Weekly Edition 2nd September

Machinery imports rebounds after four-month low

SHIPMENTS of heavy machinery to Australia have recovered from the recent stall in infrastructure projects which saw imports dragged to the lowest level in four months.

Brisbane pilots’ plea for exclusivity goes down badly with the missing competition

FOR A decision that may ultimately make very little difference, debate over whether Brisbane Marine Pilots (BMP) should be granted an authorisation for exclusive piloting rights at port of Brisbane has been intense.

New Tasmania service won’t work says Toll’s Little

A NEW Bell Bay-Melbourne shipping link is unlikely to be commercially viable, Toll Group managing director Paul Little says.

Compulsory pilotage in the Torres Strait - a unique law that's working

THE TORRES Strait is arguably the most hazardous and navigationally difficult strait routinely used in international shipping.

NZ-Asia group culls ports

THE ONLY pure container service between New Zealand and North Asia is to immediately cancel direct calls at three NZ ports after struggling to get a rationalised schedule to perform.

NZ ports told to get big

A NEW report by the New Zealand Shippers Council (NZSC) has recommended a rapid upgrade of selected ports to handle 7000 teu vessels or risk loss of services to Australia.

Swire flags equipment surcharge on Asian route

SWIRE Shipping is to hit customers Asian trade customers with a US$0250 per teu equipment surcharge from next month, citing the global container shortage and higher costs for new boxes.

AAUS peak re-think brings relief

 

NAPA service fine-tuned as profits sustain

NORWAY’S Partner Shipping Global and Melbourne’s Praxis Logistics are revising their NAPA Pacific Rim ro-ro service ahead of possible further expansion.

Shareholder shuffle at Flinders Ports

TWO MAJOR investors have sold their holdings in South Australian ports operator Flinders Ports but chief executive Vincent Tremaine says it’s “business as usual”.

Box-leasing companies face US regulatory crack down

CONTAINER leasing companies would be subject to regulation in the US for the first time if proposals drawn up by Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) chairman Richard Lidinsky become law.

Brokers defend use of box freight derivatives contracts

TWO LEADING freight futures brokers have vigorously defended container freight derivatives against recent criticisms from several leading liner operators.

Frontline chief sends crew fishing

JOHN Fredriksen-controlled tanker giant Frontline would rather its crew went fishing than accept rates for its very large crude carriers at below US$10,000 per day.

Warning on UK offshore wind farm sites

THE UK’S leading shipowner association has slammed the “absurd process” used by government to allocate wind farm sites around the country’s coast.

Low-sulphur alternatives lift risk of biofuel contamination

THE INCREASED use of low-sulphur fuels is raising the risk of biofuel contamination as refineries are unable to accurately separate production sources.

Shipowners are ‘sleepwalking’ towards tougher fuel standards

Refiners are stalling huge investments needed to meet rise in low-sulphur fuel demand, writes CRAIG EASON

More haste, less speed on emissions

The IMO faces pressure to improve shipping’s environmental performance, while shipyards are still building tomorrow’s vessels with today’s technologies, writes NIKO WIJNOLST*

West coast hubs begin fightback

PROJECTIONS that the Panama Canal expansion will bring plenty of new business to ports on the US east and Gulf coasts could be over-optimistic, according to experts.

PierPass on track for full capacity

PIERPASS is on course to return to 100% capacity before the end of this summer, the Californian offpeak waterfront gate program has announced.

PierPass on track for full capacity

PIERPASS is on course to return to 100% capacity before the end of this summer, the Californian offpeak waterfront gate program has announced.

Return to growth to lift wages

CREW wage costs are likely to increase sharply as shipping markets return to growth and the imbalance in supply and demand for officers reappears, according to the latest ship operating costs report by Drewry Shipping Consultants.

Bangladesh Supreme Court upholds ship scrapping ban

Ships to be imported for demolition must continue to be first certified as toxic-free, reports BRIAN REYES

India takes its pick as Chittagong yards face uncertain future

INDIA remained the destination of choice last month against the background of continued uncertainty of the future of ship demolition in Bangladesh.

Market held back by lack of ships sent for scrapping

ADVICE to scrap suezmax tankers been ignored by owners and combined with a burst in ordering activity for newbuilding vessels so far this year is set to negatively impact a long-term recovery in this sector.

Maersk unnerves market with downturn action plan

MAERSK Line’s disclosure that it could adjust fleet capacity within a month of any future downturn in cargo volumes has sent shivers through a containership charter market that remains unsure about what the future holds.

Small boxships squeezed out by newbuilds

CONTAINER lines may be running out of options to control the impact of large boxships now entering service by switching smaller ships to other trades.

Congestion set to boost dry bulk sector

PORT congestion and China’s coastal trade are absorbing more than 10% of the global dry bulk fleet, with this figure set to climb if weather affects port activity and import volumes rise start rising again.

Oil majors set to order floating rigs despite BP catastrophe

MAJOR oil companies are still pushing ahead with developing large oil and gas fields with floating production systems in the US Gulf of Mexico, despite the fallout from the Deepwater Horizon blowout.

Club boosts reserve as premiums and tonnage rise

NORTH P&I Club increased its free reserve by US$29.2m in the 2009/2010 year, following a fall of US$8.9m in the previous year.

Salvors press for green compensation

SHIPOWNERS are at loggerheads with the International Salvage Union (ISU) over proposals to amend the 1989 Salvage Convention.

MISC profits boosted despite short-term volatility in markets

MALAYSIAN owner MISC achieved a 72% year-on-year jump in net profit in the second quarter of 2010 to RM461m (US$147m) after tax, compared with RM271m in the same three months in 2009.

Order confirmed for 10 self-unloading vessels

CANADA’S CSL Group has confirmed a US$514m order for 10 self-unloading bulk carriers from China’s Chengxi Shipyard, in what will be the company’s largest fleet renewal program.

Suez Canal revenue at record high

EGYPT’S Suez Canal Authority has recorded its highest revenue in a single day since the onset of the global economic downturn two years ago, collecting US$18.7m from 65 ships that used the key waterway between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea on August 13.

Owner negotiates for hijacked tanker

SAUDI Arabia’s International Bunkering Co (IBCO) has secured government permission to negotiate the release of a product tanker captured by Somali pirates.

Lost documents unlikely to hamper MSC Chitra claims

A MARITIME lawyer says that fears over lost documentation relating to cargo on board the MSC Chitra are unlikely to be an issue in future insurance claims.

Charterers must pay for a seized ship

Capture by pirates is not an ‘average accident’ under clause 15 of the NYPE form JAMES SHIRLEY and RAVI ASWANI FROM the Gulf of Aden to the Commercial Court, piracy is in vogue.

Casualty Briefs - 2nd September 2010