Explore the logistics of moving food and beverage products across various distances, including land, sea, and air transportation. This subcategory covers innovations in shipping, transportation technology, and strategies for optimizing efficiency and reducing costs.
Italian energy services contractor Saipem has been awarded an extension for one of its rigs by oil and gas operator Aker BP.
Aker BP gave an extension to the Scarabeo 8 semisub which is currently under contract with the company until the end of 2025.
Initially, the rig won a three-year, $325m deal with Aker BP for work offshore Norway back in March 2022, the contract also includes the option of two one-year extensions.
Work under the contract started in early 2023, upon the termination of the works in which the 2012-built semisub was engaged at the time.
Saipem said via social media channels that the Scarabeo 8 will stay with the Norwegian company until the end of 2026, meaning that one of the two options was exercised.
CMA CGM recently announced the implementation of a new Peak Season Surcharge (PSS05) set to take effect on 15 October 2024.
This surcharge will apply to shipments originating from the Indian Subcontinent, the Middle East Gulf, the Red Sea region, and Egypt, destined for the United States East Coast and Gulf Coast.
The surcharge, set at US$1,000 per unit, will impact all types of cargo and will remain in effect until further notice.
CMA CGM advised its customers to prepare for the adjustment as the busy shipping season approaches.
There has been widespread international condemnation of a Russian missile strike on a Greek-operated bulk carrier off Romania this week, although security analysts are unsure whether this was a hit specifically aiming at a merchant ship or a misguided strike as part of a wider campaign against Ukrainian infrastructure in the region.
The ship sustained damage to its port side, including a cargo hold and a crane. The vessel was built in 1997 and is operated by Piraeus-based VRS Maritime Services.
Data from MarineTraffic shows the ship left from Chornomorsk port in Ukraine at 7:31 am local time on Wednesday and made an urgent diversion having crossed international waters. Having been hit in Romania’s exclusive economic zone by a Kh-22 cruise missile with a 1,000 kg warhead which was launched from a Russian Tupolev Tu-22M bomber, the ship veered starboard and made for Romania’s territorial waters with images released showing much of the ship’s deck badly mangled. The vessel is currently anchored off Constanta, Romania’s largest port.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the incident via social media yesterday. He said that a Russian missile hit “an ordinary civilian vessel” carrying wheat cargo bound for Egypt after the ship had left Ukrainian waters.
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said the strike was “a brazen attack on freedom of navigation and global food security” while the US ambassador to Ukraine “strongly condemned” the attack and said Russia was responsible. A United Nations spokesperson said the incident was a “stark reminder” of the threats still faced in the Black Sea by civilian vessels. Russia, for its part, has remain tight-lipped on the incident, the first confirmed attack on a merchant ship in the Black Sea since last November.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly requests the Russian Federation to stop any attack on commercial ships and to respect the freedom of navigation enjoyed by the states in the Black Sea,” Romania’s Foreign Ministry stated.
According to the Romanian ministry, the ship was 55 km from Sfântu Gheorghe, a commune in Tulcea county in Romania’s exclusive economic zone when it came under attack. An exclusive economic zone is the maritime area adjacent to a nation’s territorial waters.
Whether the ship was an intentional target remains unclear. Kristian Bischoff, a threat analyst at Risk Intelligence, pointed out, via a post on social media, that the Russians have recently stepped up targeting of infrastructure on Zmiinyi Island (also known as Snake Island, made famous in the early days of the war between Ukraine and Russia) and nearby offshore platforms. The Russian missiles used tend to lock on to radio signatures or radar, and if no major radar installations are in place on, for example, Zmiinyi Island, the missiles then lock onto the next major signature nearby, which could well be vessels passing by.
The Gambia Ports Authority has reinforced its commitment to digitalize its operations by selecting the Spanish company Prodevelop, in partnership with local firm Lasting Solutions, to implement the Port Management Information System (PMIS), Posidonia Management.
For Gambia Ports Authority it is crucial to optimize internal port management. Prodevelop’s PMIS is a tool for digitalizing and streamlining the port’s internal processes. Through this system, the Gambia Ports Authority will enhance the efficiency of its internal operations, enabling it to provide superior services to its customers, including its concessionaire.
The implementation of Posidonia Management will offer several benefits to the Port Authority, including optimizing vessel and cargo handling, reducing vessel turnaround times, bolstering security measures within Gambia port facilities, ensuring compliance with international maritime regulations, and improving data management and reporting capabilities.
Additionally, hosting the system on AWS will provide the port authority with several advantages, including easy scalability, enhanced cybersecurity from Amazon, reliable backup generation, and swift implementation without the need for on-premises installations of additional software.
The agreement also covers technical support and maintenance services, ensuring that the Gambia Ports Authority will receive comprehensive support from Prodevelop. This includes corrective, preventive, evolutionary, adaptive, and perfective services, guaranteeing the smooth operation of the program.
Prodevelop continues its mission to assist African clients in enhancing their outcomes and digitizing their operational processes, thus streamlining and optimizing their daily operations.
What keeps shipowners up at night? The latest ICS Barometer Report published by the International Chamber of Shipping would suggest geopolitical instability and cyber attacks are acute worry points for shipping (see chart below).
The survey of over 100 global maritime industry leaders over a three-year period analyses year-on-year shifts in sentiment on pivotal issues influencing operations.
Despite the choppy markets shipping has faced in the 2020s with pandemics and wars, the barometer has tracked steadily rising confidence among maritime leaders in their ability to cope with today’s unpredictable, tough operating conditions.
Areas of concern for respondents in the latest instalment of the survey include the recent increase in geopolitical instability which is seen as a risk multiplier as it impacts other factors, malicious physical attacks and cyber-attacks by state and non-state actors, as well as updates to global and/or regional regulatory environments and availability of fuels and infrastructure driving decarbonisation.
Emanuele Grimaldi, chairman of the ICS, commented: “We are in a period of profound transformation—marked by decarbonisation, heightened security risks, and evolving regulations. What this invaluable data-driven perspective shows is that policy and clarity are key. This report tracks our industry’s progress through recent gains in confidence, while also noting key pressure points — such as the availability of public funding for green initiatives and the impact of market-based measures — which continue to require greater collaborative effort across industry leaders, government bodies, and international partners to address.”
Protectionism was also seen as a growing risk, driven by geopolitical instability, national energy security concerns, global and regional economic crises, and government-led manufacturing incentives favouring local production.
Findings from the 2023-2024 report indicate the continued significance and high impact of global and regional regulations on business operations. The availability of trained crew and personnel for certain roles remains an ongoing concern, with the potential to further impact operations as increased geopolitical instability affects recruitment and retention efforts over the coming years. The report also draws attention to the alternative fuels market, where methanol and nuclear power have seen a significant rise in interest from industry respondents. The emergence of extreme weather risks is identified as a – one to watch – area for the industry.
HMM maps out a mid-to-long-term strategy to expand its business portfolio for future growth and proceed with global green initiatives.
Under the sustainable growth plan, the South Korean ocean carrier will invest a total of US$170 million by 2030, with US$93 million focussing on the container business, US$40 million on the bulk business, US$30 million on the integrated logistics business and US$7 million on the competitiveness enhancement.
HMM said it will enhance its capacity to deal with global environmental regulations, while it aims to achieve Net Zero carbon emissions by the target year 2045. HMM announced it will allocate US$110 million over 60% of the total investment to sustainable management initiatives, including low-carbon ships and green facilities.
Container transportation business
HMM plans to secure an operational fleet of 1.55 million TEUs (130 vessels) to prepare for the reorganization of global shipping alliances and strengthen its competitiveness. Considering the increasing fleet size, HMM will also invest US$13 million in container boxes to enhance operational efficiency.
To meet the market’s demand for eco-friendly transportation, HMM aims to acquire around 70 green vessels by 2030 and establish a carbon-neutral ecosystem across all transportation segments by 2045.
Bulk transportation business
HMM plans to extend its bulk carrier fleet to 110 vessels (12.56 million DWT) from the current 36 ships. The company also intends to diversify its business by establishing a presence in the eco-friendly energy transportation sector and gaining a significant market share at an early stage.
Integrated logistics business
HMM plans to enhance its shipping and logistics infrastructure. To improve customer service, the South Korean firm will extend terminals and acquire additional port terminals for important bases to accommodate the growing capacity. Furthermore, the company aims to expand its Off Dock Container Yard (ODCY) business and integrated logistics business to provide end-to-end services.
Competitiveness enhancement
HMM is actively moving toward Net Zero 2045 to strengthen its response to environmental regulations and achieve carbon neutrality. To reach this goal, HMM will make investments on retrofitting ship engines, securing a supply chain for green fuels, and improving operational stability and efficiency through digitalization.
Moreover, the carrier plans to develop new sustainable businesses and strengthen the organization and human resources that will execute the 2030 mid-to-long-term strategy.
Kim Kyung Bae, HMM President and CEO, commented, “By strengthening partnerships founded on trust, we are enhancing the quality of service we deliver to our customers. We remain committed to developing a resilient business portfolio and positioning ourselves as a global leader in eco-friendly shipping for the future.”
THE Alliance will become the Premier Alliance from next February, with Ocean Network Express (ONE), HMM and Yang Ming Marine Transportation as partners, and the world’s largest containerline helping plug gaps on Asia-Europe tradelanes.
From next year there is set to be the biggest overhaul in liner alliances in a decade, with Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC) ditching Maersk in the 2M vessel sharing agreement to largely go it alone, and Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd subsequently exiting THE Alliance to join the Danish carrier in what will be called the Gemini Cooperation. The liner switches had left the remaining members of the all-Asian THE Alliance as the smallest grouping on the main east-west trades.
Today, the three Asian carriers reaffirmed they will remain partners for at least another five years through to the end of the decade, while unveiling a new branding, Premier Alliance,
“Collectively this new tripartite alliance will offer strong, reliable and highly dependable end-to-end direct port container services to its customers on both the transpacific and Asia-Europe trades,” Jeremy Nixon, CEO of ONE, shared his thoughts on this new collaboration and ONE’s business outlook going forward.
More headline-grabbing, however, is the news that the three carriers have negotiated a slot exchange deal with MSC on the Asia-Europe trades on nine services, helping plug the gap in size.
In the wake of Hapag-Lloyd’s departure from THE Alliance, the Asian trio had been canvassing potential new partners.
A senior executive at Taiwan’s Wan Hai Lines admitted recently that his company had been approached to join a shipping alliance, without revealing which grouping had made the approach.
From February next year, the main east-west trades will see MSC largely operating solo, the Premier Alliance brand commence, the Gemini Cooperation start, while existing liner group Ocean Alliance, made up of CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen and OOCL, has agreed to continue their vessel-sharing agreement until the end of March 2032.
Port Authority of New South Wales Principal Environmental Planner Fiona McKay announced the installation of 81 solar panels to reduce dependence on grid electricity.
By utilizing rooftop space efficiently, the panels will generate power to support onsite maritime operations.
While the Port Authority already offsets 100% of its State-wide electricity consumption through renewable energy via a power purchase agreement with a solar and wind farm in New South Wales, this new initiative marks the next step in producing its renewable energy to offset consumption.
McKay also highlighted that the Sustainability Plan 2020 has integrated sustainable practices throughout the business, focusing on enhancing operational efficiency, reducing environmental impact, and promoting long-term sustainability.
The rooftop solar installation aligns with the Port Authority’s Sustainability Plan and its Net Zero goals, which include reducing carbon emissions and achieving net zero by 2040, with a 75% cut in Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2030.
“This investment in renewable technology is just one way Port Authority is meeting its own sustainability goals, while also actively offsetting increasing energy costs within our port facilities. This 35.6 kW solar system provides, on average, 150 kWh/day of electricity, which will be used to offset electricity use within the Newcastle Port Centre. The added benefits will see an estimated US$170,000 in electricity savings over the life of the system which equates to around US$9,000 per year,” stated Fiona McKay.
Fuel supplier Peninsula has been linked to a pair of LNG bunker vessel newbuilds in South Korea.
Shipbuilding sources suggest the Gibraltar-based tanker and bunker group is behind an order for 18,000 cu m ships announced on Thursday at HD Hyundai Mipo.
The newbuilds, priced at about $93m each, should deliver by November 2027.
Peninsula established its LNG bunkering business in 2021, which was followed by the company’s first newbuilding project through a joint venture with Scale Gas, a subsidiary of Spanish utility Enagás.
The 12,500 cu m Levante LNG was built by HD Hyundai Mipo and delivered in July 2023 on an initial seven-year charter to Peninsula. The ship has since been operating in the Strait of Gibraltar and Western Mediterranean ports.
The Los Angeles Harbor Commission has approved a lease amendment, solidifying plans for a US$52 million infrastructure improvement project aimed at significantly enhancing on-dock rail capacity and reducing emissions at the Port of Los Angeles’ Pier 300 terminal, operated by Fenix Marine Services. Construction is scheduled to begin next year.
“This project enhances cargo capacity and efficiency while improving the sustainability of port operations. It’s yet another step forward toward both our productivity and clean air goals,” stated Lucille Roybal-Allard, president of the Los Angeles Harbor Commission.
This project aims to boost cargo handling capacity and operational efficiency while promoting sustainability at the port. It will add five loading and unloading tracks to the intermodal yard at Pier 300, expanding the on-dock railyard’s capacity. This will allow more cargo to be directly loaded onto trains within the terminal, leveraging rail as the most energy- and fuel-efficient mode of long-haul freight transport in the United States.
“Fewer transfers of cargo results in cleaner operations and more fluidity on our container terminals. This project will make us more competitive and add to our ability to pursue more discretionary cargo headed for the interior of the United States,” explained Gene Seroka, Port of Los Angeles Executive Director.
Additional improvements include grading, paving, fire protection, electrical upgrades, striping, signage, and enhanced storm drain systems to meet Low Impact Development standards.
“This investment ensures that there is adequate on-dock intermodal capacity to accommodate future volume growth, enabling POLA and FMS to further compete for discretionary cargo in an environmentally and community-responsible way,” commented George Goldman, President & CEO of CMA CGM (America).
Funding for the project includes approximately US$18 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration and US$19 million from California’s Trade Corridor Enhancement Program, with the Port of Los Angeles covering the remaining costs.
In January 2022, CMA CGM reacquired full ownership of Fenix Marine Services, a major container terminal at the Port of Los Angeles. As one of the largest US terminals, strategically located with deep-water access and advanced infrastructure, FMS is central to the terminal’s ongoing development and investment initiatives.
