proceeding with its own fleet renewal plans, chairman Chas Kelly says.
Customs foils $84m cocaine importation
FOUR men have been arrested in relation to an $84m shipment of cocaine from Mexico which arrived at the port of Melbourne last month.
NSW throws down gauntlet
After years of losing cargo to other states, the once-premier state is looking for ways to fight back, reports Sam Collyer
Stevedores strike after another fatality
ABOUT 800 stevedores around Australia walked off the job last week in protest of safety conditions following the death of one of their colleagues in Melbourne.
Fremantle truck scheme aims to lighten the load on roads
FREMANTLE Ports has backed a proposal by stevedoring companies to give preferential treatment to trucks doing “dual-runs” at the western harbour.
VTA backs TAP’s Westlink project
THE VICTORIAN Transport Association (VTA) has backed the state government’s Truck Action Plan (TAP) and the affiliated Westlink traffic project.
Townsville port’s iron ore to be first in 120 years
FOR THE first time in about 120 years a shipment of iron ore has left the Australian eastern seaboard, this time bound for China.
Tongan ferry unfit for use: investigators
THE FERRY that sank off the coast of Tonga in August last year, killing 74 people, was so dilapidated she should not have been operating, an investigation has found.
Some see optimism as dry bulk’s 35-day plunge ends
THE GLOBAL dry bulk market last week ended its longest downward plunge in almost 15 years after some capesize rates bottomed out at less than US$5000 a day.
Fortescue’s exports up for June
FORTESCUE Metals, run by mining magnate Andrew Forrest, shipped 36% more iron ore from Port Hedland in the June quarter.
Kuehne+Nagel sees freight surge
KUEHNE+Nagel saw demand for global sea freight accelerate in the second quarter of this year, “leading to shortages in shipping capacity and containers resulting in significant rate increases”.
US advised to backtrack on 100% scanning
A KEY US Government advisory committee has recommended that Washington repeals legislation requiring 100% scanning of maritime containers, suggesting instead risk-based analysis of any threat,.
Dry bulk shares break link with BDI
THE BEHAVIOUR of dry bulk shares this year, which has mirrored the wider market more than the Baltic Dry Index, has exposed the limitations of the so-called bellwether index as the proxy for the whole sector.
The maritime industry needs to work on a brand-new image
Shipping must take a more dynamic approach in selling its success stories to mainstream media, writes CRAIG EASON
SOFTLY, SOFTLY MAERSK
Leading box lines have been bullish, but the IMF has pointed out pitfalls on the road to recovery, writes STEVE MATTHEWS
Feeling boxed in: preparing for the phase-out of the reefership
More consolidation on the cards as boxes continue to muscle in and owners juggle falling demand, writes STEVE MATTHEWS
Decline in global reefer fleet could ‘strengthen’ operators
REEFER operators should have little fear for the future of their companies despite the worldwide decline in the global reefer fleet.
DEPTH OF EXPERIENCE
TRADITIONAL speech fodder at ship-naming ceremonies will generally include much heartfelt thanks, best wishes for everyone from the captain to the yard’s tea boy and much general singing of everyone’s praises.
SOUNDS OF SILENCE
MANY shipowners have been clocking up the air miles over the past few years through trips to Asian shipyards, but some are seemingly more accustomed than others to the finer points of travel in the region.
COLD CALLS OF LONDON
SHIPOWNERS in Europe are on notice about small-time security companies asking them to cough up cash.
First visit for new PIL box ship
PACIFIC International Lines (PIL) container ship Kota Lumayan made her maiden voyage to Australia last week. The new L-class ship, the latest addition to PIL’s Sino Australia Service (SAS), arrived at Port Botany from the Dalian New Shipbuilding Heavy Industry Co in China on July 15, two days later than previously expected due to bad weather.
Union misreads act as applied to coastal shipping
THE GUEST opinion by Paddy Crumlin last week (Lloyd’s List DCN, July 15) makes interesting reading given his colourful comparison of the application of the Fair Work Act to coastal shipping and the handing out of referee’s red cards during the World Cup.
China’s two biggest ports face second half slowdown
CHINA’S two biggest ports face a slowdown in container traffic in the second half of the year, analysts warn.
Chinese pair forecast profit rise
TWO KEY units of China Shipping Group are forecasting vast improvements in their financial performances for the first half of this year.
Seafarers: staying out of Queensland’s hot water
IT WAS my first voyage to Australia and we were alongside in Sydney, preparing to sail northwards to complete the discharge in Brisbane, thence to load in the ports of north Queensland.
Damaged bulker leaves Newcastle
CAPESIZE bulk carrier Dong-A-Hermes has left the port of Newcastle after hatch cover repairs.
Drillers slam new order by Obama
INDUSTRY interests have widely condemned a new moratorium on deepwater drilling ordered by the Obama administration.
Seafarer was drowned after ship’s hoist failure
A SEAFARER fell to his death from a UK-flagged boxship after a hoist winch gearbox failure led to the release of a ladder, a Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) investigation has found.
Lawyers warn box lines over rate surcharges
CONTAINER lines are treading a fine legal line in their efforts to restore revenue and return to profit, some lawyers are warning.
Japan extends counter-piracy naval patrols
JAPAN is to extend the deployment of its naval forces on counter-piracy duties off Somalia, due to end on July 23, for a further year.
Egypt to seek finance for multimodal tunnel
EGYPT is planning a US$1bn tunnel under the Suez Canal, connecting Port Said to its eastern section and will begin seeking finance as soon as the designs for the project are completed.
Baltic to report dry bulk indices for Asian zones
THE BALTIC Exchange is pressing ahead with secretive plans to start early reporting of dry bulk indices from its Singapore office, anticipated to begin by the end of the year.
Default risks as Chinese mills withdraw from cape market
FIRST signs have emerged that Chinese steel mills might default on contracts of affreightment, as brokers report that many have refused to take cargoes, as spot freight rates fall well below levels at which longer-term agreements may have been fixed.
Global oil growth forecast to slip as Asia cuts demand
GLOBAL oil demand is set to rise at a slower rate in 2011 because of the expected slowdown in Asian growth, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Box lines making big returns from relets
SAVVY container lines are making a nice monthly profit by reletting vessels fixed at super-low rates.
Lease companies plug the gap in box demand
A BIG beneficiary of the latest boom in container demand has been the global box lease industry, which has resumed investment with gusto in 2010 and is set to enjoy one of its most profitable years in a long time.
Cosco deal for wind turbine ship
SINGAPORE-listed Cosco Corp (Singapore) said its 51%-owned subsidiary, Cosco Shipyard Group, had secured an order to build a vessel designed for installing offshore wind turbines.
Colour for the future
While debate continues on the science and politics of global warming, the shipping industry has bitten the bullet and is planning a new approach to emissions, writes DAVID SEXTON
Body grows from marine commitment
FROM little things big things grow and so it was with the Australian Marine Environment Protection Association (AUSMEPA).
Ship recycling looks to clean up its reputation
Industry hopes IMO convention will help improve standards at breaking yards, writes LIZ McCARTHY
Revised rules on sulphur emissions enter into force
REVISED rules on vessel emissions written into the marine pollution convention entered into force on July 1.
The lure of CO2 shipping
The nascent carbon capture and storage industry holds some potentially lucrative opportunities for shipping companies prepared to innovate and invest now, writes RICHARD MEADE
