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WorldCargo
news
APRIL 2012
Melbourne to build
new box terminal
As this issue was going to press,
the Victorian Government announced that it will proceed with
a A$1.2B redevelopment of Melbourne’s container facilities to
provide short- and medium-term
coverage for trade growth ahead
of a completely new box port at
Hastings, which is expected to
take 15 years to complete.
The centrepiece of the announcement is the conversion of
Webb Dock, at the mouth of the
River Yarra, into Melbourne’s
third international container terminal, most likely to be operated
by Hutchison Port Holdings
(HPH), which already has new
terminals underway in Brisbane
and Sydney/Port Botany. HPH
has made several public comments
recently expressing its “strong interest” in Melbourne.
The Webb Dock expansion has
always been the Port of Melbourne Corporation (PoMC)’s
preferred option, but the project
was frozen by the previous state
government after strong opposition from the existing principal
leaseholder, Asciano. The current
Baillieu administration has attracted strong criticism from the
Melbourne’s third international container terminal will be built at Webb Dock
shipping and logistics industries
after prevaricating for 18 months.
The announcement poses as
many questions as it answers,
however, and the government has
so far not been forthcoming with
details. Ports Minister, Dr Denis
Napthine, has specified that
A$700M of the total redevelopment cost will be met by “stevedores” with the rest to be picked
up by the PoMC, but there has
been no information forthcoming on what will happen to existing Webb Dock leases and trade,
including Victoria’s premier vehicle handling facilities.
Nor has any information been
released on a hinted expansion of
the existing Swanson Dock terminals operated by DP World and
Asciano’s Patrick.
“This major infrastructure
project is an exciting opportunity
to cement Victoria’s reputation as
the freight and logistics capital of
Australia,” Premier Ted Baillieu
said. “With container movements
in and out of Melbourne increasing in excess of 6% every year and
tipped to reach 8MTEU by 2035,
this announcement is an important part of the Coalition Government’s plan to provide the infrastructure required to meet
growing demand.”
SANY Port Machinery
Package solution provider for
port logistics
Ris.Ga shows fuel savings
Control Techniques, par t of
Emerson Industrial Automation,
has released results of fuel savings
at the Port of Felixstowe achieved
by its Ris.Ga system on a number
of RTGs. The programme to fit
12 40t SWL RTGs at the port
dates back more than two years
(see WorldCargo News February
2010, p1).
As also previously reported,
Ris.Ga was developed by Control
Techniques in Italy (RISparmio
GAsolio - “saving diesel”) and was
first retrofitted in collaboration
with MGM-OMG Officine
Mecchaniche Galileo to more
than 20 RTGs in Spain.
Results from Spain showed
that fuel consumption during
idling fell from around 15 lph to
7 lph, so Emerson had shown that
The results for Ris.Ga at Felixstowe are based on figures from12 RTGs
Ris.Ga can save up to 50% of fuel
consumption in stand-by (idling)
mode, which it estimated at
equivalent to a 20% fuel saving
MCI in composite
flooring venture
Following five years of research
and development, Maersk Container Industry (MCI) is planning
to launch volume production of
wood-plastic composite (WPC)
container floors at a new factory
in China by the end of this year.
Developed in association with
Swedish forest products group
VIDA Packaging, the new floor
has previously been manufactured
in low volumes at a VIDA facility
inVetlanda, Sweden, and fitted into
over 5,000 TEU of Maersk Line
containers at MCI’s dry freight
box manufactur ing plant in
Dongguan, China.
The new floor is manufactured from low-grade recycled
plastic materials - plastic bags,
food wrapping, milk bottles etc which is granulated and mixed
with wood chips to add strength
and formed into 28mm thick
planks using an extrusion process.The planks are fitted 10-across
in the container, alternated with
nine steel omega sections, and
screwed to the cross members in
the normal way.
Although marginally heavier
than standard apitong plywood
flooring, MCI says the WPC floor
matches or exceeds hardwood
plywood in terms of flexibility and
static strength and will meet the
standard 7,260 kg floor strength
test requirement.
With volume production,
MCI is aiming for a price that is
comparable with that of hardwood
plywood floors and notes that the
WPC floor has the added benefit
of being indefinitely recyclable.
The floors will be manufactured by a newly formed com-
Konecranes lands
Global ASC deal
Quality Changes the World
SANY Industry Town, Changsha Economy & Technology Development Zone, China
Zip Code: 410100
Tel: +86-731-85835909
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.sany.com.cn
01_WCN_Apr_2012.indd 1
Konecranes has reported an order
for 20 automated stacking cranes
(ASCs) from Global Terminal &
Container Services,LLC in New
Jersey, USA. Most of the cranes
will be delivered to Global’s container terminal in Jersey City in
2013. This is Konecranes’ second
ASC delivery to the US following the 30 units supplied to APM
Terminals in Portsmouth (Va)
about four years ago.
“Our automation reference in
Virginia is one of the leading references in the industry, if not the
leading reference to date. I am very
pleased that another American
container terminal operator has
decided to adopt our automation
solution.Automation is an important investment trend in the industry, and interest in our solution
is clearly growing,” said Jussi
Suhonen, Konecranes’ general
manager, RMG cranes.
Pete Giugliano, Global’s vice
president of engineering, commented, “After a detailed evalua-
tion, we believe that Konecranes
provides the optimal solution for
our project needs. Several of our
team members were involved in the
successful deployment of the
Konecranes RMG cranes in the
Virginia project. We look forward
to setting the new standard by taking these ASCs to the next level of
speed and reliability.”
Global’s ASCs have an SWL of
40t and measure 1 over 5/9-wide.
They will be equipped with
Konecranes’ Active Load Control
(ALC) system, which combines
advanced sway control and horizontal fine positioning for efficient
container handling, both automatically and (at the road truck
interface) remotely.
ALC, adds Konecranes, also
contributes a lower energy requirement because it allows a lighter
crane structure and eliminates trolley and gantry inching, reducing
cycle times and energy consumption. The ASCs will be interfaced
with Global’s existing TOS.
overall. MGM-OMG, which offers Ris.Ga as a standard fitting on
its new RTGs, estimates the typicontinued on page 2
posites company located in
Huizhou, in Guangdong Province, around 100 km from the
MCI Dongguan plant.The company is a joint venture between
MCI and US-based T&T Group
Inc, a global provider of recycled
plastic materials that operates six
reprocessing and compounding
plants in Guangdong.
As reported in the May 2011
issue of WorldCargo News (p1), as
part of its environmental responsibility programme Maersk Line
has adopted a new container flooring policy under which it will no
longer buy containers fitted with
floors made from uncertified, illegally-logged hardwood.
All Maersk Line dry freight
containers must now be fitted
with floors made from timber
from sources employing responsible forestry practices or nonwood alternatives such as bamboo or composite materials. Any
tropical hardwood used must be
certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
IN THIS ISSUE
NEWS
50 up for SPARCS N4
OMG‘s “smart” helmet
APMT on MII
Khalifa on course
Transnet’s big spend
Staxxon CSC approval
Box builders’ profits up
3
4
6
8
9
16
17
PORT DEVELOPMENT
Tough going in Spain
Swiss cheer for Italy?
19
23
ROLL-ON/ROLL-OFF
Fuming over sulphur
Gothenburg settlement
25
26
FOREST PRODUCTS
Here comes the Judge
RFID for pulp
27
28
CARGO HANDLING
Tractor spectrum widens 31
Lift truck update
33
Grabbing opportunities 35
CONTAINER INDUSTRY
Leasing ups and downs
36
01/05/2012 08:00:41
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING NEWS
Meclift moves on
Finland-based Meclift Oy is enjoying some success with its model
ML36CM Container Mover.
Customers include Rauma
Stevedoring, which was closely
involved when Meclift was designing the machine, Norske Skog
and the state of Finland (for which
Meclift is a framework supplier).
The ML36CM was introduced in 2010 and differs in a
number of respects from the
model ML35CM introduced in
2008 (see WorldCargo News May
2008, p7). For a start it has a
higher lifting capacity (36t) and
it has a more compact design,
enabling it to be driven more easily through typical warehouse
doors or inside a ro-ro ship. It can
be used to handle any container,
including 9ft 6in HC 40/45fts on
and off any highway chassis, or
can be customised to handle a
particular container size.
Rauma Stevedoring, now part
of Euroports group, has been operating an ML36CM since 2010
Liebherr back in BA
and it is used in both shifts handling up to 60 lifts per shift. Total
Meclift’s latest model ML36CM
Container Mover in operation at the
Port of Rauma
operating hours are around 3000
per year. The stevedore estimates
that the cost of horizontal transport using the mover is around
50% lower than using a reach
stacker, which is particularly important when travelling longer distances. Safety is enhanced, too, since
of course the forward view from
the tractor cabin is better than that
from a reach stacker cabin.
Positive maintenance and service aspects of the ML36CM include automatic greasing of the
sliding surfaces from a central lubrication point, while the LED
lights have a minimum service life
of seven years. Use of components
from well-known manufacturers
supports high uptimes.
Liebherr Container Cranes recently booked another order from
long-standing customer Exolgan
SA, in Dock Sud, Port of Buenos
Aires, this time for a single STS
crane. This will be the eighth
Liebherr STS crane in BA and the
third so-called “megamax” crane to
operate at the Exolgan terminal.
The new machine will have a
waterside outreach of 51.5m (18wide), a rail span of 31.37m and a
backreach of 14m. Lift height above
rail is 38m and SWL is 65t (twin
20). Hoist speeds are 30 m/min and
130 m/min, trolley speed is 200 m/
min and long travel speed is 45 m/
min. All drives are Liebherr ac.
Liebherr supplied its first STS crane to Exolgan in 1994
Cargotec books
straddle orders
Cargotec recently received an order to supply 22 Kalmar straddle
carriers to Patrick Container Terminals. Twelve machines will be
delivered to East Swanson Dock
in Melbourne between July and
December, and 10 to Port Botany
Terminal in Sydney between May
and September.
Cargotec’s Australian team will
provide maintenance support to
the equipment with spare parts
supplied direct from its regional
parts warehouse in Melbourne.
All the machines are ESC
350W models, with a 50t SWL
under a separating centre twin 20
spreader.They are fitted with Stage
3A engines and variable speed
generators to cut fuel consumption during idling. A VSG is a
www.multidocker.com
Performance - Operators comfort - Economy
MultiDocker proudly offers new products, welcome to read more at our website.
See you at TOC Europe in Antwerp 12-14th June (stand E36)!
2
“This order highlights our
continued strong working relationship with Exolgan,” said
Liebherr’s sales and marketing
manager, Gerry Bunyan.“We supplied the first Liebherr STS crane
in 1994...Exolgan has had many
years to experience the benefits
that come from operating a
Liebherr STS crane. Increased
productivity, high reliability and
low maintenance costs help to create low whole lifetime costs.
“Viewing the purchase of a
crane as a lifetime cost is something we are encountering much
more often among our clients,”
Bunyan said.
standard feature of Kalmar ‘7+’
straddle carriers, and an energy
storage package can be added, for
even greater fuel economy.
The cabins are fitted with a
180deg rotating seat, steering console and pedals, so the driver can
face forward irrespective of the
direction of travel. There are no
particular automation features included in Patrick’s specification,
although all new Kalmar straddle
carriers are prepared to accept
automation updates.
The latest order continues a
longstanding relationship. More
than 120 Valmet, Sisu and Kalmar
straddle carriers have been delivered to Patrick over a period of
28 years and there are currently
108 units in operation across its
terminals in Brisbane, Sydney and
Melbourne, including the 27 fully
automated Kalmar units devel-
oped in cooperation with Patrick
Technology Systems, in Brisbane.
Cargotec also recently secured
an order from another longstanding customer, Northport
(Malaysia) in Port Klang for four
40t SWL Kalmar ESC340W
straddles, slated for delivery this
September as replacements for
older machines.The straddles will
be supported by a 5-year maintenance and service agreement with
Cargotec Total Solutions. For the
past 12 months Cargotec has been
working on a contract to fit eight
of Northport’s STS cranes with
new crane management software
and remote diagnostics tools.
Other new business reported by
Cargotec this month includes 13
Kalmar reach stackers and four
Kalmar EC lift trucks for ECT (see
p33) and an order worth €10M
from a Chinese shipyard for 20 120t
SWL MacGregor shipboard cranes,
to be fitted to 10 general cargo vessels. The cranes will be delivered
during this year and next.
MacGregor recently introduced active rotation control (ARC) to reduce “spotting” time of its general
cargo shipboard cranes.
continued from p1
cal fuel saving at €40,000 per
RTG year.
Control Technique’s new report about Felixstowe says that
diesel usage savings of up to 25%
per RTG have been confirmed.
This is expected to give a return
on investment (ROI) of well under three years.
The 12 RTGs in question are
rated at 40t under the spreader,
have a hoist speed of 50 m/min, a
trolley speed of 70 m/min, a gantry speed of 140 m/min and each
is fitted with a 670 kVA (536 kW
engine) generator.
At Felixstowe, Control Techniques was already quoting the
port for drive retrofits, and was
able to present a convincing case
for installing Ris.Ga system, estimating an ROI of 2-3 years.
Analysis of the RTG oil samples indicates that periods of idling
have not been a problem and that
savings have been very substantial,
varying with duty up to around
30%, though generally averaging
at about 25%.The Ris.Ga software,
pre-loaded onto a 37 kVA
Unidrive SP AC drive, is set to
allow the diesel generators to run
on for a minute before initiating
run down to tick-over speed.
At tick-over, the diesel generators produce 300v, which is
boosted by the drive with Ris.Ga
up to the 415v required for operation of the auxiliary equipment.
When required, the diesel generator will run up to operational
speed in 5 secs.
The 12, compact Ris.Ga systems were supplied fully wired and
assembled and ready to connect
in an IP65 protected stainless steel
cubicle and they are fitted above
the electrical house. Control Techniques delivered each one when
it was convenient to the port’s
engineering department and carried out all of the electrical installation and programming. As it
is a static electronic system, Ris.Ga
requires little or no maintenance.
Control Techniques also markets Ris.Ga for mobile harbour
cranes (MHCs) that usually run
at constant speed to provide the
drive system and auxiliaries with
a constant supply voltage, regardless of whether the crane is in
operation or stand-by.
April 2012
01/05/2012 08:06:12
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING NEWS
50 up for SPARCS N4 Gottwald HSK in Brazil
Navis has announced that its 50th terminal has now gone live with its SPARCS
N4 TOS ( SN4).
The first terminal to implement SN4
was the Port of Lyttelton back in 2006
and by the end of 2008 14 terminals had
implemented SN4. Since 2009 the
number of installations per year has increased steadily and Navis expects more
than 65 to be live by the end of the year.
“The 50 terminal sites operating
SPARCS N4 include a mix of upgrades
from SPARCS Express, moves from another terminal operating system or inhouse system and Greenfield sites” the
company said in a statement.
The real challenge for Navis is moving its existing SPARCS and Express users to SN4. Some of the bigger facilities
in particular do not yet feel it is ready to
meet all their needs and want to see others of a similar size and complexity make
the transition first.
Some of the early adopters including
DP World’s Port Botany terminal and
Transnet’s Durban facility, had widely reported implementation problems that
others are anxious to avoid. Others, including Maher Terminals in New York/
New Jersey, are taking longer to make the
transition than initially planned.
Migrating to SN4 is much more
complicated than a TOS upgrade and
some terminals, such as Montreal Gateway Terminals in Canada, are reviewing
all their IT systems as part of their migration strategy.
Others are known to have conducted
a review of the TOS market and called
for RFPs from other TOS suppliers, but
Navis does not appear to be losing terminals in this process.
“Fifty sites is an unprecedented adoption of technology in this industry. This
milestone shows that our customers
around the world realise the value of a
flexible and innovative terminal operating system.” said Navis CEO Bill Walsh.
As briefly reported in last month’s
WorldCargo News, Demag Cranes recently commissioned its first Gottwald
Generation 5 rail portal harbour crane
(HSK) in Latin America. The G HSK
4316 B is used to handle fertilisers and
construction material for Fospar SA
(Fertilizantes Fosfatados do Paraná) in
the Brazilian Port of Paranaguá. Fospar
is a new customer of Demag Cranes.
“We decided on the Gottwald HSK
because many cranes of this type are already working successfully in many terminals in different conditions,” said
Ronaldo Sapateiro, Fospar’s operations
manager.“The crane is ideally adapted to
our terminal requirements.”
The G HSK 4316 B with a 4-rope
grab is a variant of the Model 4 (medium
size) of the G5 range. It has a 40t grab
curve in A7 classification or 34t grab curve
in A8 classification and can be used alongside ships up to Panamax size.
Its compact construction, relatively low
overall weight and tailored portal configuration make it well-suited for the finger
pier at Fospar’s terminal.The crane is electrically-driven off the port’s power and was
supplied with two grabs for handling fertilisers and construction materials.
THINK BIG!
Strong Q1
for Bromma
Mantsinen
for Turku
The Port of Turku has opted for a new
Mantsinen 120R hydraulic crane on a
track-mounted portal and fitted with
Mantsinen’s energy-saving HybriLift
drive system. The investment is worth
around E1M and the crane will be delivered this June. The crane, which has a
maximum lift capacity of 20t, will be used
in the inner harbour to handle a range of
piece goods and bulk materials.
The port is also scrapping three old,
6t SWL stationary cranes in the inner
harbour, whilse some other cranes there
will be modernised.
Other Finnish users of Mantsinen Oy’s
120R HybriLift crane include the Port
of Kokkola.
April 2012
SC P GÖTEBORG
Crane spreader maker Bromma has posted
a strong QI/2012 order intake.Automated
terminals, “green spreaders,” container
weight verification (CWV) technology,
OEM business (including from mobile
harbour crane suppliers), terminal expansion projects and ongoing strong demand
from the BRICs all contributed to
growth.
New business in Latin America, for
example, included five separating twinlift spreaders to ICTSI Manzanillo,
Mexico, six all-electric RTG spreaders to
Terminal Especializado de Contendor,
Terminal Marítimo Buenaventura, Colombia; three “Greenline” all-electric
spreaders to Exolgan in Buenos Aires and
seven separating twin-lift STS spreaders
for SPR de Barranquilla in Colombia.
In Malaysia, 10 Greenline spreaders
went to Northport and four STS45
spreaders to Westport. In the Near East
three STS45s and five separating twinlift RTG spreadrs went to Aqaba, and 10
Greenline spreaders to Mersin.
A total of 59 mobile harbour crane
spreaders were ordered by OEMs, while
20 all-electric yard crane spreaders were
ordered for use in automated terminals London Gateway and TraPac, LA. Orders
were received for 21 CWV-equipped
spreaders in 1Q/2012, roughly equal to
Bromma’s prior entire load sensing system order total.Today Bromma has more
than 40 CWV spreaders in service or on
order, at terminals in China, Brasil and
the UK. The company claims an accuracy of ± 1% for its CWV system.
There may be harbours that are bigger than we are but not in our part of the world. Port of Gothenburg is the largest one in
Scandinavia, where 230 ships call in each week. Thanks to our efficient and sustainable transport network, we reach 70% of the
industrial production in the Scandinavian markets in six hours. With our 23 daily railway connections to important logistics
centres in Sweden and Norway, we play a vital role in the development of Sweden’s commerce and trade. With direct departures
to North America as well as the Far East, we offer optimal conditions for the country’s international competitiveness. We have
big plans for the future – you should think big too!
www.portgot.se
3
01/05/2012 08:09:53
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING NEWS
“Smart cap” from OMG Patent debate
Italian crane manuf acturer
MGM-OMG Officine Mecchaniche Galileo has successfully
tested a new remote diagnostics
software package for RTGs using a mini camera system installed
on the operator’s hard hat. The
system allows technicians to provide remote assistance and send
information and audio messages
in real-time to the portable
viewer and, says OMG, can also
be used for training and after-sales
service purposes.
OMG has become increasingly active in the port crane
sphere through several avenues,
including retrofitting RTGs with
Control Techniques’ Ris.Ga system, revamping and enlarging STS
cranes and supplying new cranes.
Its joint venture with giant Chinese company Sany could be set
to provide a serious challenge to
ZPMC when Sany opens its new
US$1.5B plant in Zhuhai, near
Macau. It is claimed that the
branding will be Sany-OMG.
According to OMG’s CEO
Antonio Zanetti, Sany will be able
to provide 20% lower production
costs than ZPMC, some 40 of
whose engineers have reportedly
moved to Sany. Sany itself has engineers based at OMG’s HQ in
Pernumia (near Padua) and senior commercial staff from Sany
MGM-OMG says the diagnostics system has proved successful in tests
accompany OMG around Europe
to meet potential customers and
become familiar with their requirements.
Between them, OMG and
Sany have also forged an agreement with Liftech Consultants,
Inc in the US.This is focused on a
prototype STS crane that can
reach 23 rows across yet rest on a
rail span of just 18m. Potentially
there are orders in hand for two
such cranes, with an option for
four more, from an undisclosed
operator based in Europe, with the
first deliveries due in 2014.
Speculation has linked this to
the ongoing development of
Tanger-Med, OMG recently set up
AB OMG in Morocco in a 50:50
WorldCargo
news
VOLUME 19 NUMBER 4 • ISSN 1355-0551
EDITORIAL:
CHRIS MUNFORD • EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
E-Mail: [email protected]
PAUL AVERY • ASSOCIATE EDITOR
VINCENT CHAMPION • CONSULTING EDITOR
JOHN BANKS • CONSULTING EDITOR
ADVERTISING:
SIMON PESKETT • ADVERTISEMENT DIRECTOR
MIKE FORDER • COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR
STEPHEN CATCHPOLE • BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER
JAYANA AUSTIN • ASSISTANT ADVERTISEMENT MANAGER
ADMINISTRATION & CIRCULATION:
GILL TILBURY • OFFICE MANAGER
NICCI VIGORITO • SALES & MARKETING COORDINATOR
joint venture with AB Mechanical,
which already has service agreements in place with Marsa Maroc.
Another new partnership is OMG
Jordan, formed with an engineering company in Aqaba.
Business for OMG in 2011
included design and engineering
services for nine RMGs supplied
to the Port of Piraeus by Greek
firm C Rokas SA, which is part
of Spain’s Iberdrola group.
As part of a rolling agreement
with GIP-PSA Sinport’s SECH
arm in Genoa, the latest (fifth) revamped STS crane will shortly be
handed over. The previous four
cranes had a height raise of 8m
and outreach was extended to 19across. SECH is considering revamping three RMGs, but may
decide to opt for newbuilds instead, which OMG is advising in
this case. A revamping project was
also carried out on an STS crane
at LSCT La Spezia.
The order book this year, says
Zanetti, includes a total of six STS
cranes, five RTGs (seven if an option is exercised) and three RMGs,
for operators in two Italian ports
and one in Northern Europe.
Finally, Italy’s bankruptcy
court (Tribunale Fallimentare) has
authorised the 100% takeover by
MGM-OMG of the histor ic
Ceretti & Tanfani (C&T ) company, in the past a leading supplier of harbour cranes and all
kinds of funicular systems (including the spectacular coal transfer system from Savona to San
Giuseppe di Cairo in the mountains behind the port). In the port
field, C&T’s most recent activity
was two RMGs delivered to
TMT Trieste. Other bidders for
C&T were said to be Bonfanti
(Italgru), Danieli, and Cimolai.
Dear Sir,
We are writing in response to
the article in the December
2011 issue of WorldCargo News
entitled “Mi-Jack/Paceco in patent row.”
Paceco is one of the world’s
leading manufacturers of container handling machinery and
has extensive R&D and Engineering departments involved in
developing systems for port security, environmental mitigation,
remote monitoring and inventory tracking, along with being
a leader in Real Time Location
technology with thousands of
our Position Tracking Interface
Unit (PTIU) product installed
in US terminals.
Paceco is also a leader in camera automation OCR Systems.
These systems include RTG and
tophandler OCR sensing that
enables reading of ISO standard
container numbers, and the Mobile Inventory System (MIV) that
utilises GPS and OCR technology to read parked chassis and
container numbers in real-time.
The MIV has reduced the time
to inventory a 4000 parking
spot container/chassis terminal
from a ten hour manual process to two hours with this automated system.
With respect to the actual declaratory judgment lawsuit covered in the article, Paceco filed a
declaration to withdraw the
claims asserted in the lawsuit for
tactical and business reasons and
not because Paceco feared that
the patent would have failed a
legal challenge. This filing does
not constitute an admission that
the patent would not have withstood legal scrutiny in litigation.
The article further states that
the disposition of the Mi-Jack/
Paceco proceeding may be used
by equipment OEMs, software
companies and terminal operators
“as a precedent, removing doubt
over installing non-Paceco vehicle telemetry systems.”We feel that
such a statement may be considered irresponsible and potentially
misleading since it provides no
reasoned analysis of the merits of
the actual case at issue.
The article concludes by stating that the outcome of the case
may have the effect of “casting
doubt on a number of other, very
general patents that Paceco has
been awarded in recent years.”This
is particularly objectionable and
damaging in that it characterises
a number of Paceco patents as
invalid, yet there is no basis for this
statement. To state that a number
of Paceco’s patents are “general”
and of doubtful validity on the
basis of tactical decisions made in
a specific case for a specific patent
is simply misleading.
An article in the May 2005 issue of WorldCargo News, which is
referenced in the December 2011
article, dismisses the cited Paceco
patent as simply being directed to
“the use of such a generic item as
an OCR camera” without providing any basis for this assertion or
providing any meaningful representation of the actual claims of
the patent.
This is especially disconcerting because the article clearly admits that “what is and what is not
covered by a patent is ultimately a
legal question,” but then goes on
to unnecessarily cast doubt on
Paceco’s patent by strongly implying that Paceco should not
have been awarded a patent for
its OCR technology.
Paceco will act to protect its
rights when they are infringed.
Paceco is not attempting to use
the patent laws to broadly claim
areas of technology that are not
patentable or unfairly block others from participating in the
marketplace.
Yours faithfully,
Yasuki Kishimoto
President & CEO
Paceco Corp
Editor’s comment: WorldCargo
News did not say that the
Paceco/Mi-Jack dispute creates
a precedent in any legal manner, but that Paceco’s decision to
settle the patent challenge out
of court “could be seen as an admission that it would not have
withstood a legal challenge...”
There is a genuine debate in the
industry over whether patents
covering marine terminal automation have become too broad.
We note that APS Technology
earlier mounted a legal challenge
against Paceco patents 6,356,802
and 6,768,931 relating to a
method and apparatus for locating containers in the yard and
quay crane OCR respectively.
Though proceedings commenced, the case was eventually
settled out of court.The recently
passed America Invents Act introduced important reforms to
the patent process that could
prevent these types of disputes
in the future. It is hoped to discuss this in more detail in a future article.
Procrane for Felixstowe
GE Energy’s Power Conversion
business (formerly known as
Converteam, prior to the GE/
Converteam merger last year (see
WorldCargo News April 2011, p1),
recently completed a power, control and automation equipment
upgrade on a Morris STS crane
at the Port of Felixstowe.
The company delivered a new
Procrane main hoist AC drive and
motor system to replace the existing DC equipment. In addition,
GE upgraded the control and au-
tomation system, comprising a
number of PLCs and an extensive SCADA system.
GE was contracted to provide
an upgrade package comprising a
blend of new equipment and the
comprehensive refurbishment of
some existing systems in order to
help maintain reliability.
“We were delighted to have
been selected for our first project
with the Port of Felixstowe,” said
Steve Raynor, growth region
leader for GE Energy’s Power
Conversion business. “Our advanced Procrane AC drive system
is in use in a great number of crane
applications worldwide.
“Its extreme high-power density and advanced PECe control
concept makes it ideally suited to
such upgrade projects, as its compact size means that it can fit easily into existing spaces without the
need for extensive modification.”
Final commissioning of the
upgrade project was completed
last month.
ITALY AGENT:
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Telephone: +39 010 583684 Fax: +39 010 566578
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Telephone: +82 2 739 7840 Fax: +82 2 732 3662
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Power to Move
Translifter / cassette systems for RoRo and horizontal handling in port • Handling systems for industrial fabrication
Container terminal technology for horizontal transport • Global service network
Entire contents © WCN Publishing 2012
PORT AND LOGISTICS
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4
April 2012
02/05/2012 15:49:28
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01/05/2012 08:16:05
WorldCargo
news
PORT NEWS
APMT builds up for
Maasvlakte II
APM Terminals plans to have finalised key
container handling equipment orders
worth €500M for its new Maasvlakte II
(MII) terminal in Rotterdam by the end
of June.
The global terminal operator has already disclosed an order for 36 Lift-AGVs
from Gottwald for the quay-stack shuttle
as part of the phase 1 MII procurement
programme - a world first for the LiftAGV concept (see last month’s WorldCargo
News p1). It has now stated that it issued
its Request for Proposals (RFP) for STS
cranes, barge-to-shore/feedership cranes
and automated stacking cranes (ASCs)
towards the end of 2011.
APMT MII will be the global terminal operator’s most highly automated terminal to date when it comes on stream
in November 2014, opposite the future
Rotterdam World Gateway Terminal
(RWGT) on Maasvlakte II.
No doubt in a reference to DP World’s
decision to postpone the construction
start of RWGT (also last month’s issue,
p1), Frank Tazelaar, managing director of
APMT MII, stated that there is no question of APMT’s new terminal being delayed.Tazelaar heads APMT Rotterdam’s
25-strong procurement and terminal implementation team, based in the
Willemswerf building on the river Maas
in the centre of Rotterdam.
Phase 1 installed capacity is estimated
at 2.7M TEU and APMT expects to sign
contracts in mid-2012 worth €0.5B for
eight 25-wide STS cranes, two BTS/
feeder cranes and a “significant number”
of the total of the 54 (on build-out) ASCs.
The 25-wide outreach capability of the
STS cranes exceeds the requirement for
Maersk Line’s forthcoming Triple-E class
ships by two rows and the existing Emma
class by three rows. This is in case the
APM Terminals has provided this very general
overview of the Maasvlakte II project
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Speakers include:
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CEO,
DP World London Gateway
Frank Tazelaar
Managing Director,
APM Terminals Maasvlakte II
Thomas Lütje
Managing Director,
HHLA Container Terminals
Sean Pierce
CEO,
Yilport
Jens O. Floe
Senior Vice President,
ICTSI Africa
Tom Ward
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6
Malaccamax envelope (22-24,000 TEU)
is filled within the life of the cranes.
“We are seriously considering a camera-aided remote operation, with the
shore-based driver controlling the shipside spreader from the main building,”
said Tazelaar.
“This is not driven by labour costs.
The productivity we are aiming for is the
key argument, as horizontal trolley speeds
and ergonomical forces are likely to cap
productivity with a driver on board...not
to mention the visibility problems from
the sheer height, as the cranes will also
feature the world’s biggest lift height above
rail to date.
“We aim to top the current performance of automated terminals and consider
that a 25 to 50% productivity improvement on conventional terminal designs is
feasible.”
The 54 ASCs (ie 27 stacks) represent
the most standardised aspect of the new
terminal’s equipment, said Tazelaar. They
will stack 1 over 5, but their span and the
length of the stacks has not been disclosed.
“We hope that one day all automated
transport will look like the ASC market
does today, but, having said that, even our
Maasvlakte II ASC selection is no simple
matter of an e-auction,” said Tazelaar.
“Price is not the only decisive factor.
Criteria such as performance, reliability
and sustainability play a role.”
All the same, APMT believes that the
ASC market has the most mature pick
and choose nature of all, while horizontal quayside transport still has a way to go
in this respect. In opting for Lift-AGVs,
APMT has gone for an as yet unproven
variant of what it considers the most
mature of all techniques available.
Two double decoupling systems were
also considered - the TTS “tribrid”
translifter/cassette system and Cargotec’s
automated shuttle carriers. “The fleet
management and its anticipated compatibility with the terminal’s other software
systems was an important factor,”Tazelaar
stated. “Allied to that the AGV platform
is a proven technique and we believe in
the productivity of the Lift-AGV.
“The TTS system is promising and
has potential...it’s not yet proven, but we
have assessed the right drive with this
supplier.” Tazelaar also values the automated shuttle carrier. “Of course straddle carriers are proven in horizontal
quayside transport and provide double
decoupling, while Lift-AGV only
decouples at the stack. We have opted
for Lift-AGV for MII, but this is not
dogma.The decision will always be subject to each terminal’s lay-out and specifics.”
Parallel to the CHE tenders, APMT
is currently in the market for the required
TOS and equipment control systems for
MII.The seamless integration of those two
systems will be key to achieving the high
productivity that APMT is targeting.
APMT has formed a solid in-house IT
team to drive that development.
Phase 1 of APMT occupies 86-ha,
including 50 hectares of dense stacks, with
1000m of deepwater (-20m) quay, a 500m
long transverse feeder/barge quay and ondock IY with 3000m of rail trackage. Installed capacity is estimated at 2.7M TEU.
On build-out capacity will reach 4.5M
TEU/year.The total footprint will be 167
hectares with a 131 hectare CY. The IY
will be doubled to 6000m of track and
the deepwater quay will be 2800m long.
April 2012
08/05/2012 15:23:09
WorldCargo
news
PORT NEWS
Indian box terminals
refuse to cut rates
India’s top three container terminals have
defied the tariff regulator’s orders to cut
rates by ignoring the deadline for their
reduction.
The issue puts the spotlight back on
the powers of the Tariff Authority for
Major Ports (TAMP), which is controlled by the central government, and reinforces the view that it is unable to enforce decisions.
“We haven’t yet started billing the new
rates notified by TAMP,” said an executive at DP World’s Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal (NSICT) at
Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP), India’s busiest container port.
On February 8,TAMP notified a rate
cut of 44.28% at the facility run by Gateway Terminals India at JNP, majority
owned by APM Terminals, after the company sought a rate increase of 8.72%.
On February 14, the regulator notified a rate reduction of 12.23% at Chennai
Expansion
in Djibouti
The port of Djibouti is to launch a tender for the contract to double handling
capacity of Doraleh Container Terminal
to 3M TEU a year. Development work
on the terminal, which is jointly operated by DP World and the government
of Djibouti under a 20 year concession, is
expected to cost about US$300M, a huge
figure given that Djibouti’s annual GDP
is less than US$1B. The tender will be
launched in the fourth quarter of this year.
The expansion programme comes
barely three years after the original project
was completed. Doraleh has managed to
secure increasing trade volumes in spite
of the predations of Somali pirates in the
Indian Ocean and Red Sea. It acts as a
transhipment port, but is also benefiting
from Ethiopia’s rapidly growing economy.
Djibouti is the main port for landlocked
Ethiopia and new road and rail links from
Djibouti to Addis Ababa have encouraged
greater investment in the port.
Funding must now be sought for the
new project. Aboubaker Omar Hadi, the
CEO of Djibouti Ports and Free Zones
Authority, said, “We are in talks with
China, the World Bank and the African
Development Bank on the project.
Djibouti is a small market but we are increasing traffic to the hinterland.”
International Terminals (CIT) at Chennai,
owned by Singapore’s PSA International,
after the terminal had asked for an increase of 15%.
And on March 1, TAMP notified a
rate cut of 27.85% at NSICT when it had
sought a 30% increase.
TAMP orders typically take effect 15
days after being published in The Gazette
of India unless they’re stayed by the courts.
“These terminals have entered into an
ad hoc arrangement with shipping lines
not to charge them the new [lower] rates
and to settle bills later,” said an executive
with a Mumbai-based shipping agency.
“They have deferred raising bills based
on the new rates.The idea is to see if they
can get a stay order from the courts and
then they need not apply the new rates,”
he added.
On March 23, the Delhi High Court
dismissed separate petitions filed by the
three terminal-operating firms seeking a
stay on the rate cuts ordered by TAMP
on jurisdictional grounds.
The Delhi High Court order means
that Gateway and NSICT can now approach the Mumbai High Court and CIT
can go to the Madras High Court seeking a stay on the rate revisions.
TAMP instructed PSA’s Chennai International Terminals to cut rates by 12.23%
7+(1(:+,*+/,*+7)25<2857(50,1$/
77
Bulking up
in Brazil
Companhia Docas do Pará (CDP), the
state dock company in the Northern Brazilian state of Pará, will invite bids next
month for the development and operation of a Real1B (U4S$546M) dry bulk
terminal at the port of Outeiro.
“The tender will be launched in four
parts. Each part will be pr iced at
Real250M and entails developing and
managing a 200,000 m2 space. The concessions will be set for 25 years and may
be extended for another 25,” CDP managing director Socorro Pirâmides Soares
told Business News Americas.
Onshore infrastructure works will include building barge terminals to serve
vessels arriving from nearby waterways.
Freight will be transferred from barges to
warehouses and then to oceangoing ships
for export. The terminal will not receive
cargo by road, Soares said.
The terminal will be capable of handling 4,400 tph and is mainly aimed at
meeting demand from the agricultural
region in midwestern Brazil.The project
is being developed in collaboration with
national agribusiness confederation Faepa,
the Agriculture Ministry and local agricultural producers.
April 2012
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7
01/05/2012 08:33:54
WorldCargo
news
PORT NEWS
Sassnitz expanding
The ferry port of Sassnitz is to be
expanded at a cost of €15M, in a
bid to boost the local economy
on the island of Rüdgen in the
eastern part of Germany.
The Ministry of Economics,
Construction and Tourism of the
German state of MecklenburgVorpommern stated that the port
area will be extended by almost
23 hectares and new utilities will
be installed, along with access
roads and a rail link, to attract new
industrial customers. In addition,
the Hafener-weiterungsfläche
Süd (port expansion area south)
Sassnitz is looking to diversify its
traffic base with industrial shippers
will be prepared as a cargo handling, assembly, storage and logistics area.Wind energy equipment
suppliers will be offered around
6 hectares.
“These measures will
strengthen Sassnitz’s position as
a location for offshore plants and
other port-related companies,”
said minister Harry Glawe.
“Sassnitz already boasts excellent
road and rail links and is an important international gateway.”
APMT eyes Dar
APM Terminals (APMT) has revealed that it is interested in operating container services at Dar
es Salaam. The government of
Tanzania has made it clear that it
wants to see competition at the
port, where Hutchison Port Holdings is the main shareholder in the
existing operator, Tanzania International Container Terminal Services (TICTS).
APMT has offered to develop
the planned new berths 13 and 14,
or operate some of the existing
berths. State-owned Tanzania
Ports Authority (TPA), which is
the port landlord, has held talks
with both APMT, which does not
currently have any container operations in East Africa, and unnamed Chinese companies (other
than Hutchison).
APMT’s vice president for
business development, Hans Ole
Madsen commented: “The feedback we have so far from the
Transport Ministry is that there are
ongoing discussions with Chinese
companies, which have given
similar offers.”
Chinese government officials
have held talks with their Tanzanian counterparts over the possibility of Chinese firms operating
container services at the port and
also on upgrading the TanzaniaZambia-Railway (Tazara). The
construction of the latter, which
runs from Dar es Salaam to Zambia, was funded and undertaken
by Beijing in the 1970s, but the
line is badly in need of modernisation.
Speaking at APMT’s annual
Africa-Middle East Region leadership meeting in Mombasa at the
end of March, Madsen said: “We
believe it would only benefit the
port and the country to introduce
a leading global port operator at
Dar es Salaam, which would introduce healthy competition to
the benefit of all port users.”
However, APMT representatives have also held high level talks
with the government of Kenya.
Dar es Salaam handled 475,000
TEU last year, still well behind its
main competitor, Mombasa,
which handled 770,000 TEU.
Please
visit us at
stand 300
ICTSI’s Baltic Container Terminal (BCT) affiliate in Gdynia, has been
awarded a PLN53.8M (€12.97M) EU grant towards a PLN153M
expansion project at the terminal, which is expected to be completed in 2015
and is aimed at increasing BCT’s annual capacity from 750,000 TEU to
1.2M TEU.The grant was awarded under the Infrastructure & Environment
Operational Programme Measure 7.4, which covers the development of
intermodal transport in Poland. BCT will invest in new equipment, yard area
improvements and IT systems. The equipment to be purchased includes new
STS cranes, RTGs and RMGs.The CY and access roads will be upgraded,
more reefer container racks will be added, a DGPS positioning system will be
deployed and the truck gates will be automated
Patrick and MUA reach
agreement - again
For the second time in six months,
Asciano’s Patrick and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA)
have reached equanimity on a new
labour agreement - this time after
the intervention of the federal employment and workplace relations
manager, Bill Shorten.
The opposing sides originally
announced a deal at the beginning
of November 2011 after more
than 12 months of industrial thrust
and parry, which saw Patrick facilities hit by a series of strikes and
bans that cost the company A$1M.
But industrial action resumed
in March, with back-to-back 48hour stoppages in Fremantle and
go-slows at other terminals, notably Port Botany. Each side accused
the other of refusing to negotiate
in good faith and a national standoff ensued, to condemnation by
shipping and shipper interests.
In mid-April, following the intervention of Minister Shorten,
both parties entered into a formal,
structured resolution process before
Fair Work Australia with agreement
that all matters would be either
agreed or determined within a 72
hour timeframe.
On 19 April, Asciano and the
MUA announced they had
reached “final agreement” which,
from the company’s perspective,
“maintains Asciano’s fundamental
right to manage its business while
balancing the need for improved
productivity and efficiency with
a fair and sustainable outcome” for
container terminal employees.
The final enterprise agreement
provides a 22.5% wage increase
over five years to July 2015, or an
average of 4.45% per year, which
will be very significantly offset by
commitments of improved productivity at each of the four Patrick
container terminals.There is a further at risk incentive of 0.75% available which is subject to the achievement of specific business and customer KPIs. If achieved, these payments will be made to employees
as superannuation.
Khalifa on course
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8
Houcon
Cargo
Systems
Phase 1 of Abu Dhabi’s Dh26.2B
(US$7.13B) Khalifa Port will be
completed this year and work on
the second phase will begin in
2013, according to Mohammad
Al Shamsi, a vice-president at Abu
Dhabi Ports Co (ADPC).“About
96% of Phase I has been completed. The port will add 2M
TEU/year of container and 12
mtpa of general cargo capacity,”
he said.
The second batch of three
container cranes for the new facility was delivered this month.
Built by ZPMC, the superpostPanamax units are among the largest of their kind, with a lift height
of 44m, waterside outreach of 65m
and a rated load capacity of 110t
to support tandem (2 x 40ft) lift
operations. The first three cranes
were delivered in February.
As previously reported (see
WorldCargo News April 2011, p1),
Konecranes won the order for 30
Aerial view of the Khalifa Port
development in Abu Dhabi
automated stacking cranes (ASCs)
for the yard, while Terex is supplying 20 Noell Sprinter Carriers.
“The arrival of this final batch
of the STS cranes completes one
of the most important milestones
for Khalifa Port as it gears up for
the official opening this year,” Al
Shamsi said
Khalifa Port is being developed
to serve the Kizad project, a 417
km2 industrial zone strategically
located between Abu Dhabi and
Dubai. Up to 4 mtpa of raw materials are also expected to be handled at the port’s Emirates Aluminium berth, which is already in
operation.
The overall project is due to
be completed in 2030 and the new
industrial zone is expected to contribute up to 15% of Abu Dhabi’s
non-oil GDP.
April 2012
08/05/2012 15:18:38
WorldCargo
news
PORT NEWS
Transnet investment plan going ahead
Despite having its tariff application largely
rebuffed (see worldcargonews.com 2 April),
South African port operator Transnet Port
Terminals (TPT) is going ahead with
capital expenditure of R33B (US$ 4.3B)
over the next seven years.
The investments fall within the
Transnet Market Demand Strategy
(MDS) recently announced by State
President Jacob Zuma in his State of the
Nation Address, during which he outlined
the South African government’s focus on
infrastructure development. In total the
Transnet Group will spend R300B
(US$39.1B) in port and rail capital
projects up to 2018-19.
TPT’s CEO Karl Socikwa said: “The
MDS has major implications for our division’s responsibility to facilitate unconstrained growth, unlock demand and create world-class port operations through
improved efficiency.
“It entails an acceleration of our capacity creation programmes at all our
major terminals, to ensure that we are able
to grow the economy and make the ports
as competitive and efficient as possible.”
Most of the spend (71%) will be focused on expansion projects, while the
remaining 29% will go towards capital
sustaining projects aimed at achieving
operating norms and upholding service
delivery. The latter includes the replacement of aged equipment as well as the
refurbishment of existing equipment.
Highlights of the programme as regards piece goods include:
● Durban Container Terminal (DCT)
Pier 1 expansion will increase capacity
from 700 000 TEU to 820 000 TEU by
next year and to 1.2M TEU by 2016-17.
● Extension of the North quay at DCT
Pier 2 to help increase capacity from 2.1M
TEU to 2.5M TEU by 2013-14 and 3.3M
TEU by 2017-18.
● Container capacity is also being created
at Durban Ro-Ro and Maydon Wharf
Terminal through the acquisition of new
equipment, such as mobile cranes, and
various infrastructure upgrades.
● Expansion of Ngqura Container Terminal, which has been earmarked as a
transhipment hub and will be expanded
from 0.8M to 2M TEU by 2018-19.
On top of this, Transnet has finally
completed the purchase of most of the
former Durban International Airport
(DIA) for the construction of a new container terminal. Ultimate handling capac-
ity could reach 9-10M TEU/year, but this
would require investment of at least
R100B at today’s prices.
A total of 16 dedicated container
berths are planned, plus a five-berth car
terminal and a four-berth oil terminal at
the new dig-out location.Transnet has not
yet revealed how the project will affect
its existing car handling facilities, including at Port Elizabeth.
As previously reported, DIA was taken
out of use because of the completion of
King Shaka International Airport. The
cost of the land, which is located 16 kms
from the existing Port of Durban, has not
been disclosed, although a price tag of
R1.8B has been suggested in the South
African press. Airports Company SA
(ACSA) was encouraged to complete the
deal to reduce its own debts.
“The first phase, which we plan to
complete in 2019, is projected to cost
R50B,” said Transnet’s CEO Brian Molefe.
“The rest will be completed in 2037.” He
added that Transnet is looking for a private sector development partner.
“The biggest private sector partnership that will ever happen in this country
is going to be on the DIA site.” Japanese
automotive component manufacturers
have already been invited to set up operations on the new port site.
Transnet Port Terminals CEO Karl Socikwa
PORT MATERIAL HANDLING MACHINES
Electrohydraulic drive
saves up to 50 % operating costs
EQ counterweight
saves up to 33 % energy
BC mulling
big spend
British Columbia (BC) has announced
that its ports will require C$3.8B in new
investment beyond funds already committed as part of its “Pacific Gateway Transportation Strategy.”
Developing better transport links for
exports is a key part of the Canadian government’s plan to wean Canada off its
dependence on US trade and develop
new markets for primary products in
China and India. The whole Gateway
strategy has been re-written to focus on
exports rather than BC ports role as an
import point for US cargo.
Box terminal plans include expanding
Deltaport on its existing footprint to increase capacity from 1.8M TEU to 2.4M
TEU/year by 2014. This will require upgrading the rail corridor - a C$307M
project that will also benefit the adjacent
coal terminal. The second container terminal at Deltaport, called Roberts Bank
Terminal 2 is planned to add 2M TEU at a
cost of C$2B. Prince Rupert is currently
handling around 400,00 TEU/year and is
at 80% capacity. It hopes to begin work on
its second phase to add 1.5M TEU/year of
new capacity this year.
Prince Rupert is reported to have resolved issues with Tsimshian First Nations
Groups over compensation payments for
its second phase development, but Port
Metro Vancouver still has a fight on its
hands over Roberts Bank T2. Aside from
the environmental impact of the terminal itself, the Delta community and other
interest groups see the project as the thin
end of a wedge to industrialise farm land
in the South Delta area.
The Pacific Gateway Strategy outlines
the need to “make the movement of containers to and from our port more efficient”
by consolidating a myriad of off-dock operations into “integrated logistics facilities.”
Private developers have seen this coming
and taken options to purchase around 600
acres of farmland in South Delta.
Local councillors and other groups are
vowing to protect what they argue is “the
last great reserve of arable land in the
lower Mainland” from becoming an industrial park.
April 2012
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9
03/05/2012 17:40:28
WorldCargo
news
PORT NEWS
Washington ports receive a boost Tensions remain
will allow us to focus on cargo
segments we have not been able
to target in the past,” said Dave
Madill, the port’s marine terminals director.
Meanwhile, the Port of Vancouver has reported its best year
yet for wind energy imports, handling 106,000t compared to
25,000t in 2010. Executive director Larry Paulson said, “We expect 2012 to be a big year for
wind energy imports, but like the
wind, this cargo will gust and taper off. We expect to see a decline in wind energy import
cargo in 2013 and 2014, due in
part to the loss of federal tax incentives for renewable energy.”
Overall cargo at Vancouver in
2011 was steady at 5.6 mt. The
port is looking to agricultural and
raw materials exports to provide
cargo growth in the future.
United Grain Corporation is expanding its facility, which currently exports around 3 mtpa of
wheat, to handle 2 mtpa of corn
and soya beans, while BHP
Billiton has applied for permits
Two US, Washington state, general purpose ports have received
a boost recently.
The Port of Everett, which has
already (controversially) seen log
exports increase, has now announced that FESCO will expand its Russia Pacific Line
(RPL) service at the port to include ro-ro vessels. FESCO
moved a break-bulk cargo service to Everett from Tacoma in
2005 and has been handling export mining machinery, oil extraction equipment, trucks and
other cargo using ships cranes for
loading.
The RPL ro-ro service links
the Pacific North West ports
of Everett and Tacoma with
Vladivostok, PetropavlovskKamchatsky, Korsakov and
Magadan in the Russian Far East.
This service offers shipboard
ramps up to 120t for heavy loads.
Port Everett is upgrading one
berth to improve its service for
ro-ro ships. “Adding ro-ro capabilities to the port’s portfolio,
coupled with our new rail line,
high in Auckland
NYK’s PCTC RIGEL LEADER was the first vessel to call at Vancover (Wa) as
the port began its second century of existence
to build a facility to export 8 mtpa
of potash.
Vancouver has just celebrated
its 100th year of existence and the
first vessel to call as it began its
second century was RIGEL LEADER,
a newly-built 6400 CEU capacity PCTC making her maiden
voyage to the US west coast.
The 656ft long, 18,884 dwt
vessel was built in Marugame, Japan, and was delivered in March.
It is owned by FPG Shipholding
Panama 5 SA and is operated by
NYK Ship Management for NYK
Line, with Inchcape Shipping
Services as the agent.
The vessel sailed from Japan
with 5120 vehicles, including 659
for Subaru of America discharged
in Vancouver. The remaining vehicles were offloaded in another
Washington state port, Richland,
and in San Diego, Ca.
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Some normality has returned to
the New Zealand waterfront after Ports of Auckland Ltd (POAL)
decided to re-employ Maritime
Union of New Zealand (MUNZ)
members pending new negotiations over labour arrangements.
However, tensions have remained high since POAL’s
backflip on 4 April with both sides
trading further accusations, including that POAL leaked personal details of allegedly
underperforming employees in
order to win public sympathy, and
that the port company saturated
container terminals and other facilities with security guards after
claiming intimidating and threatening behaviour towards non-union labour.
In mid Apr il, POAL and
MUNZ made joint application to
the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) to seek third-party
resolution of the bitter eightmonth dispute but little progress
had been reported at press time.
Five weeks earlier PoA effectively sacked its MUNZ
workforce, beginning a six-week
redundancy process for 292 employees and appointing three new
companies to provide stevedoring
services using replacement
workforces. At that stage Auckland’s main container facility,
Fergusson Container Terminal,
had been virtually idle for weeks
on end with only limited work
performed by port staff.
Geared ships were handled at
other berths, but most
containerships were diverted,
principally to Tauranga, or skipped
Auckland completely. As of midApril, Tauranga was hoping congestion would ease as both its Sulphur Point Container Terminal
and Auckland-based Metroport
intermodal terminal were “still
operating well beyond capacity”.
The dispute has had widespread
ramifications, including the resignation of a POAL board member
said to have masterminded the
port’s strategy, calls for the dismissal
of chief executive Tony Gibson,
and suggestions by Statistics NZ
that the strike action pushed down
the entire country’s export and
import values.
Seen above is the first project cargo to be transported on Peel Ports’ barge
service on the Manchester Ship Canal. Until now the Liverpool to Manchester
service has carried only containers, but the transport of a giant chemicals
tank to the Ineos facility at Runcorn saw the start of non-containerised
traffic.The 30m high, 20t tank arrived at the Port of Liverpool from Holland
on the ACL vessel ATLANTIC CONCERT, and made the onward journey on
the Ship Canal to Runcorn by barge.The journey from Liverpool to Runcorn
took just over three hours.“This is the latest development in our objective to
increase usage of the Ship Canal as a logistics hub that drives down cost and
CO2 emissions. Delivery of this project cargo from Liverpool to Runcorn is
a departure in that is the first non-container cargo to use our barge service
and demonstrates the desire of many companies to use water to get their
product as close to their customer as possible,” said Stephen Carr, Peel Ports
Mersey’s head of business
Growth slowing at
China’s box ports
China’s container ports handled
39.58M TEU in the first three
months of this year, up 8.4% over
the same period last year.
Coastal ports handled 35.56M
TEU, up 8.4% over the same period last year, and river ports handled 4.01M TEU, up 8.1%.
March throughput totalled
14.08M TEU, up 10.21% over
March 2011, with coastal ports
handling 12.66M TEU and river
ports shifting 1.42M TEU.
Shanghai International Port
Group (SIPG), which controls the
world’s largest container port, said
box volumes rose 4% to 2.77M
TEU in March, up from 2.64m
TEU a year earlier. The increase
in container volumes followed a
3.6% rise in the first two months
of this year.
Port officials have forecast a 4%
overall growth in Shanghai’s box
throughput to 33M TEU this year
as global economic woes take their
toll on trade.
The Shenzhen Ports Association said container throughput
increased to 1.69M TEU in
March, down 1.2% from 1.71M
TEU in March last year. Shenzhen
saw container volumes drop 1.4%
to 3.33M TEU for January and
February.
Meanwhile, container volumes
at Hong Kong rose 2.7% to 5.61M
TEU in the first three months of
this year, according to the Port
Development Council.
Commenting on the figures,
Sunny Ho, executive director of
the Hong Kong Shippers’ Council, said, “The market is weak. We
are not seeing a strong recovery.
There is a weak and slow recovery in the United States.There are
weaker prospects for Asia…and no
improvement in the European
market.”
April 2012
01/05/2012 08:43:28
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01/05/2012 08:46:42
WorldCargo
news
PORT NEWS
Record container
volumes at JNP…
The number of containers passing through
India’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP) in the
year ended March 2012 hit a record 4.32M
TEU, up 1.5% from a year earlier.
Gateway Terminals India (GTI), the
port’s largest container terminal operated
by APM Terminals (APMT), moved
1.89M TEU, up from 1.85M TEU in the
prior year, while throughput at the stateowned Jawaharlal Nehru Container Terminal (JNCT) increased to 1.03M TEU
from 880,000 TEU.
DP World’s Nhava Sheva International
Container Terminal (NSICT), however,
suffered a drop in throughput to 1.4MTEU,
down from 1.54M TEU a year earlier.
Officials said total cargo tonnage for
the year was 65.75 mt, with containerised tonnage amounting to 58.25 mt.
“We are taking steps to develop additional capacity to cope with the projected
growth in traffic,” port chairman L
Radhakrishnan said. Projects in the pipeline include a 4.8M TEU/year fourth terminal to be built in two phases, a
US$32Mm contract to deepen the main
access channel to 46ft and a fifth terminal for which preliminary studies are
underway.
JNP is India’s largest container gateway, handling over 60% of the country’s
containerised export and import cargo.
According to a recent forecast, the west
coast port is expected to handle 11M TEU
by 2016 and 23M TEU by 2025.
Overall container volumes at India’s
major ports grew 3.3% year-on-year in
the first 11 months of fiscal 2011-12, according to preliminary figures released by
the Indian Ports Association (IPA).
Sluggish growth during April to February followed a 10% increase in throughput during the previous fiscal year ended
March 2011.
Total volume for the 11-month period was estimated at 7.09M TEU, up
from 6.87M TEU in the corresponding
months of 2010-11.
This month saw DP World’s Aden
Container Terminal (ACT) handle one of
the largest containerships to call at theYemeni
port. The 300m long, 6,606 TEU KOTA
CARUM, owned by Singapore-based Pacific
International Lines (PIL) docked at ACT
on April 15 and was turned around in 21
hours and 14 minutes. “Aden’s natural
deepwater harbour and proven operational
efficiencies made it possible for us to handle
this mega liner. We are proud that our
operations team was able to safely achieve
an excellent turnaround time for a valued
customer,” said Arthur Flynn, general
manager, DP World Aden. With its 16m
quayside depth, ACT occupies a strategic
position as a gateway port to meet the needs
of Yemen’s importers and exporters and is
also well placed to compete for the
significantly growing transhipment volumes
in the busy Red Sea region, DP World said
…PSA seeks
stamp duty
adjudication
Singapore’s PSA International has referred
the issue of stamp duty payment relating
to the registration of its concession agreement to build the fourth container terminal at Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP) for
adjudication.
PSA International, in a consortium
with Mumbai-based ABG Ports, was
awarded the project last September after
it emerged as the highest bidder but ABG
Ports has since pulled out of the deal.
A senior official at the JNP Trust
(JNPT) said there was no legal issue in
allowing PSA International to go it alone
as the project was awarded on the basis of
technical and financial strength of the Singapore firm and not on that of the Indian partner.
The concession agreement setting out
the terms and conditions of the contract
was due to be signed on January 11 this
year but has been delayed because of a
dispute over the payment of stamp duty.
Under the Bombay Stamp Act 1958,
the draft concession agreement has first to
be stamped by paying the relevant duty,
then signed by PSA International and the
JNP Trust and registered. Stamp duty varies from 0.2% to as much as 5%.
It is not clear what percentage of stamp
duty has to be paid or whether the duty
will be levied on the licence fee, the revenue share or the capital cost of the project.
Either way, PSA reportedly disagrees
with JNPT on the issue of registration of
the concession agreement and is unwilling to bear the cost of the stamp duty.
“PSA has referred the matter for adjudication to the collector of Raigad district
where JNP is located, to ascertain the exact amount of stamp duty involved in registering the agreement,” a source said.
The terminal will be India’s biggest,
capable of handling 4.8M TEU a year
when fully developed. Assuming it goes
ahead, PSA plans to invest Rs20B
(US$389M) in the project, which would
make it the biggest single foreign direct
investment in an Indian port.
To win the tender, the PSA-led consortium agreed to share 50.828% of its
annual revenue from the project with
JNPT for 30 years.
April 2012
13
01/05/2012 08:50:25
WorldCargo
news
INLAND/INTERMODAL NEWS
Heilbronn eyes boxes
DUSS, part of DB, is to operate
a new trimodal terminal in
Heilbronn, on the River Neckar
in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in collaboration with the
ACOS group and shipping
company Götz.
The facility occupies 2.7
hectares and is equipped with a
Gottwald G HMK 6407 mobile
harbour crane supported by a
Kalmar reach stacker.The intention is to purchase a widespan
barge-to-shore gantry crane as
and when volumes build up.
Trial shipments at the new
terminal are scheduled for next
month and official start-up will
be in July. Potential customers
include Audi and companies that
manufacture parts and panels for
Audi in the port, where a total
of 3.2 mt was handled last year.
Total investment, including
the land, is €14,6M, although
most of this is supported by
Baden-Württemberg grants.
The terminal can be enlarged to
40,000 m2 and the barge berth
extended to 300m.
SCA goes greener with Hector Rail
SCA Transforest and independent
linehaul provider Hector Rail
have signed a multi-year agreement for rail transportation from
Piteå and Umeå in the north of
Sweden to southern Scandinavia.
The new collaboration,
scheduled to commence in January 2013, is designed to provide
a significantly more efficient and
environmentally-friendly transportation service for the approximately 800,000 tpa to be handled
by the system.
With more powerful engines, Hector Rail will be running fewer larger, heavier
trains for SCA Transforest
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The agreement covers seven
full train loads per week in each
direction between Umeå and
Piteå. Over the year, this is equivalent to approximately 500,000t of
paper, solid wood products and recovered fibre that will be transported on the unit trains.
In order to haul the heavier
trains, Hector Rail will deploy
more powerful locomotives with
electrical regeneration. Energy
consumption per tonne-km will
be reduced by more than 25%.
“This type of traffic with
heavier trains is more cost efficient
and environmentally-friendly than
the trains currently in service,”
explained Magnus Svensson, president of SCA Transforest.
To leverage the possibilities
offered by the larger trains, SCA
Transforest will develop and invest in a fleet of new and more
efficient rail wagons and purposebuilt containers, allowing a very
high degree of capacity utilisation
In addition to enhancing the
efficiency of trains, the aim is also
to streamline shunting work in
Piteå and Umeå.To facilitate this,
the infrastructure and organisation
of the shunting work is to be reviewed.
New north- First stage of Botany
south India rail upgrade complete
rail service
Arshiya Rail Infrastructure, a subsidiary of supply chain and logistics provider Arshiya International,
has launched a bi-weekly container
block train service connecting
northern India to Kochi port in the
south. The first train, carrying 90
TEU of cement from Jodhpur,
reached Kochi on April 9.
The service connects inland
container depots in north India to
DP World’s International Container Transhipment Terminal
(ICTT) at Vallarpadam in Kochi.
“The train service will initially be
bi-weekly and facilitate movement of goods from north India
at much cheaper rates than by road
transit. Later, the return leg may
carry containers imported via the
Vallar padam ICTT,” said C
Unnikrishnan Nair, Kochi Port
Trust’s traffic manager.
Arshiya Rail obtained a licence
to operate pan-India rail services
in 2008. Container Corporation
of India (Concor) is already operating scheduled and ad hoc services connecting the Vallarpadam
ICTT with ICDs in Bangalore
and Coimbatore.
TODAY’S CONTAINERISATION TERMINAL
IS BASED ON ACTIW LOADPLATE
A crucial first-stage upgrade and
reconfiguration of Port Botany’s
congested rail facilities has been
completed and the second stage
of the A$172M project has begun.
The five-year governmentfunded plan aims to transform the
movement of freight across the
Sydney Basin and take up to
300,000 trucks a year off the city’s
road network.
In February, DP World suspended all rail activities into and
out of its Botany terminal for the
month as it installed a third operational rail line, a dual entry-exit
point and additional in-terminal
safety measures, including concrete buffers.
The improvements enable the
stevedore to accommodate longer
trains without impeding other
movements and to handle up to
500 extra rail movements per
week on new train windows.The
work was scheduled for Botany
container trade’s slack season and
was undertaken by DP World with
external contractors and the federal government’s Australian Rail
Track Corporation (ARTC).
In early Apr il, contractor
Downer Australia began work on
the job of expanding the suburban Enfield rail yard to accommodate additional Botany shuttle and
interstate trains. Combined, the
improvements will raise theoretical rail capacity from 700,000
TEU/year to 1M TEU.
ARTC CEO John Fullerton
said the improvements were critical to the system being able to deal
with the much higher volumes
that will flow when Botany’s third
ter minal, the HPH-operated
Hayes Dock, opens next year.
“The upgraded Port Botany
Rail Line, and the associated
works at Enfield, will connect
with the new Southern Sydney
Freight Line, which is expected to
commence operations in early
2013, and from there onto the
Main North South Line between
Melbourne and Brisbane.
“It will also complement the
A$1.1B project now underway to
ease congestion and remove bottlenecks along the rail corridor
through Sydney’s northern suburbs to Newcastle as well as the
proposed new intermodal facility
at Moorebank.” Fullerton said.
New ULCT rail link
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The new rail link between UstLuga Container Terminal (part of
NCC group) and Luzhskaya railway station has now been opened.
According to ULCT’s own estimates, it will now be possible to
dispatch up to 30% of its container
traffic by rail and, moreover, rail
distribution to Moscow and other
destinations in central Russia from
Luzhskaya avoids the congested
rail hub of Saint Petersburg.
ULCT also claims that it has
secured block train tariffs that are
The IY at ULCT has a total of
2100m of (un)loading tracks
competitive with the tariffs from
Saint Petersburg.
Currently, NCC Logistics is
offering shuttle train destinations
via Luzhskaya to Moscow and to
NCC’s Logistika-Terminal in the
Shushary distr ict of Saint
Petersburg. The on-dock IY at
ULCT has four 525m long (25
car) rail tracks serviced by two
Liebherr RMGs.
April 2012
08/05/2012 15:26:05
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01/05/2012 09:00:42
WorldCargo
news
INLAND/INTERMODAL/CONTAINER INDUSTRY NEWS
Staxxon folding box gains CSC certification
New Jersey-based Staxxon LLC
has received a Convention for
Safe Containers (CSC) Certificate for its innovative folding ISO
container design.
The certificate, issued by Marine Container Equipment Certification Corp, an authorised approval authority of the United
States Coast Guard, means that
Staxxon’s patented folding/nesting steel container can be safely
loaded and moved with commodity weights and volumes that
are typical for 20ft ISO containers used for global ocean, rail and
truck transport.
The Staxxon 20ft design was
approved for a maximum gross
weight of 24,000 kg with a maximum load of 20,824 kg. Stacking
ratings are 86,400 kg on the corner post and 192,000 kg in total
at up to eight high. Floor strength
is rated at 7,257 kg and gross interior capacity is 32.536 m3.
Unlike other folding containers that collapse horizontally, the
Staxxon design folds concertinastyle from right to left in the vertical position, allowing up to five
folded units to be interconnected
and handled as a single ISO-sized
module for empty repositioning
purposes.
The unique variable folding
and nesting capability of the
Staxxon design allows for the
nesting of 2, 3, 4 or 5 empty containers whilst always maintaining
ISO dimensional requirements.
According to head of marketing Tom Stitt, vertical folding
means that the Staxxon design is
able to retain most of the structural elements of a standard box,
with no sidewall hinges or disconnection from the top and bottom rails. This results in better
structural integrity, especially in
terms of longitudinal and transverse racking.
It also preserves as much interior cube as possible, which is
particularly important for a 40ft
Staxxon design, which is at the
planning stage.
To date, eight prototype 20ft
units have been built by local fabricators close to Staxxon’s R&D
centre in Dayton, Ohio. A further
five units are under construction
for field tests. The initial target
market is high velocity shortsea
and feeder trades, where imbalances are acute.
Stitt said the company is planning to conduct trials at a container terminal in July, followed
by non-commercial shortsea tests
in October and commercial trials in the second half of 2013.
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Planning for a A$7M project to
relieve intermodal freight pressure on Perth/Fremantle has begun in Western Australia.
The PortLink Inland Freight
Corridor Development Plan,
jointly funded by the state and federal governments, initially involves
construction of an intermodal terminal and rail realignment in
Kalgoorlie-Boulder, as well as a
sealed road link between Wiluna
and Meekatharra.
“Unprecedented growth in
the state’s resource-rich areas has
created exceptional demand for
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16
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goods and services. This has led
to increases in freight from the
Eastern States and an almost total dependence on Perth as a distribution point,” the WA Government said.
The aim of the PortLink
project is to provide an important
regional alternative to Perth as the
central distribution point for interstate general freight. If freight
originating in the east can be diverted north along the Goldfields
Highway at Kalgoorlie-Boulder,
there will be a distance saving of
about 600 km.
Ultimately, PortLink will connect Port Hedland, KalgoorlieBoulder, Esperance and Geraldton
and has “the potential to build a
more robust and flexible freight
network that will deliver economic development and employment opportunities in regional
areas.”
A future Phase Two of the
PortLink project would examine
the feasibility of linking the existing Esperance/Kalgoorlie-Boulder/Wiluna standard gauge rail
into the Mid-West and Pilbara
network.
WA Transport Minister Troy
Buswell said PortLink would build
on the Regional Freight Transport
Network Plan currently being finalised by the Department of
Transport.
“The Regional Freight Transport Network Plan confirms the
strategic links between the Goldfields/Yilgarn regions and the
ports at Esperance, Kwinana and
Geraldton,” he said. “The vision
is for the creation of new freight
routes to complete a comprehensive network offering freight operators better solutions to meet
customer demand, and to attract
new operators to the market.”
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Staxxon does not intend to
manufacture the folding containers itself. Rather it is aiming to
license the technology and is offering a “flexible” business model
that “allows customers and partners to retain existing container
manufacturing, leasing, fleet management, maintenance and repair
relationships”.
Stitt added that 90% of the
Staxxon container is based on
standard kits available from numerous Chinese suppliers.
Around 5% of parts require modification and 5%, primarily related
to the hinge mechanisms, are proprietary, for which Staxxon is prepared to assist with tooling.
The company estimates that
the cost of a 20ft Staxxon unit
should be around 130% of that
of a standard container, which
should be rapidly recovered as a
result of reduced empty handling
and repositioning costs.
Steven Blust, President of the Institute of International Container
Lessors (IICL) has announced that
Brian Sondey, Chairman, Chief
Executive Officer and President of
TAL International Group, has
been elected as Chairman of the
IICL for 2012, succeeding Peter
Younger of Cronos.
Sondey has been a Director of
the IICL since 2000 and previously
served as Chairman of the association in 2002. He joined TAL International’s former parent,
Transamerica Corporation, in April
1996 as Director of Corporate Development and subsequently joined
TAL International in November
1998 as Senior Vice President of
Business Development. In September 1999, he became President of
TAL International.
The IICL’s Board also elected
David Amble, CEO of Seaco as
First Vice President, Celine Wei,
President of Florens, as SecondVice
President and George Elkas, President of Flexi-Van, as Treasurer.
Victor Garcia, President and
CEO of CAI International, and
Keith Lovetro, President and CEO
of TRAC Inter modal, were
elected as Executive Committee
Members at Large.
IICL member companies Beacon, CAI, Cronos, Dong Fang,
Flexi-Van, Florens, Seaco, SeaCube,
TAL International,Textainer,Touax,
TRAC Intermodal, and Triton
own or manage approximately 90%
of the global leased container fleet,
representing nearly half of the
world container fleet, and half of
the US chassis fleet.
West Oz spreads freight load
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Up to 5 folded Staxxon units can be
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New IICL
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Tel: +00 44 (0)1422 257100
The Port of Sète has joined the
Medlink Port Partnership, which
promotes trimodal distribution
on the 550 km Rhône-Saône
inland waterway system.
Medlink was set up four years
ago by the Port of Marseilles in
conjunction with nine inland
river ports at (from north to
south) Pagny, Chalon, Mâcon,
Villefranche-sur-Saône, Lyon,
Vienne/Salaise,Valence, Avignon
and Arles.This inland network offers a combined 2600m of quay,
50 hectares of storage capacity
and another 460 hectares of land.
There are two Medlink marketing initiatives in place:
Medlink for containers; and
Medlink Breakbulk for out-ofgauge and/or overweight shipments. The Port of Marseilles
also wants to develop the network for dry and liquid bulks.
Last year container traffic within
the Medlink network increased
by 12% to 70,000 TEU.
Sète represents an important
“plus” as it is France’s second
biggest seaport on the Mediterranean, after Marseilles-Fos
(France’s biggest seaport overall).
The port has 21 berths on a total of 4000m of quay, including
two barge berths.
Sète is a regional port, owned
since 2007 by the Région
Languedoc-Roussillon, which
has sanctioned investments of
€300M for the period 2007-16
to boost handling equipment
and the overall service offer. Key
new PPP investments inlude the
new Orsero reefer terminal.
April 2012
08/05/2012 15:21:13
WorldCargo
news
CONTAINER INDUSTRY NEWS
Box builders’ Emerson acquires Johnson’s container business
profits rise
Despite fluctuating demand patterns
throughout the year, the world’s two biggest box builders, China International
Mar ine Containers (CIMC) and
Singamas Container Holdings, have reported record results for 2011.
CIMC’s container business generated
a sales income of RMB35.04B
(US$5.56B) in 2011, up 38.26% over the
previous year, with a net profit of
RMB3.629B (US$575.8M), up 19.42%.
The production and sales volumes and
operating revenues of the dry cargo container and reefer container business segments hit a record high, while sales incomes and net profits generated in the
special purpose container, modular buildings and wood flooring business segments
recorded significant year-on-year growth.
In 2011, CIMC sold 1.413M TEU of
standard dry freight containers, an increase
of 9.13% over the 1.296M TEU sold in
2010, generating a sales income of RMB
21.747B (US$3.45B), representing a yearon-year growth of 11.23%.
The company sold 177,500 TEU reefer
containers and 77,100 TEU of special-purpose containers in the year, up 106.88%
from 85,800TEU and 24.56% from 61,900
TEU in 2010 respectively. Reefer containers generated a sales income of RMB
6.276B (US$995.8M), up 71.57% over
2010 and special-purpose containers generated RMB 6.624B (US$1.05B) in sales,
a year-on-year increase of 88.51%.
Meanwhile Singamas recorded consolidated revenue of US$1.817B in 2011, representing a growth of 32.4% over the previous year’s strong performance. Consolidated net profit was US$138.64M, exceeding 2010 net profit of US$92.5M by 49.8%.
Container manufacturing revenue
amounted to US$1.782B, up 33.4% over
the US$1.336B achieved in 2010 and
contributing 98% of the Group’s revenue.
Profit from container manufacturing before taxation and non-controlling interests in 2011 was US$198.98M, up from
US$111.16M a year earlier.
Singamas manufactured 648,014 TEU
in 2011, including around 44,000 TEU
of reefers, up from 636,306 TEU produced in 2010. A total of 672,382 TEU
were sold during the year compared with
612,132 TEU in the previous year.
The revenue breakdown in terms of
contributions from dry freight and specialised containers showed a significant
change from 80.5% and 19.5% respectively in 2010, to 66.3% and 33.7% respectively in 2011, reflecting particularly
strong sales of refrigerated containers and
53ft US domestic containers. The sales
price for a 20ft dry freight container averaged US$2,667 in 2011.
Singamas said that faltering global
consumer confidence in the second half
of 2011 primarily due to the Eurozone
debt crisis, made container owners wary
of overstocking in case of a downturn,
which led to softening container demand
in the second half of the year.
Despite this, global trading statistics
indicate a relatively healthy situation and
bode well for 2012. President and chief
executive SS Teo said the company is upbeat about prospects this year following
renewed demand for new containers in
February.”Our factories are fully booked
in May and we are now accepting bookings for June,” he said.
Teo said the average selling price of a
20ft dry freight container was currently
US$2,400, but this was expected to rise
to more than US$2,500 for containers
produced from June and to around
US$2,600 by September.
Current annual capacity at Singamas’s
11 Chinese container plants is 850,000
TEU, but that will increase to 1.2M TEU
by the end of this year when new factories
are completed at Qidong near Nantong in
Jiangsu Province. Phase 1 of the first factory, which will produce both dry freight
and specialised units, is expected to commence operation in July 2012, with Phase
2 for the production of reefer containers
due for completion by the end of 2012.
Teo said the Qidong facilities will replace three older factories in Shanghai
capable of producing 220,000 TEU/year.
April 2012
St Louis-based Emerson Electric Co has
announced that it has acquired the marine container business of Johnson Controls Inc. Terms of the transaction were
not disclosed.
Johnson Controls’ Denmark-based
container business is the world’s leading supplier of remote monitoring and
control systems for reefer containers
with systems installed on more than
650,000 containers, 2,200 ships and in
69 container terminals worldwide.
The hardware and software solutions
monitor container conditions and notify shipping companies and terminals
of deviations outside of optimal ranges
so they can take appropriate actions.
The Johnson business will now be
known as Transportation Solutions within
the Retail Solutions business of Emerson
Climate Technologies, which is a leading
supplier of air conditioning and refrigeration technologies and services to the
residential, commercial, and retail markets.
In the reefer container business,
Emerson Climate Technologies is best
known as the manufacturer of Copeland
digital scroll compressors, which are used
in both Carrier Transicold and Thermo
King reefer container machinery.
“This acquisition enables us to bring
more value to the global transportation
market,” said Ed Purvis, global business
leader for Emerson Climate Technologies.
“Marine container monitoring and control, combined with our compressors and
diagnostic technologies that are also installed on shipping containers, opens the
door for us to provide a full range of powerful solutions to help global shipping
companies and transportation managers
ensure their cargo is transported in optimal conditions.”
“The addition of marine container
monitoring and control allows us to pro-
vide shipping companies and terminals
with enhanced capabilities in asset management, system optimisation, and predictive diagnostics throughout the full
range of the transportation supply
chain,” added Mark Dunson, president,
Retail Solutions, Emerson Climate
Technologies.
The marine container business
formed part of the Johnson Controls
Marine & Navy organisation. The remaining businesses within this division
are not part of the Emerson transaction and will continue to operate under Johnson Controls.
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17
08/05/2012 15:34:33
WorldCargo
news
CONTAINER INDUSTRY/SHIPPING NEWS
Carrier/Purfresh part company Obituary: Mærsk
Carrier Transicold has withdrawn
its support for the Purfresh Transport ozone-based “active atmosphere” system, which is touted as
an alternative to traditional controlled and modified atmosphere
systems and fungicides for the
protection against decay of organic products shipped in reefer
containers.
As previously reported in
WorldCargo News, Carrier signed
an exclusive agreement with
Purfresh Inc in November 2009
to offer the Purfresh Transport system as an option on its
Pr imeLINE, EliteLINE and
ThinLINE refrigeration units and
has been providing it on a pertr ip rental basis through its
SeaCare Solutions programme.
The system mounts in the refrigeration unit in place of the
evaporator fan access panel and
generates and injects minute
amounts of ozone to actively purify air and surfaces in the con-
tainer, helping to control ripening and eliminate mould, yeast and
microscopic bacteria that can ruin
a load of perishables.
A spokesperson for Carrier
said, “Carrier and Purfresh Inc
have mutually agreed to end their
cooperative efforts to bring an
ozone-based product to the container market. Carrier does not
endorse any specific ozone products for use on its container reefer
equipment.”
No reason for the split has
been given, but according to some
sources concerns have been raised
over the corrosive effect of ozone,
particularly on copper and rubber components used in reefer
container machinery.
For its part, Purfresh confirmed that “Purfresh and Carrier
have mutually agreed not enter
into an exclusive contract,” but
added that “our Carrier-certified
panels are still being utilised on
Carrier Transicold ThinLINE,
Mc-Kinney Møller
Carrier is no longer endorsing the Purfresh system for use on its reefer equipment
EliteLINE and PrimeLINE models and we continue to operate
with Carrier-owned and Carriercertified agents around the world.”
It is not known whether
Purfresh will now make the system available for use with other
reefer machinery brands, but either way, the loss of Carrier’s support will have come as a major
IAS adds BI modules
International Asset Systems (IAS),
a leading provider of cloud-based
solutions for intermodal transportation and container shipping, has
announced the availability of Business Intelligence (BI) modules that
allow customers to better view
and analyse the big data generated
in their day-to-day equipment
repair and dispatch operations.
“Ocean carriers, shippers, 3
and 4-PLs, equipment lessors and
freight forwarders need to be able
to quickly and easily perform indepth analysis of performance,
cost, and revenue related data so
they can turn this insight into ac-
18
tions that grow profits and improve customer service levels,” said
Paul Crinks, CEO of IAS.
“With these new BI tools, our
customers will be able to establish and monitor Key Performance Indicators, enabling decision
makers to more effectively respond to performance issues or
questions by accessing and interacting with meaningful visualisations of their data.”
Dispatch Insight and Equipment Insight are comprehensive
BI applications delivered via the
web as modules in the IAS Dispatch and IAS Equipment solu-
tion suites. Because the new modules are extensions of the cloudbased solutions, they can be deployed rapidly, without the need
of an IT department. Users gain
quick visibility into a myriad of
operational data generated in their
intermodal networks, IAS said.
Dispatch Insight and Equipment Insight provide the ability
to analyse trends in order to reduce repair cycle turn times, increase equipment utilisation and
decrease intermodal transportation spend, while improving vendor performance.
They also facilitate accelerated,
blow for Purfresh, which is currently going through what is being characterised as a “restructuring programme”. In February, the
company issued a notice of assignment for the benefit of creditors an alternative to filing for bankruptcy - which includes an August 13 deadline for creditors to
file claims.
fact-based decision making, improved vendor performance by
benchmarking costs and turn
times, the creation of visual models, such as dynamic charts and
graphs, business analytics, and
what-if analysis, and the building
of list-based, tabular, or chart reports via drag and drop functions.
According to IAS, better insight
relies on a clear understanding of
the business drivers behind any report or number.These new BI solutions for IAS Equipment and IAS
Dispatch provide the necessary understanding of the facts behind the
figures and quickly answer questions on performance. Users save
time and money by having business analytics at their fingertips in
an intuitive, integrated application.
Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller, the
main owner and son of the
founder of Denmark’s largest
company, AP Møller-Maersk
Group, has died at the age of 98.
Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller
became joint owner of the company Firmaet AP Møller in 1940
and following the death of his
father in 1965 assumed the role
of director and chairman of the
most important companies in
the AP Møller-Mærsk Group.
He undertook daily management until 1993 and was chairman of AP Moller-Mærsk A/S
until 2003.
At the time of his death, he
was Chairman of the Board of
the AP Møller and Chastine
Mc-Kinney Møller Foundation,
the AP Møller Relief Foundation, and the Maersk Employee
Foundation, all of which are sig-
nificant shareholders of AP
Møller-Mærsk A/S.
“On behalf of the entire family, I wish to express our deep sorrow at the loss of our father,
grandfather and great grandfather,
Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller. My
sisters and I have lost a father who
never failed his family nor his
business,” said his daughter Ane
Mærsk Mc-Kinney Uggla.
Buffers to distribute
MacGregor lashings
Cargotec Corporation has appointed Buffers USA Inc as a distributor of both its MacGregor
and Allset brands of lashing equipment for the US East and Gulf
coasts, Canada and Mexico.
Buffers USA, which was
established in 1989 to develop
intermodal hardware for the
North American market, originally teamed up with Allset
Marine in 1991 and successfully
changed the US marine twistlock
market from the manual to semiautomatic type. Today, the company handles over 6,300 part
numbers and carries over 6.5M
parts at any given time in its four
warehouses on the West, Gulf and
East coasts of the USA.
“We are delighted to add the
MacGregor brand to our line of
ship lashings since it is a wellknown and respected name in the
industry and, with Cargotec behind it, continues to have the largest market share of lashing for
new ships that will require top
level aftermarket service from
well stocked warehouses,” said
John Hove, president of Buffers
USA Inc.
April 2012
02/05/2012 15:48:33
WorldCargo
news
SPAIN: PORT DEVELOPMENT
Coping in a tough environment
Throughput has recovered in Spain’s leading container ports, but is generally still
below the 2007-2008 record. The Spanish economy is still struggling and consumer confidence is low, while the ports
are under pressure to lower costs or face
reductions in transhipment business.
Algeciras Bay Port Authority (APBA)
has extended the deadline by which
Hanjin Shipping can opt to expand its
existing container terminal at Isla Verde
outer harbour.The terminal operator now
has an additional two months in which
to decide what it wants to do.
At present, the company operates
Phase A of the outer harbour area through
its Total Terminal International Algeciras
(TTI) facility. Hanjin, for its part, says that
it is interested in acquiring additional
space, but only if local stevedores (ie the
dock workers) “understand that to retain
transhipment traffic advantageous prices
must be offered.”
In 2011,Algeciras handled 3.6M TEU,
up 28% over last year. APM Terminals facility posted growth of 12%, while the
612,000 TEU reported by the TTI was
four times higher than the previous year,
when the facility was in start-up.
In the first two months of 2012,APBA
reported total traffic of 14.1 Mt, up 17%
over the corresponding 2011 period.
Container traffic grew by 45% to 628,376
TEU, with traffic at both APMT and TTI
on the increase. (Truck numbers on the
Tanger-Med ropax ferry were up by
14.4% to 43,110 units).
APBA has also started dredging 900m
of APMT’s quay line to deepen it from
14-16m to 17m. Depth alongside the TTI
berths is 17.5m. Inland links have traditionally been a “weak link” for Algeciras.
Although the port has always been primarily associated with container transhipment (still 90% of container throughput
today),APBA has been rightly concerned
about the port’s exposure to changing
market realities and for years has lobbied
for better inland connectivity to attract
more imp/ex traffic..
APBA has finally completed work on
the rail terminal in the outer harbour of
Isla Verde. This means that the TTI terminal will be linked to the main line north
to Madrid and Barcelona, passing through
Bobabilla.APBA has spent €16M improving rail access to the outer harbour.
It’s a mixed picture in Spain’s main container
ports, but the economic outlook is uncertain
and they face strong external competition
Rafael Aznar, president ofValencia port
authority (APV), has been trying for the
last three years to introduce a new collective bargaining agreement that would
improve the port’s attractiveness for transhipment.The current buzzword is “flexibility,” something which he says is necessary if the likes of MSC, China Shipping and Maersk are going to continue
using the port so heavily. If the port is to
attract ≥ 14,000 TEU vessels, he says, it
will have to be able to guarantee producTercat, part of Hutchison Port Holdings, has
taken delivery of eight ZPMC superpostPanamax cranes for its new container terminal
at Moll Prat, Barcelona. The STS cranes
arrived in two batches of four on March 6 and
March 16. This picture shows the latter
discharge, from ZHEN HUA 26
www.gottwald.com
Fleet of Mobile Harbour Cranes in the Port of Antwerp, Belgium
Play your cards right
As TTI ramps up, Hanjin Shipping is in a
strong position to seek keener prices from
stevedores, but it is not alone in this regard. Other carriers have been playing the
“discretionary traffic” card, all the more
effectively since the 2008 economic crisis. MSC estimates that Valencia could
potentially lose around 70% of its transhipment volume over the next eight years
unless it applies “with some urgency” a
cost adjustment strategy.
Last year the port handled 2.14M TEU
of transhipment containers, of which
MSC accounted for the vast majority. In
the worst case scenario,Valencia could lose
more than 1M TEU/year if it cannot drive
down handling costs. By 2019, it is suggested that transhipment might account
for just 600,000 TEU, with total throughput of 2.77M TEU, 45% less than the 2011
figure. MSC has already suggested that
three services may well be diverted to
MCT Gioia Tauro during 2012.
Obviously this would have a knockon effect on imp/ex traffic, since call frequency will go down. MSC’s close associated Terminal Investments Ltd now has
a one third stake in MCT (WorldCargo
News, January 2012, p4).
Top Performers
22 – 24 M
ay 2012
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There is technology available
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Short of confidence?
The mood in Valencia is downbeat and
the biggest operator, Noatum (exMarítima Valenciana), despite placing orders with Paceco España for two
superpost-Panamax cranes earlier this year
and completing a gate automation project
with an OCR camera gantry, appears reluctant to invest in further infrastructure
upgrades on the Costa Quay extension
to its existing terminal area.This will add
capacity of 0.6-1M TEU, but initially requires €50M of investment in paving
work and new technology.
April 2012
Gottwald Port Technology GmbH • PO Box 18 03 43 • 40570 Düsseldorf, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 211 7102-0 • Fax: +49 (0) 211 7102-3651 • [email protected] • www.gottwald.com
19
01/05/2012 09:14:20
WorldCargo
news
Ports such as Bilbao (shown) and
Gijón perceive that they need to
develop as integrated rail-sea platforms
in order to give a further boost to shortsea shipping to the North Continent
tivity of 320 moves per berth hour,
which is currently not possible.
The unions say that they would
like to improve shift changeover
patterns, so that each shift would
work more than a basic six hours
at any time. But the terminal operators want to see changes to the
compositions of the work gangs,
with work patterns redesigned to
reflect current realities.
However, dockers at the port
are seeking a pay increase of 3.2%,
which they say was agreed in October 2011. The unions say that
this payment is fundamental in the
renegotiation of the collective bargaining agreement it has with
APV. For their part, terminal operators say that any pay increase
must be accompanied by an increase in productivity, which is also
part of the original agreement.
Ironically, transhipment traffic
has returned to Málaga, following
a ground-breaking service agreement involving Teminales del
Sudeste (now Noatum Container
Terminal Málaga), the port authority and Maersk Line.
Total container traffic increased 60% to 476,997 TEU,
boosted in part by str ikes at
Tanger-Med, which prompted
Maersk, Hapag Lloyd and MSC
to divert some services. This figure was only 65,408 TEU below
the historic record posted in 2007.
Maersk’s service agreement is due
to expire at the end of May and
talks are under way.
Feat of clay
+
)
)
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)
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)
),
Another port in Valencia’s
“shadow,” Castellón, has slashed
rates by an average of 70% in 2012
in a bid to win container traffic
from its big neighbour. Although
situated at the heart of Spain’s ceramics industry, Castellón has a
tough job persuading exporters to
stop using terminals in Valencia,
where container services are
cheaper and more readily available.
Shippers and lines tend to see
Castellón as a convenient repository for empty containers.As well
as trying to stimulate laden traffic,
the port authority has increased
storage charges for empties. Last
year, the port posted a new
throughput record of 130,963
TEU, an increase of 26%. In the
past two years, ceramics shipments
have doubled and they reached 1
Mt in 2011, but its relative share
compared toValencia is still on the
low side.
Feeling the pinch
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Like Valencia, Barcelona is also
feeling the pinch. Throughput in
2011 rose by 4.37% to 2.03M,
compared with 8% growth during 2010. The port is still somewhat behind the 2.61M TEU reported in 2007.The biggest losses
have been in transhipment traffic,
which accounted for 455,000
TEU in 2011, 43% below the
number handled in 2007, when
transhipment represented 45% of
total container business. Imports
Hanjin Shipping (TTI) is in a strong position to drive a hard bargain in
Algeciras. (Photo:Verano for APBA)
dropped by around 20%, while
exports grew by 21%, to 442,500
TEU and 511,000 TEU respectively. This was the second consecutive year in which full export
boxes exceeded full import boxes.
The port has of course been
hit by the DP World/Zim Lines
operation in Tarragona, but things
could swing back Barcelona’s way
soon. Tercat (Hutchison) has
claimed that its new semi-automated terminal at Moll Prat will
reduce costs by 30% compared to
conventional RTG terminals in
Spain and will therefore be a serious competitor for transhipment
and imp/ex business alike.
The port author ity has
awarded Comsa a €5.1M contract
to build the northern extension
of the new El Prat Quay.The work
will take 12 months to complete.
As part of the work, the northern
edge of the quay - the subject of
previously reported legal suits initiated by APB - will be reinforced.
Northern lights
In the north of Spain, the Port of
Bilbao has reported that cargo
throughput reached 31.7 mt in
2011, with general cargo increasing by 4.5%. This included a 7%
increase in containerised traffic to
6.1 mt (572,784 TEU). In the first
two months of 2012, container
traffic was up by 9%.
The use of rail for distribution
over Bilbao continues to increase,
amounting to 1.182 Mt in 2011,
including 0.922 mt of container
traffic (70,000 TEU). There are
currently four rail service providers active over Bilbao, including
MacAndrews, which has just
added two more destinations to its
Spanish network, Burgos and
Zaragosa, both served weekly
from Bilbao.
Trucking issues
Still rail has a long way to go, and
perhaps it should be further ahead
given the long-standing problems
associated with container trucking, not just in Bilbao, but also in
Barcelona and Valencia. Local
trucking associations have long
been resented because of their alleged “monopoly” practices.
Spain’s competition authority
is looking into possible restrictive
practices concerning the transport
of containers by road in the three
ports and is set to add Madrid to
its investigations. In particular, the
association representing hauliers
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specialising in container transport
in Spain’s central zone has come
under scrutiny, along with 20
haulage firms. A report will be issued within the next 18 months.
The decision to go ahead with
the investigation follows the seizures of documents on 23 March
2011 at the headquarters of ELTC
and Transcont Valencia, two of the
associations representing road
hauliers specialising in container
transport.These contained suggestions that prices were being manipulated.
A bit of a mess
Actually, the road haulage business
is in a mess. Several smaller companies working at the port of Valencia have had to close this year,
while others have continued to
operate, albeit on the verge of financial ruin.
In part, this is explained by the
low level of growth at the port,
where container numbers have
still not recovered to the pre-crisis figures of 2007 and 2008. Many
trucks have been moth-balled and
drivers have been made redundant.
Costs, particularly those for fuel,
have risen by 17.75% overall.
Industry bodies complain that
prices offered for moving containers in the port have also fallen
during this period, while rail has
won market share through what
they suggest are subsidised prices.
Too many cooks?
At the other end of the port spectrum, a continuing point of concern is the number of port authorities in Spain. Many ports are
small-scale and critics say service
and efficiency levels would improve if investments could be
channelled more rationally by
fewer decision takers.
For the second time in as many
years, Puertos del Estado in Madrid has moved to reassure smaller
port authorities. José Llorca, the
president of Puertos del Estado,
recently told his counterpart at the
Basque port of Pasajes “that no
merging of port authorities will
be permitted during the current
legislature.” Llorca believes that
Pasajes can continue to operate
profitably in the Spanish port network. In fact, he says he wants
ports to continue competing with
one another, as laid out in the
Spanish ports law.
Elsewhere in the north, a Port
of Vigo “austerity plan” appears to
The DP World/ZIM container terminal in Tarragona provides a ready alternative
to Barcelona for shippers in north eastern Spain
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LIFTING CAPACITY: On hook: 63t / 4,5m – 26,7t / 10m
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CONDITION: In good working condition
Contact: Steen Lauge Jensen
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April 2012
08/05/2012 15:29:08
WorldCargo
news
be paying off. The president of the port
authority (APV), Ignacio López-Chaves,
said that overall financial performance of
the port last year improved by around 12%
compared to 2010, due to “cutting operating costs.” In 2011, the total value of
goods handled in the port of Vigo came
to €13B. Finished vehicles worth €5B
accounted for 73% of exports, while the
value of automotive imports topped €2B.
Vilagarcía port authority is planning
to award a concession to operate the container terminal on Muelle Ferrazo at the
end of the summer.This covers an area of
42,076 m2 and is broadly similar to the
area in the port currently managed by
Boluda. The concession will be for a
maximum of 25 years and the
concessionaire will have to handle a minimum of 30,000 TEU/year.
However, bidders can suggest alterations to both the length of the concession and traffic guarantees. In addition,
they will have to agree to buy the two
quayside gantry cranes that the terminal
is already equipped with.These were previously acquired by APV as part of a debt
owed to it by a previous operator,Tercovi.
new ro-ro ramp at a cost of around €3.2M,
to speed up turn round of vessels.
Canaries deal
Finally, in the Canaries,Tenerife port authority has awarded a consortium of OHL
(65%) and Marítima Dávila (35%) a concession to operate a second public container terminal in the Eastern Harbour at
Santa Cruz. Civil works will cost
€18.47M and equipment €42.08M.
The terminal, which should commence operations in the first half of next
year, will compete with incumbent
CAPSA. It will cover an area of 153,000
2, have 696m of quay and draught of 16m.
Capacity will be 600,000 TEU annually.
The new facility will target both imp/
ex and transhipment business. The consortium has to guarantee a minimum level
of 60,000 TEU for international transiting
containers in its first full year, rising to
150,000 TEU by the fifth year and
200,000 TEU by the tenth. Much of this
traffic will be generated by West Africa
and Latin America.
OHL is already a major shareholder
in Alicante, while Dávila owns Termavi
in Vigo, both of which handle quantities
of Canary Islands cabotage traffic. ❏
TCL Leixões, part of Portugal’s Tertir group,
won the concession last year to develop and
operate a new Atlantic gateway and
transhipment hub in Ferrol in north west
Spain. So far TCL has acquired two practically
unused post-Panamax cranes and four RTGs
from the “mothballed” TCA Algeciras for its
Ferrol Container Terminal development.
(WorldCargo News, January 2012, p4)
Rail-sea interfaces
The ports of Gijón and Nantes-Saint
Nazaire are to make a joint application
to the European Union for community
funding to boost the existing “sea motorway service” between the two ports
operated by Louis Dreyfus Armateurs
(LDA).The service is the result of a bilateral Franco-Spanish initiative and is still
being supported by the two governments.
However, for some time it has been
mooted that the Montoir terminal in St
Nazaire, where the ferry departs from,
should be the terminus of the third autoroute ferroviaire service in France, linking
the Paris market in as seamless a manner
as possible with northern Spain and
boosting the number of unaccompanied
trailers carried by LDA.
From Gijón, a rail offer could be extended as far inland as Salamanca. The
presumption is that the autoroute ferroviaire
atlantique between Paris and St Nazaire
would be based on the Modalohr wagon
concept, like the two existing services.
In its first year (September 2010-August 2011), the LDA service, operated by
the line’s ropax ferry NORMAN ASTURIAS,
transported 14,000 trailers, around 75%
of the initial forecasts. Business built up
gradually and some sailings are now “full,”
but the norm is 60-70 trailers. At present
most of the trailers (more than 80%) are
accompanied and most of the flow (60%)
is from Gijón to St Nazaire.
There has also been an unexpected
boost from tourist traffic - 30,000
pasengers and 11,000 cars in the first year,
although of course this is seasonal.
Extending the service into an integrated rail-sea package could eventually
lead to an increase in frequency to a daily
departure each way. At the moment there
are three weekly sailings each way. The
service has brought a welcome boost to
Gijón, where container business has stagnated of late - just 35,860 TEU last year.
The port will shortly issue a tender for a
SMARTER
WHERE IT
MATTERS
Eco-efficiency
is in our DNA
Bilbao ruling
The Number 5 Labour Court in the City
of Bilbao recently recognised “the right
of port workers to undertake horizontal
transport in the port of Bilbao.” The ruling does not apply to terminal tractors,
but all the same it partially legitimises the
case brought by the UGT union against
terminal operators, transport companies
and Bilbao port authority (APB). The
UGT sought to recognise the right of its
members to undertake these port services, something that has traditionally been
carried out by road hauliers.
Port stevedores (ie UGT’s members)
should therefore have the right to undertake such movements within the port
from warehouses run by cargo handling
companies up to the vessel, and vice versa.
The judge observed that the conflict between hauliers and port workers could have been avoided if the port
authority “had carried out the duties
incumbent on it.” However, ABP did
not appear at the hearing, despite being cited as a defendant. ❏
April 2012
At Konecranes, we keep the heart of our container cranes in-house.
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components to make sure they work as a perfect unit. This is how we
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balance with the work they do. And that is why we offer the world’s most
eco-efficient container handling equipment.
Smarter where? On your bottom line and in your community.
Call us for SMARTER WHERE IT MATTERS container handling.
Tel. +358 204 2711, ask for Port Sales
Email: [email protected] www.konecranes.com/container
21
01/05/2012 09:23:47
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01/05/2012 09:25:06
WorldCargo
news
ITALY: PORT DEVELOPMENT/INTERMODAL
Alto Tirreno going on a Swiss roll?
After a long “hiatus,” Swiss
shippers and forwarders may
be prepared to give Ligurian
ports another chance.
For many years Swiss foreign
traders have largely ignored Italian ports as transit gateways, preferring to ship through the more
distant yet more efficient ARA
and German ports. Italy’s ports
were prone to strikes and unreliable service, along with capacity
shortages due to inadequate port
and inland transport infrastructure,
all exacerbated by bureaucratic red
tape and official indifference.
A fresh wind
Recently, however, perceptions
have begun to change. The “con-
ventional wisdom” that you ship
north has been challenged by a
number of circumstances during
the past two years. Conversely, a
sustained period of social peace
and a more business-focused approach in the Italian ports, allied
to substantial new investment, particularly in Savona-Vado Ligure,
has been attracting interest.
Sogemar rings the changes
Eurogate’s Contship Italia Spa has
had a “double celebration” at the
Melzo intermodal terminal (near
Milan) operated by its intermodal
arm, Sogemar. First, Sebastiano
Grasso, Sogemar’s managing director, stated that a project begun in
2004 to expand and restructure
the internal rail network at Melzo
in order to form 500m long block
trains without pre-formation of
part trains, has been completed.
The rejigging has been made
possible partly by taking over a 5ha area formerly occupied by
Merzario. Sogemar has invested
€5M in the terminal, which now
occupies 16-ha and boasts 14 kms
of rail tracks and an automated 6lane truck in/out gate with reversible lanes. It is open for train
(un)loading 24/7.
“We are at the heart of the
dense Agrate, Melegnano, Cassano
d’Adda industrial triangle. This
contains 3M m2 of warehousing
and will become more important
when the Brescia-BergamoMilano toll gates are opened and
the junction of the Milan outer
ring road is built,” said Grasso.
The terminal caters for container trains over La Spezia, Genoa,
Ravenna and Livorno for freight
villages at Dinazzano Po, Bologna,
Frosinone, Padova and Rivalta
Scrivia. “Last year we managed
4000 block trains and handled
198,000 TEU, compared to
100,000 TEU in 2006, and we
expect 20% growth this year to
around 240,000 TEU” said Grasso.
Together with Eurogate’s
Hannibal, trains are also organised
for Paris (Valenton), Zeebrugge,
Venlo, Rotterdam, Hamburg,Antwerp, Düsseldorf (Herne) and
Mannheim.
“The next step,” continued
Grasso,“is to develop a 10-ha area
that we took over from the municipality of Vignate.” This will
provide a second bundle of four
tracks with the length increased
from 380m to 700m each.
Enter Oceanogate
Grasso was joined by Giancarlo
Laguzzi, a former director of
Trenitalia Merci, who has been appointed managing director of a
new Contship Italia ar m,
Oceanogate.This is a licensed rail
freight company and is a 50:50 jv
of Sogemar and TPer (Trasporto
Passeggeri Emilia Romagna, ex
FER Ferrovie Emilia Romagna).
“We obtained our Italian and
European safety certificates from
ANSF [the Italian rail safety
agency] last October and for 2012
we have set a target of 1 Mtkms,
equivalent to 2.5% of the total of
40 Mtkms/year of Italian domestic rail freight and 10% of the overall throughput of all Italian rail
freight newcomers,” said Laguzzi.
“We have six rented, single
current Bombardier E483 locos
for the domestic network and two
E484 dual current locos to operate internationally, along with 370
container flat wagons.
Oceanogate has 70 employees,
including 18 train driver pairs at
its depots at La Spezia, Bologna,
Melzo and Milan-Rho. Operations got underway last December and the overall budget for
2012 is €16.5M.
While it provides Sogemar
with an “in-house” alternative to
Trenitalia, Sogemar is free to buy
services from other rail freight
companies and Oceanogate can
offer its service to other
intermodal operators. Oceanogate
plans to join IRFA, a strategic alliance of three other private Italian rail freight companies formed
last year - GTS Rail, ISC and CFI.
New block trains
In other recent developments in
the Italian rail/intermodal scene,
Trenitalia Cargo will shortly start
a new block train service between
VTE Genova (PSA Sinport/GIP
Voltri Ter minal Europa) and
Milano Smistamento or Milano
Segrate.VTE has a capacity for 6872 train pairs/week; the new Milan service will provide 10 weekly
pairs and other destinations under consideration are Padova, Bologna and Dinazzano.
At the moment only 15% of
imp/ex moves travel by rail, compared to 20% 10 years ago. The
intermodal rail service covers
Rivalta Scrivia, Rubiera, Milano
Melzo and Busto Arsizio.
Trenitalia is also providing
traction for FS Logistica and
Sogemar as part of a new weekly
pairs service linking MCT Gioia
Tauro (Contship Italia/Eurogate)
and TCT Táranto Container Terminal with Interporto di Bologna.
Part trains from the two ports
are bundled at Bari Ferruccio.The
service has been organised under
the auspices of Mar iplat
(MARitime Italian Logistic
PLATform), which is an EU TIGER project.
southern Italy for rail o/d cargo
flows and is an important base for
agri-exports.
Outwall initiative
FuoriMuro, the company that has
been supplying neutral switching
services in the Port of Genoa since
2010, has announced that Spinelli
Group is buying a 30% stake.
The move is associated with a
capital increase from €90,000 to
€1M, partly to finance two new
locos ordered from Siemens. The
new engines can be used in rail
services between the port and the
multimodal platform at Rivalta
Scrivia, and for new rail services
from Spinelli to connect the port
with o/d points in Lombardia,
Veneto and Emilia.
FuoriMuro is expected to receive its safety certificate this summer, to become a licensed freight
train operator.
With Spinelli’s entry to the
company, the share of Compagnia
Pietro Chiesa falls to 10%. The
other shareholdings are unaffected
- Rivalta Terminal Europa (Gavio
and Fagioli), with 30%; and InRail
and Tenor, with 15% each. Guido
Porta, a leading investor in both
the latter companies, remains
managing director of FuoriMuro.
InRail was formed in 2009 and
has become an important rail
freight operator for raw materials,
iron and steel products and timber products. It operates 80 trains/
week and last year business increased to 122 Mtkms from 90
Mtkms in 2010.
FuoriMuro is open to new
investors and Logtainer, part of
GIP Grippo Investimenti Portuali
(partner of PSA in SECH and
VTE) has expresed interest. However, Ignazio Messina has obtained
its own rail operating license and
stated that it has no interest in
joining FuoriMuro. ❏
However, APMT’s new 0.8M
TEU/year deepwater facility at
Vado Ligure, which will be semiautomated, is now expected to be
finished in 1H/2016, two years
later than originally planned.
As previously reported in
WorldCargo News, November 2011
(p26), the more nuanced approach
to cargo routing strategy is confirmed by leading shipper Migros
Genossenschafts-Bund. Migros is
by far the largest retailer in Switzerland, selling everything from
The Migros rail-based distribution centre in Neuendorf, in Solothurn canton
www.tratos.eu
Let’s take
another
turn
Our cables
have been continually working
without any corkscrew effect
for many years
with high speed applications
all around the world.
Virginia (USA)
Throughput: 1.745.228 teu
Speed 300 m/m
Tratos cables have been working
since 9th March 2010
Rotterdam (Holland)
Throughput: 9.743.290 teu
Speed 270 m/m
Tratos cables have been working
since 3rd March 2008
TratosFlex
ESDB
follow us on
ZZZUHHOLQJFDEOHVFRP
Tratos Cavi S.p.A - via Stadio, 2 - 52036 - Pieve Santo Stefano - Italy
tel. +39 0575 794.1 - fax +39 0575 794246 - e-mail [email protected]
Naples deal
Finally, Trenitalia is working with
Foggia-based logistics company
Lotras Srl on a new three pairs/
week service between Bari and
the Port of Naples. Rail services
to Naples from Bari were only recently suspended, even though the
Puglia region is the biggest in
In the pink together - Sogemar and Oceanogate at the Melzo terminal
April 2012
23
02/05/2012 15:52:03
WorldCargo
news
household goods to sportswear. Founded
in 1925, at its heart are 10 large co-operatives whose business accounted for 58%
of overall tur nover of CHF24.8B
(€20.6B), along with specialised shops ,
markets, restaurants and leisure interests.
Markus Helg, International Transport
and Logistics Director of MigrosGenossenschafts-Bund in Zürich, said:
“The Migros Group generates an annual
overseas cargo volume of over 10,000
TEU.Today the preferred routing of containers to and from Switzerland for most
of Swiss industry is via the North Range
Ports, due to large capacity, the wide range
of services, good transit times, forwarding by rail and Rhine barge, consistent
pricing and so on.”
Last year, however, this reliable flow
was interrupted by various negative
ITALY: PORT DEVELOPMENT
Investment levels need to be stepped up- that’s
the message to Italian ports from Switzerland
events. These included the liquidation of
pan-European intermodal rail operator
Intercontainer at the end of 2010, which
seriously disrupted rail services in Switzerland; the closure of the Rhine River
to barge traffic in January 2011 due to
the sinking of the WALDHOF; the German
rail strike in March 2011 and the train
derailment in Mulheim in May, all of
which led to congestion and delays.
New challenges
“We expect further increases of volume
via the North European ports in the future, but that will entail more challenges
for the supply chain,” said Helg.
“Looking at the map, it is obvious that
the Ligurian ports are very close to the
Swiss market. In the 1980s and 1990s
considerable volumes were directed via
Italian ports. Due to strikes, time-consuming customs or dangerous goods formalities, lack of reliable forwarding services
by rail and the perceived indifference of
the Italian authorities, Swiss industry lost
confidence in the southern option.
Flying visit!
Last year, as previously reported, a delegation of the Propeller Club of Basel
visited Genoa and also saw developments
at the double-basin port of Savona-Vado.
They checked out the multimodal and
logistics options offered by the inland terminal of Rivalta Scrivia (Alessandria),
which is around 70 kms from Genoa and
100 kms from Savona-Vado.
“Local port operations have made
considerable progress and early experimental results [test shipments were made
to China over Genoa], suggest that Genoa,
Savona Vado and La Spezia can provide a
good supply chain alternative to our usual
gateways in northern Europe.”
Toe in the water
Currently, said Helg, Migros is routing
around 10 TEU per week of imports,
mainly from India and China, via Genoa.
“We move the containers from the Italian port to our distribution centres in
Switzerland, using the service of Swiss
multimodal operator Hupac.
Transit time from arrival of the ship
to the DCs is a satisfactory 6-7 days. However, the leg from the port to Hupac’s rail
hub in Busto Arsizio is still covered by
truck. Migros says that if a rail link from
the Ligurian ports to the rail hub were
reinstated, the southern option would be
highly competitive, bringing shorter transit times and environmental advantages.
“Hupac already offers an acceptable
rail service to/from Switzerland over
Busto,” said Helg. “With more export
cargo from Switzerland, it would be possible to run trains directly to/from the
ports, cutting costs even further.”
Investments are required to start a reliable and cost-effective direct train routing between the Ligurian ports and Switzerland via Busto.
Helg urges the port authorities and
customs to support this initiative actively.
As a first step it is important that the ports
are “visible” in Switzerland, but as of today there is no Italian port representation
in Switzerland, and no-one on the ground
who can talk regularly to the market and
get to understand its requirements. Swiss
shippers and freight fowarders expect action on this front.
From a Swiss customer perspective,
argues Helg, it is important to have reliable, direct rail access, on the basis of two
weekly pairs between Swiss hubs and each
of the three Ligurian ports (La Spezia as
well as Genoa and Savona Vado).
This means the ports need to recognise that they have a common goal and
work together. As a first and most important step, they should invest in business
development resources in Switzerland.
Another meeting between representatives
of the Swiss Shippers’ Council and the
Ligurian ports is scheduled for this month
(April) to discuss further action. “It’s important to keep the ball rolling,” said Helg.
Over long distances Migros transports
goods by rail whenever possible and rail’s
share of its inland distribution is growing
year by year. With an annual domestic
freight volume of more than 1 Mt, it is
SBB Cargo’s biggest customer. More than
400 railway wagons run for Migros every
day linking its regional cooperatives, major industrial plants and rail-connected
DCs in Suhr, Neuendorf and Volketswil.
Growth in rail traffic is driven mainly
by the Migros DC in Neuendorf
(Solothurn canton), which has added the
Neuchâtel cooperative to the list of those
(Geneva,Vaud and Ticino) receiving nonfood and near-food items exclusively by
rail. In autumn 2009, the Suhr DC also
switched to rail transport for all its food
deliveries to the Geneva cooperative. ❏
Tarantella for
Rotterdam
The Rotterdam port authority (HBR)
and Táranto port authority (APT) have
signed a Declaration of Intent to explore
opportunities for future cooperation. If
successful, the end result, according to
HBR, could be that it would be involved
in joint management of the southern Italian port, in conjunction with APT.
HBR says that is is prepared to take
on some management responsibilities in
Táranto now, subject to certain conditions. In its own statement, APT said that
the agreement is part of its strategy to
promote Táranto internationally, with a
view to boosting business. HBR already
has a successful joint venture with the
Sultanate of Oman, Sohar Industrial Port
Company, and is looking for further similar initiatives in countries such as Brazil,
China, India and Romania. ❏
24
April 2012
01/05/2012 09:33:38
WorldCargo
news
ROLL-ON/ROLL-OFF
Ro-ro operators fume over sulphur rules
Ship operators are increasingly concerned over the new
European rules to limit the
sulpur content in fuel as a
means to reduce emissions in
designated areas.
The maximum sulphur (Smax)
content will be progressively cut
to 0.5% by 2015 in sensitive areas,
and by 20% in other areas. In some
very fragile ecosystems, such as the
North Sea, Baltic Sea and English
Channel (these shipping areas have
been designated as a SECA - SOx
Emission Control Area), Smax will
be cut to 0.1% by 2015.
Tough stance
The EU is already taking a tough
stance on emissions in aviation,
and there have also been calls for
shipping to be included in carbon
targets, which will require shipping lines to purchase carbon
Wadden Sea LNG ferry
Becker Marine Systems Hamburg,
Ingenieurbüro für Schiffstechnik
Ingo Schlüter GmbH & Co KG,
Bureau Veritas and EON Hanse
Wärme GmbH have jointly developed a design for a “carbonneutral” ferry.
The working title for the
project was Wattenmeerfähre
(Wadden Sea ferry). The ferry is
designed to operate in the fragile
Wadden Sea, a UNESCO World
Heritage Centre that falls within
a Dutch Conservation Area and a
Schleswig-Holstein and Lower
Saxony national park.
The vessel would be fuelled
with LNG and supported by the
purchase of emission certificates
to provide a climate-neutral service.The concept reduces SOx and
NOx emissions to zero and cuts
CO2 emissions by 40%.
The ferry could commence
operation as early as the autumn
of 2013, although no firm order
has yet been placed. The vessel is
70m long and 14m wide and has
a very shallow draft. Service speed
is 11 knots. With 260 lane/metres, there is capacity for 250 passengers and 50 cars, or 25 cars and
six trucks or coaches.
Becker’s managing director
Dirk Lehmann said that several
companies have expressed interest in the design and discussions
are under way. ❏
credits and joining the carbon
trading system.
The new sulphur rules will hit
ro-ro and ro-pax operations in the
Baltic Sea and North Sea particularly hard. These are mostly short
sea services, so the whole of the
seaborne cargo move is affected.
As short sea shipping is a price
taker, operating on thin margins,
higher fuel costs have to be passed
on to the market, which could
switch to overland modes.
Dire consequences have been
forecast. According to one German study, up to 1.5M unitised
loads will switch to the road in
the North Sea/Western Baltic sectors. Scandinavia-Germany and
Scandinavia-Poland trades are exposed to modal shift via the fixed
links, while Stena Line has warned
that British-North Continent
trade will migrate from the North
Sea to the Dover Straits.
In the Eastern Baltic, there are
fewer opportunities for modal
switch to road or rail, but higher
freight costs will reduce the competitiveness of key exports such as
forest products and metals.
A Finnish government study
in 2009 estimated that the forest
industry’s costs could rise by almost €119M/year, with the metals and chemicals sectors each
faced with €61M/year extra costs.
Swedish forestry, metals and
automotive shipments to British
and north west continent ports,
which are vital components of roro business, also face higher costs.
This could lead to a reinvestigation
by shippers of the alternative fixed
link rail routes.
SECAs.The new provision for the
further reduction of sulphur content of marine fuels specifies Smax
of 1% by 2010 and 0.1% by 2015.
This means that ships operating in the SECAs would have to
switch from low sulphur fuel oil
(LSFO) with a sulphur content of
1.5% before 2010 to marine gas
oil (MGO) with a sulphur content of 0.1% by 2015.
Legal background
Pushing back
Until 2010, MARPOL 73/78
(Annex VI) limited the sulphur
content of marine fuel oil to 1.5%
and it applied in designated
Policing emissions
This is seen as the best way to
police emissions, something that
road transport and power generation sectors have had to live
with for more than a decade. To
reduce sulphur emissions of coal
fired power stations, for example, expensive flue gas de-sulphurising (FSD) plants have had
to be incorporated.
FSD can be applied to ships to
allow them to operate on heavy
fuel oil. One European short sea
lo-lo operator with extensive operations in the North Sea and
Baltic Sea, Containerships, has retrofitted a Wärtsilä fuel gas scrubber on one of its vessels. This has
had to be a more expensive fresh
water scrubber than a design that
uses salt water, due to the low salinity of the Baltic.
Scrubbers allow ships to run
on less costly fuels with higher
sulphur content, but there are concerns over their reliability and
corrosion potential. On top of that
most ports are not equipped to
handle the sludge waste from the
ships, while uncleaned scrubber
wash will only introduce new environmental problems.
The European Shippers Council
(ESC) has proposed that the general Smax limit of 0.5% should be
delayed until 2020 or, depending
Stena Line has been a vociferous opponent of the timing of the new rules
on the fuel supply, even to 2025.
Many points have been made
to justify the case for postponement.These include a shortage of
LSFO refining capacity and a forecast marine fuel price increase of
around 80%, which could transit
as a 28% increase in maritime
freight costs (based on fuel typically representing 35% of a ro-ro
ship’s operatig costs).
Some industries located in the
northern region of Europe will be
forced to relocate, says the European Shippers’s Council (ESC), or
switch to alternative modes, predominantly road due to insufficient reliability, capacity and access of rail freight, and shipping
could lose up to 30% of its traffic
in the North Sea/Baltic region.
High volume, low margin freight
would be the most affected, such
as forest products and ores.
Pressing the case
The Secretary General of ESC,
Nicolette van der Jagt, said: We
have called for a solution that will
be better for industry and shipping alike, and avoid any knockon effect of actually raising emissions from transport.
“We continue to believe that
a postponement of the 0.1% sulphur limits in marine fuel until
2020 is the best possible solution.
This would allow time to boost
the supply of low sulphur fuel and
develop technologies that help
remove sulphur from ships’ emissions. At the moment the timetable to introduce the suggested alleviating measures that would pro-
WWL reducing CO2e
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics
(WWL) has stated that it is on
track to reduce its relative GHGE
by 30% by 2015 compared to its
2005 baseline figures.
According to the company’s
2011 Environmental Sustainability
Report, its CO2e measured in g/
tkms were reduced by 4% last year
compared to 2010. This is attributed to improved fleet utilisation,
improved energy efficiency and
new vessels entering the fleet.
The report also includes an
update of WWL’s global low-sulphur fuel policy, which has allowed it to eliminate 167,000t of
SO2e between 2000 and 2011. ❏
quality on time
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The Novatech Flexmaster is one of the most flexible and modern machines for
handling standard and maxi cassettes.
The PLC control is interlocked with a joy-stick placed in the terminal tractor cabin.
The Flexmaster comes with the following equipment as standard:
PLC control, alarm system, dish brake system, standard light system and hydraulic
system with proportional valves.
NOVATECH
April 2012
Flexmaster Type
4090
45120
Length:
Width:
Lifting Height Minimum:
Lifting Height Maximum:
Steering Angle:
Capacity:
14820mm
2280mm
665mm
1120mm
Max 15 deg
90 ton
16620mm
2280/2500mm
670mm
1120mm
Max 15 deg
120 ton
Skudehavnsvej 30 • DK-9000 Aalborg • Tel.: +45 9816 5009 • Fax: +45 9816 8097 • E-mail: [email protected] • www.novatech.dk
25
01/05/2012 09:36:30
WorldCargo
news
vide an alternative to diesel fuel
use in 2015 is too tight.”
For its part, ECG, the European finished vehicles logistic
group, has called for “more realistic” rules. “We believe that the tight
new limits due to come into effect
in 2015 in the Baltic Sea, the North
Sea and the English Channel will
drive up mar ine fuel prices,
powering a modal shift from sea to
land in direct contradiction of EU
environmental policy,” said ECG’s
president (and Grimaldi’s logistics
director) Costantino Baldissaro.
Antwerp University recently
calculated that moving from HFO
LS380, with 1.5% Smax to 0.5%
Smax fuel will increase bunker
prices by 20-30%, and moving
from 0.5% to 0.1% Smax would
increase prices by a further 50 to
60%. Overall, it was calculated that
moving from LS380 to LSFO
would increase prices by 80-100%.
Currently LSO380 is trading at
US$670/t in Rotterdam.
As indicated, prices are one
concern and availability is another.
Although near-zero sulphur diesel oil is available in Europe, it is
intended for road vehicles and is
not really suited to large diesel
engines and, in any case, to quote
ROLL-ON/ROLL-OFF
one Scandivian ro-ro operator, it
is “eye-wateringly expensive.”
European refining is under pressure and marine LSFO would
probably be refined in the Middle East or India, thus adding to
transportation costs.
thermal efficiency. A cruising
speed of 15 knots is provided by a
Promas propulsion systen with
integrated CPP and rudder.
The LNG tank has a 400 m3
capacity offering a range of 3400
n/m. There is 50 m3 MDO fuel
tank to supply two auxiliary 700
kW gensets. A hybrid shaft generator is also specified, reducing
the need to run the gensets. This
was developed in close cooperation with Flensburg-based Ingo
Schlüter Marine Consultants.
rules, they could be a catalyst for
changes in ro-ro ship design. Currently most ro-ro vessels are
powerd by a pair of medium speed
diesel engines located aft and driving cp propellers through a reduction gearbox.
The notable exception to this
arrangement are the Wallenberg
ships that operate StoraEnso’s
Gothenburg-Zeebrugge service.
These are powered by a single
slow speed diesel engine located
forward and driving a very long
propeller shaft. The advantage of
this configuration is that it frees
up useful cargo space aft and also
requires less maintenance.
If an operator decides that
LNG offers a better alternative, it
could be that instead of opting for
dual fuel medium speed engines,
an industrial type gas turbine
could be employed. These are
mainly aero-derived and have not
had notable success in shipping.
Finlinnes employed gas turbines
in FINNJET in the 1970s, although
the ferry was subsequently refitted with diesel engines.
Design changes
Dash for gas
Gas the answer?
LNG can be used instead of LSFO,
but retrofit costs are prohibitive.
In addition, regulations on use of
LNG on passenger ferries are
sometimes unclear, there are no
bunkering regulations and there
is a shortage of bunkering infrastructure in the ports. Still,
newbuildings offer potentia and
both Viking Lines and Brittany
Ferries have opted for LNG, although Viking Lines has chosen a
dual fuel design that can operate
on both LSFO and LNG.
Last October Bergen-based
shipping and logistics company
Nor Lines Rederi ordered two
5000dwt multi-purpose geared
con-ros with LNG power from
Tsuji Heavy Industries (Jiansu)
shipyard. They are slated for delivery in October 2013 and January 2014 and there is an option
for two more vessels.
The ships will have a length
Nor-Lines’ ships will be powered by Rolls-Royce “Enviroship” propulsion system
of 119.95m, a beam of 20.8m and
a draft of 6m. They have a container intake of 130 TEU (main
deck lo-lo) and 40 trailers and can
carry up to 2000t of breakbulk
(palletised) dry or frozen cargo.
The LNG propulsion system
was developed by Rolls Royce as
“Environship Concept,” which
won the Next Generation Award
at Nor-Shipping 2011. A single
Rolls-Royce Bergen LNG
propulsaion engine is used. This
has spark ignition and does not
require pilot injection of diesel.
According to Roll-Royce, the
engine can operate at variable load
and speed while maintaining high
While ro-ro ship operators have
reacted negatively to the new
The widespread use of gas turbines
for power generation has significantly reduced their price and
improved their efficiency. While
the initial investment costs may be
higher than a conventional diesel
engine plant, there are significant
advantages. A gas turbine can operate relatively easily on LNG as,
unlike a diesel engine, it does not
require an injection of diesel
(which would still have to have a
0.1% sulphur rating) prior to the
gas injection into the cylinder.
A gas turbine can also run on
aviation fuel, which is readily available and will probably be cheaper
than LSFO. Aviation fuel is currently trading at around
US$1100/t in Rotterdam compared to MGO at US$990 with a
Smax of < 3.5%.
If an electric propulsion system were fitted, perhaps using
pods, it would be possible to fit
the gas power generation plant in
a relatively small compartment almost anywhere on the vessel.This
would free up space for cargo and
a lower “garage” area could be
provided where the engine room
would normally be sited.
The power pack could, for
example, be sited on the
weatherdeck below the accommodation, or in the for’d section,
which is normally unavailable for
trailer stowage. The increase in
lane-m, plus reduced maintenance
costs, could provide payback
within five years, depending on
the vessel’s trading patterns. ❏
Dust settles in Gothenburg
As reported on-line on 3 April,
after a lengthy investigation the
EU finally approved the takeover
of Älvsborg Ro/Ro AB by DFDS
and Cobelfret’s C.Ro Ports. The
transfer from the port authority
to the joint venture is planned for
the beginning of May - some 19
months after the parties signed the
25-year concession deal.
Taking account of the fact that
DFDS and Cobelfret are the main
users of the Älvsborg terminal, the
Swedish Competition Authority
referred the deal to the EU competition authorities, whose investigation concluded that there is
sufficient competition on the roro routes over Gothenburg.
The port authority added: “It
is obvious from [our] agreement
that the terminal must act in a
non-discriminatory manner and
welcome new customers.”
One customer that the new
Älvsborg operator will not have
to welcome is North Sea RoRo,
the new entrant on the
Gothenburg-Killingholme route,
with backing from Swedish transport company and forwarder
NTEX, which saw the need to
provide an alternative to DFDS in
this key North Sea trade.
Headed by a former Tor line
MD, Mårten Carlqvist, North Sea
RoRo, which offers three sailings/
week in each direction, is calling
at the Skandia car terminal in
Gothenburg, operated by Logent,
although C.Ro Por ts is the
Killingholme stevedore. ❏
North Sea RoRo calls at the Skandia ro-ro terminal in Gothenburg
Car business for Bar
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26
Italy’s Cossutta Transport & Logistics has signed an agreement
with Fiat to transport all cars made
for export at the assembly plant
in Kragujevac, Serbia, to the Port
of Bar in Montenegro.
Serbia has been land-locked
since Montenegrin independence
in 2006, but Bar remains the natural outlet for much of Serbia’s seaborne foreign trade. Fiat Automobili Srbija is owned 67% by the
Italian car giant, with the balance
held by the Serbian government.
The Kragujevac plant was formerly run by Zastava Automobili.
Around 90% of the plant’s output will be exported via Bar, for
onward carriage to various destinations by Grimaldi PCTCs.
Series production of the new
500 L, a larger and updated version of the famous “Cinquecento,” is slated to get under way
in the second quarter of this year.
Up to 90,000 vehicles could
be exported over Bar in the first
full year, rising over time to as
much as 200,000 a year. Bar will
also be the conduit for imports of
containerised parts and components for Kragujevac from various
Fiat plants in Italy.
Cossutta will ship the cars to
Bar by rail, a haul of 450 kms, in
cooperation with Serbian and
Montenegrin Railways and Germany’s Mosolf Automotive
GmbH Railway.A fleet of 300 car
carrier wagons has been acquired
(increasing to 500 later) and there
will be 14 train departures a week.
Grimaldi will make two or
three calls a week at Bar, according to destination. Initially it will
call twice a week and discharge
the cars in Salerno, Catania and
ports on the US East Coast. ❏
April 2012
01/05/2012 09:40:51
WorldCargo
news
FOREST PRODUCTS
Here comes the Judge!
The Panama Canal expansion, due to
come on line in 2014, is reshaping forest
products logistics on the USEC range.The
Judge Organization, one of the more
prominent forest products shippers on the
eastern seaboard, recently opened a new
warehouse and distribution centre at the
Port of Savannah, to capitalise on the expected increase of containerised forest
products between the US and Asia.
Based at Port Elizabeth, NJ, Judge first
built its forest products business on newsprint, but those volumes have declined in
recent years. In their place, Judge has seen
waste paper volumes to Asia rise along
with export and import pulp.
The Judge Organization has opened a new
distribution centre in Savannah, Georgia
with waste paper. Judge also transloads that
paper into containers for shipment to
China. Other shipments of pulp and
printing and writing paper go to India.
Getting “heavy”
Judge pioneered the use of “heavy loading,” meaning that containers are loaded
to their maximum allowable weights, at
the Port of New York. This appeals to
many customers, especially in Europe, but
not all facilities can legally heavy load
containers. The ability to heavy load and
the transloading expertise are two major
advantages for Judge at Port Elizabeth and
help explain why Savannah was chosen.
“Those were two key items for us in
New York,” says Wynne. “When we
looked in Savannah, we saw another heavy
container zone that gives local facilities
the ability to heavy load as we do.”
Specialising in containers has given
Product storage inside Judge’s new Savannah warehousing and DC complex
Change and adapt
“You need to be able to change and adapt,
to see some of the changes that are coming,” says Patrick Wynne, the Judge Organization’s EVP.“For years we didn’t have
much interest in waste paper, but now we
do.The need for recycled paper just keeps
growing, especially in China.”
Savannah is the first US southern Atlantic location for Judge, and was carefully planned for several years. Many third
party logistics companies in the US often
use a North Atlantic/South Atlantic port
combination and Judge saw Savannah as
a port that closely resembled New York/
New Jersey. Both ports have strong container volumes and are seeing their forest
products volumes continue to increase.
“We did a fairly extensive study over
a couple of years and concluded that Savannah was the right location to look for
new growth,” says Wynne. “Savannah has
always had good connections to Asia,
more so than other ports we looked at.”
Judge has completed a 260,000 ft2
(2.4-ha) warehouse in the CenterPoint
Intermodal Center at Savannah, the second logistics company within the year to
build at the complex. The new DC will
take advantage of Savannah’s container
and intermodal capabilities and its direct
access to Class 1 rail networks. A trucking specialist, Judge will also provide
transloading for regional deliveries of
imports or into containers for export.
Experience the
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Major assets
Forest products imports and exports comprise around 1 Mtpa for Judge; and this is
on top of its domestic business throughout the US and into Canada. Historically,
New York has been a strong import destination and had a strong distribution network to match, but starting in 2007, that
began to change. Carriers stopped looking to ship inland and pulp exporters began looking for a better port solution for
their shipments. Judge’s ability to crossdock rail boxcars of woodpulp and “heavy
load” the cargo in containers helped answer the new conditions.
“We are doing heavy loading and
transloading of pulp in incredible volumes,” said Daniel Wynne, sales and marketing with Judge.“This is the single biggest piece of forest products that we are
doing, close to 40% of our overall volume, in a range of woodpulp: dissolving
pulp, market pulp and specialty pulp.”
Waste paper is the single largest commodity out of the US for Judge. Because
of its large trucking fleet with an approximate 300-mile radius to New York, the
trucks often return from New England
The rail dock at the new Savannah DC
Liebherr-Hydraulikbagger GmbH
D-88457 Kirchdorf
Tel.: +49 7354 80-0
Fax: +49 7354 80-7686
[email protected]
www.liebherr.com
April 2012
The Group
27
01/05/2012 09:43:45
WorldCargo
news
Judge a compelling sales pitch. On
the import side, customers can save
20-25% of their ocean freight costs
by heavy loading containers. For
exports, the high rail capacity and
a choice of the world’s container
fleet is reflected in a highly competitive price.
“Effectively, we have been able
to show that by heavy loading and
transloading, we not only save a
significant cost per ton, but we can
deliver the product several days
faster than the traditional direct
container movements,” says
FOREST PRODUCTS
Wynne. “On the export side, giving customers a choice of many
container steamship lines, and the
fact that there are few container
shortages in this marketplace, is
one of our biggest advantages.”
Family concern
The Judge Organization is an 88year old family-owned business.As
the business has evolved, and Judge
expanded its network out of the
Port Elizabeth Marine Terminal to
Philadelphia and Chicago, the
company found itself in the posi-
tion of importing and exporting
a wide variety of forest products.
At Port Elizabeth, Judge has
around 0.8M ft2 of warehouse
space through seven buildings.The
operations manage 50-60 rail
boxcars a day, and the facilities
have over 125 truck/container
doors and direct rail service with
Norfolk Southern and CSX. The
260,000 ft2 warehouse in Savannah can unload 30 boxcars per day
and have 38 truck doors. It is also
connected to Judge’s online warehouse management system.
“From a warehouse management standpoint, the key part is
being able to see the containers
and/or railcars that have arrived
and see inventory levels,” says
Wynne. “When you deal with
customers around the world and
in different time zones, having
online access is almost a necessity.”
Forest products represent
around 60% of the overall business for Judge. Savannah is now
the USA’s fourth largest container
port and the second biggest (after
NY/NJ) on the NAEC range.The
expectation is that with the opening of the expanded Panama Canal in 2014, Savannah should continue to grow. But rather than
waiting to see, Judge felt the time
was right to be up and running in
advance of that expected demand.
Not clear yet
“We are certainly seeing recovery
in our business overall,” said
Wynne. “The Panama Canal expansion should be very positive,
but I don’t think anyone has a clear
idea yet what that will mean in
terms of specific growth percentages on the East Coast. Presumably, we will share in that growth.”
Savannah is already beginning to translate into future
business for Judge. Several existing import and export customers have committed significant
business to Savannah because of
the new facilities and the expectations of the market. Judge expects to solidify these operations
as much as possible before 2014
and the Panama Canal expansion
is completed. ❏
RFID changes the dynamics of pulp logistics
A new project at the Port of
Bremen may change the way
logistics providers handle pulp
as a breakbulk commodity.
Finnish pulp producer Metsö
Fibre and German logistics provider V Alexander International
Logistics GmbH are completing
the final phases of a pilot programme using RFID to monitor
pulp shipments from the mill to
the warehouse. RF tagging is a familiar part of the logistics landscape, but this may be the first time
it is being used for pulp.
The increasing need to control pulp movements and manage
warehouse stock levels is a major
driver. Applying RFID tags to individual shipments will allow producers to track when the pulp has
arrived in the warehouse, when
and how much is delivered to the
mill and finally, if agreed with end
users, when it is consumed. For V
Alexander, the tags provide greater
insight for their customers and offer a competitive advantage over
other logistics providers.
Better service
“We looked to this solution for
customer service and costs reasons,” says Jyrki Ranki, vice president logistics with Metsö Fibre.
“RFID is improving tracking
through the whole supply chain,
helping our inventory management, and giving us the possibility to improve cost efficiency.”
By agreeing to partner with
Metsö for the pilot project,V Alexander is hoping its ability to
offer RFID technology will spread
to other pulp producers and potentially to other cargoes.The customised system in Bremen is designed so that modifications can
be made for various cargoes in
other ports and warehouses managed by V Alexander. The result
could lead to a more fully inte-
Pulp bale unloading in Bremen. Each bale is individualy tagged
grated view across multiple supply chains. “For the producers
who are implementing it, they will
have much more control over the
pulp volumes,” says Carsten
Hellmers, CEO,V Alexander.
The pilot programme began
last October and is in its final testing stages.To date, the programme
is close to 100% readability of the
tags per unit and, at the time of
writing, V Alexander expects to
have full-fledged test shipments
completed very shortly. On completion, the pilot will expand to
all pulp shipments between Metsö
and V Alexander at Bremen.
Metsö Fibre has also started to
explore expanding the project to
Vlissingen. As well as pulp, Metsö
will begin tracking other forest
products using RFID, moving
away from bar coding. By the
spring of 2012, Ranki expects all
Metsö units to carry RFID tags.
“Implementation in all our
four mills as well as at the loading
ports will be ready in the spring,”
said Ranki. “Wherever Metsö Fibre has an inventory location, it
will be connected to our information system through RFID.”
Pivotal role
In 2011, Metsö Fibre, formerly
known as Botnia and one of the
world’s leading suppliers of market pulp, invited many of their
suppliers to start using RFID to
track pulp, applying a JIT production standard to this breakbulk
product.V Alexander was the first
logistics and warehouse supplier
at a port to undertake the project
within Metsö’s supply chain.
The warehouse stage of the
shipment process is crucial and this
is where V Alexander plays a pivotal role, since pulp inventory levels are closely watched as an economic indicator. Selecting
Bremen as the pilot port,V Alexander invested in a customised system that supports RFID.
Integrated with its customer
service platform, the system tracks
when the pulp arrives in vessels at
Bremen, monitors the pulp as it is
discharged and placed in the warehouse. Throughout the process,V
Alexander electronically advises
Metsö exactly what has been
stored and when it leaves the
warehouse. Further support is
available when the pulp units arrive at the end user and is consumed, giving both Metsö and V.
Alexander a fuller view into the
entire supply chain.
“It is an elementary link between the different logistics chain
knots on the way from our mills
to our customer’s site,’ said Ranki.
“We see opportunities to find new
ways to serve our customers.”
Applying RFID tags to individual pulp shipments allow a
higher granularity of control.The
paper tags, which are dissolved
during the pulp process, are affixed
at the mill. Each unit has a single
tag that is read by RFID monitors on the front of the clamp
trucks in the warehouse. Handheld monitors are used as a backup and to record any damage that
has occurred during shipping.
For V Alexander, the real advantage may be found when information can be gathered and
analysed across multiple supply
chains.“Traceability, on-time stock
levels reporting and simplifying
the administration and documentation can be accessed directly
through the online system,” said
Sven Gunnar Peterson,V Alexander’s import manager.
“Soon this will have an impact
on the way pulp logistics are handled, not only between a manufacturer and its clients, but also
inside the ports and terminals.”
Strategic port
Selecting Bremen as the pilot port
was a strategic move for V Alexander as well as Metsö. Bremen
can be seen as the prototypical hub
for destinations in the UK, Italy
and Spain. V Alexander can also
leverage its existing experience
with forest products at Bremen to
gauge the initial project.
“We chose Bremen due to the
fact that we implemented RFID
first in our Rauma mill and
thought the volume from Rauma
to Bremen was big enough,” said
Ranki. “In Bremen V Alexander
also makes the port a multimodal
link to many different market locations by handling distribution
through Europe and to Asia.”
All V Alexander’s pulp bale clamp trucks are fitted with RFID readers
As a major handler of forest
products,V Alexander has experienced exceptional growth since
starting operations in 2006. Annual tonnage for forest products
has increased from 125,000t in
2007 to 640,000t in 2011. Revenue has increased more than
400% to over €21M.
Pulp and paper represent
around 70% of V Alexander’s activities.Acting in two distinct fields
of logistics on the continent, the
company has established itself as a
logistics provider offering warehousing, distribution, and shipping
on goods coming into Europe
through ports such as Vlissingen
and Antwerp.
At ports in Germany, such as
Brake and Bremen, and in Poland,
V Alexander offers warehousing
based on breakbulk discharge in
Cascade Corporation has introduced two new “sleek profile” Hseries paper roll clamps, in 2.2t and
2.4t capacities.The 22H and 24H
pivot arm paper roll clamps are
aimed at high production mills,
warehouses, printers, newspaper
publishers and converters handling
kraft, newsprint and coated papers.
The 22H model is lighter yet
more durable than the 45F it replaces.“This clamp represents the
highest strength-to-weight ratio in
the industry resulting in superior
durability,” said product manager
Brad Vandehey. Cascade adds that
fast arm travel and excellent visibility through and over the top
of the frame of both the new
clamps allow faster roll handling.
The streamlined arm profile
and thin, smooth contoured pads
promote easy entry between rolls
and decreased roll damage when
knifing. Unitised construction in
the arms and frame provide structural integrity and durability.
In other news, Cascade has
opened a new subsidiary in Brazil,
having taken over the assets and staff
of its local distributor, Cascade do
Brasil, in Santos. It plans to introduce local manufacturing capability, increase product availability and
expand sales and service.
Bolzoni Auramo has recently delivered three CTX-G3 series “intelligent” paper roll clamps, installed on Linde FLTs, to Saima
Avandero in Modena, Italy. The
truck unload rolls from trains
coming from leading paper shippers in Northern Europe.
Paper roll handling is one of
Latin links
Some breakbulk traffic is tailored
specifically to South American
producers, such as Fibria, Cenibra,
CMPC and Suzano, whose pulp
comes through Vlissingen. Transhipment is used to transport pulp
to the UK, Poland and Portugal.
Working with paper (kraftliner
and newsprint) and fluff pulp, V
Alexander handles shipments for
many North American companies
for their European distribution.
For example, it cooperates with
Georgia Pacific, Weyerhaeuser,
Rayonier, Domtar and Resolute
Forest Products. “That is one big
segment and is part of the reason
we have grown as much over the
years,” said Hellmers. ❏
New paper roll clamps
Saima clamp deal
28
the ports and just-in-time distribution by rail, truck and barge.
the most common applications in
the logistic chain. The varying
paper grades, roll weight and diameter plus the high value of the
rolls themselves, says Bolzoni
Auramo, are all factors requiring
an extensive control of clamping
force on behalf of the operator.
The CTX-G3 intelligent paper roll clamps offer the solution
to continuous changes to the
clamping force during loading and
unloading operations. The CTX
automatic clamping force control
system uses the most appropriate,
lowest possible clamping force for
all handling situations and with all
paper grades, minimising the risk
of roll out-of-roundness.
Other recent business for
Bolzoni Auramo includes delivery of three BA-100 pulp bale
clamps, fitted to Hyster 12t FLTs
to Napoli Terminal, Klingenberg
Group’s forest products terminal
in the Port of Naples.
The BA-100 has a capacity of
10,000kg at 800mm load centre
and is available with a choice of
arm configurations and mounting
options, to faciltate handling of 14 pulp bales according to size.
Finally, Bolzoni Auramo has
just announced that it will merge
its Spanish sales and service operations with those of its affiiliate
Meyer. The two brands will be
supplied from Bolzoni Auramo’s
new facility in Montcada-iReixac, near Barcelona.
“Both brands have many customers who have remained loyal
to the product because of its quality, service and the back-up we
provide, said Antonio Sánchez,
director of Bolzoni Auramo SL. ❏
April 2012
01/05/2012 09:46:34
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01/05/2012 09:48:19
01/05/2012 13:12:04
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING
Widening the tractor spectrum
RTG handling systems have been
subject to increasing scrutiny from
an environmental standpoint. Although RTGs are big polluters per
se, their impact is dwarfed by terminal tractors, because of numbers.
As with RTGs, tractor pollution can
be addressed both by better process control to reduce idling time and hence reduce fleet sizes, and by making the machines themselves “greener.” The first
topic is beyond the scope of this article
but, as regards the latter, the main driver
has been US clean air legislation and most
initiatives and new products have accordingly come from the US, and/or are
mainly intended for use there.
velopment, the Xspotter range of yard
tractors from Indiana-based manufacturer
Autocar is now avaiable in Ontario,
Canada through established trailer manufacturer Glasvan Great Dane, a former
dealer for Capacity of Texas. Glasvan is
Autocar’s first Canadian distributor and
will be selling and leasing tractors with a
Canadian winter package, including a 15step “e-coat” process to protect the cab
from corrosion and a high output heater.
The Xspotter was originally developed from designs Autocar purchased
from another Ontario company, TOR
Truck Corporation, although it now bears
little resemblance to TOR’s original ma-
chines. One of Autocar’s biggest customers is Quality Terminal Services, a subsidiary of OmiTrax, which operates several intermodal terminals for BNSF.
Mixing it up
The “conventional wisdom” is that US
and European style terminal tractors do
not mix very well as conditions and customer expectations are very different.
However, things may be changing. Martec
Leasing, Inc, based in Elizabeth, NJ has
been sourcing used Terberg 4x4 ro-ro
SafeNeck gooseneck matched to Terberg
RT283 at Peel Ports’ Port of Liverpool
Even more choice
In February, Capacity of Texas, Inc announced that it is further expanding its
terminal tractor line-up so that it will have
three “eco-friendly” options by the end
of 2013. They include a zero emissions
machine powered by hydrogen fuel cell
technology, a propane hybrid due out in
late 2012 and a GM V8 propane engine
that will be available by the end of 2013.
The line-up already includes three
Cummins engines (QSB T3, T4i and
ISB10), Cummins Westport (for CNG/
LNG), Navistar MF7 ’10, Ford V10 propane (LPG) and gasoline (petrol), diesel
and electric hybrid. Capacity was the first
to offer the Ford V10 gasoline engine,
introducing it more than a year ago.
Capacity currently offers the most
engine options. “Our customers recognise us as the only manufacturer that truly
customises a truck to meet their specific
applications and needs,” says Jerry Looney,
VP of Sales and Marketing at Capacity.
“While other companies are rolling
out the Ford V10 engine, we’ve already
been offering it to our customers for over
a year now.” This was a reference to Ottawa (WorldCargo News, Feburary 2012,
p2).“With Capacity, customers can customise the truck to their operation and
not have to build it around the limitations of other trucks,” said Looney.
Lower demand
While Capacity has added a fuel cell to
its ZETT machine and its fuel cell partner, Vision Motor Corp, has added fuel
cells to around 15 of the Balqon “all electric” tractors purchased by the Port of Los
Angeles, trends towards automation and
electrification in marine terminal design
in the San Pedro basin mean that overall
demand for tractors is likely to fall.
As previously reported, the TraPac redevelopment will use automated shuttle
carriers while other terminals are planning AGVs. Intermodal rail terminal design is also moving away from a wheeled
parking, drayage-to-crane based system to
grounded operations that require fewer
terminal tractors. UP’s plan to redevelop
its ICTF serving Los Angeles/Long
Beach, for example, would cut the tractor fleet from 73 to just two.
The main driving factor away from
terminal tractors is the need for more
dense terminals with (preferably) zero
emissions equipment, but the cost of lower
and zero emission machines is also a consideration. Currently a fuel cell adds
around US$60,000 to a hybrid terminal
tractor, pushing the cost over US$200,000
and lowering the cost premium of moving to other equipment systems.
Fuel cells and other zero emissions
trucks are, however, still the solution the
ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are
looking to for drayage to near-dock rail
terminals.Vision Industries’ hydrogen fuel
cell-powered Tyrano has now completed
testing and gone into service with Total
Transport Services, Inc (TTS) at the Port
of Long Beach. This truck uses a hydrogen fuel cell to produce electricity to
charge an on-board battery.
Last year TTS signed a letter of intent
to purchase 100 vehicles for around
US$27M subject to satisfactory performance in tests. PresidentVic Larosa recently
said it has now committed to taking the
first 400 production models.
Autocar in Ontario
More than 35 years experience in engineering
and manufacturing Terminal- and RoRo-tractors.
Five solid reasons for partnering Terberg:
>
>
>
>
>
Reliable Partner
Quality Product
Customer Focused
Tailormade Solutions
Comprehensive Service & Support
Terberg Benschop B.V. > Benschop - Holland > Tel. +31(0)348 45 92 11 > [email protected] > www.terbergbenschop.nl
In another North American market deApril 2012
31
01/05/2012 09:52:26
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING
MAFI had a repeat order for five
MT25/30 units from Multirio
tractors in Germany to supply
niche markets in the US. These
units are normally fitted with
Volvo or Mercedes engines to suit
Terberg’s original customers in
Europe.
Moving in the opposite direction, as previously reported, California-based Balqon Corporation
has exclusively licensed Belgian
special vehicles and terminal tractors manufacturer MOL Transport
Solutions to build electric tractors
with its Nautilus XR E20 battery
electric drive system.
Buying and Selling Used Heavy Duty Trucks Worldwide
Container-Handling and Port-Equipment
MOL should be a good partner for Balqon. As a special vehicles manufacturer (including hybrid drive machines), it is a bigger
company than Terberg, but its terminal tractor output is lower,
which means it can pay more attention to niche demands.
TICO in Europe
Another Belgian company, Antwer p Ter minal Tractors &
Reachstackers nv (ATTR) in
Tessenderlo, is the exclusive European dealer for TICO terminal
tractors built in Savannah, GA.
Two models are available from
ATTR: the ProSpotter HD LoLo
machine with a Cummins QSB
160 hp (119 kW) engine and an
Allison RDS 3500 automatic
transmssion, and the ProSpotter
HD RoRo machine, which has a
more powerful drive train with a
215 hp Cummins QS engine, but
still has a 4 x 2 drive configuration with an Allison RDS 3500 6
+ 1 gearbox.
ATTR has been TICO’s dealer
for about three years now. There
have been some delays in connection with European homologation, but 10 new TICO tractors
have recently been leased to an
operator in Italy. At the time of
writing,ATTR has two more new
TICO machines in stock, available
for spot-hire or term rental.
Santos deal
D3144
D3131
D3170
Kalmar DRS4527-S5
Kalmar DRF450-70-S5
Kalmar DRD420-60-S5
Year 2005
Price € 199.000
Year 2005
Price € 210.000
Year 1997
Price € 115.000
DK016
SMV SC4531TB5
Year 2007
Price € 215.000
+ Piggy Back
D3056
SMV SC4535TA5
Year 2002
Price € 165.000
D3166
SMV SC108TB6
Year 2006
Price € 110.000
D3178
Kalmar DC4160RC4
Year 1996
Price € 99.000
DK017
SMV SC108TB6
Year 2007
Price € 140.000
repaired for EUR 25.000,00
D3206
Linde C4234TL5
Year 2005
Price € 160.000
DK006
Linde C4535TL4
Year 2000
Price € 120.000
D3099
Linde C4130TL5
Year 1999
Price € 120.000
D3083
Linde C400-4
Year 1998
Price € 85.000
D3169
Kalmar DRD100-52-S6
Year 2002
Price € 120.000
2 machines available
D2886
Fantuzzi RS55
+ Piggy Back
Year 2002
Price € 120.000
D3200
CVS-Ferrari F477.5
Year 2007
Price € 160.000
DK014
SMV SC4123CB5
Year 2007
Price € 205.000
+ Piggy Back
D3029
Fantuzzi RS50
Year 2001
Price € 169.000
D3179
CVS-Ferrari F269.5
Year 1998
Price € 95.000
Full Service machine
D3062
Kalmar DC52-1200
Year 1989
Price € 75.000
D3195
Kalmar DCD370-12
Year 2004
Price € 180.000
D3174
Svetruck 2812046
Year 1995
Price € 79.000
D3175
Svetruck 2512045
Year 1997
Price € 75.000
with forks
D3177
Kalmar DCD70-35E4
Year 1997
Price € 52.000
D3192
Fantuzzi FDC160
Year 2000
Price € 55.000
Triplex boom
Pics, Details and Video www.Hinrichs-forklifts.com
MAFI Transport-Systeme GmbH
has recently supplied another five
4 x 2 terminal tractors to Multirio
Container Terminals, part of
Multiterminals Group, in the Port
of Rio de Janeiro.
The machines, supplied
through MAFI do Brasil Ltda in
Saõ Paulo, bring the number of
MT 25/30YT models deployed at
Multirio for container transport to
10 machines. The first five were
supplied towards the end of 2010.
“Multirio’s second acquisition
is proof that the operating results
are very good,” said Claudio
Camargo Penteado, CEO of
MAFI do Brasil. “The latest machines have been fitted with
MEM (Mafi economic mode), an
intelligent drive program that
detectswhether the operation is
with or without load.”
As previously reported, MEM
shifts gears automatically up at
lower engine speed if a reduced
load is detected.This leads to considerable fuel savings and more environment-friendly operation.
The MT 25/30 YT model has
a fifth wheel capacity of up to 30t.
YOUR PARTNER IN LEASING SOLUTIONS
The chassis has reinforced welding and steel for durability, and the
driver’s cabin has ROPS/FOPS
certification.
Last summer MAFI do Brasil
supplied three MT 25 YTs to
Albras (Alumínio Brasileiro) for
in-plant transport of heavy loads
at the smelter in Barcarena (PA).
Albras is a jv of Norsk Hydro and
Nippon Amazon Aluminium.
As reported in last month’s
WorldCargo News (p1), MAFI has
launched two new Stage 3B/Tier
4 interim compliant machines, the
T225 and T230, with a gcw of
120t and a fifth wheel capacity of
34t.There is a choice of Cummins
or Mercedes engines from 129 to
190 kW, with Allison or ZF gearboxes. MEM is available as a standard option. A fixed fifth wheel
plate option is also provided and
MAFI will soon offer a T225/
T230 with a LNG engine.
Colombo completion
The Sri Lanka Ports Authority recently acquired the last consignment of 50 Terberg terminal tractors under an equipment upgrade
for its container terminal in Colombo, replacing older assets to
improve efficiency.
The machines were built by
Tractors Malaysia, part of Sime
Darby Industrial, under a longstanding agreement between
Terberg Benschop and Sime
Darby Sdn Bhd dating back to
2002.
Well over 1000 4 x 2 yard tractors have been shipped from Malaysia under this agreement,
mainly to SEA destinations and
the sub-continent, but also to
China, Morocco and Turkey.
Ro-ro deals
As previously reported online and
also briefly again last month, Peel
Ports recently took delivery of two
new Terberg RT283 4x4 ro-ro
tractors at the Port of Liverpool.
Built by Terberg Benschop BV in
the Netherlands and supplied
through its British affiliate Terberg
DTS (UK) Ltd, the tractors have
right-hand drive, as required by
most British and Irish customers.
The tractors are equipped with
a 205 kW Mercedes Stage 3a engine and a ZF transmsission.
GCW capacity is 165t. The machines were ordered some time
ago, and Terberg was able to supply them with Stage 3a engines,
which are less expensive than 3bcompliant engines.
“This latest investment in
equipment will significantly improve our ro-ro capability to the
benefit of our customers and endusers and is a response to this
growing sector,” said David Huck,
head of port operations for Peel
Ports Mersey.
Some neck
The tractors were supplied with
“SafeNeck” goosenecks, sourced
by Terberg DTS from another roro port operator in the UK that
no longer had any use for them.
They were orginally supplied several years ago by Terberg.
SafeNeck was developed more
than 10 years ago for demanding
ro-ro applications by Catracom in
Antwer p, which was one of
Terberg’s most successful dealers.
Subsequently Catracom was acquired by Kalmar (now Cargotec).
Plenty of activity
Liverpool’s ro-ro tractors and
goosenecks follow the delivery of
four new RT223 ro-ro tractors to
another Peel Ports operation, the
Port of Heysham, last autumn. In
1H/2011, Heysham handled
around 225,000 ro-ro freight units,
20% more than in 1H/2010, following the introduction of a
Seatruck service to Larne.
Sales of Terberg series ‘3’
RT223 and RT283 ro-ro tractors
have recently picked up strongly
in the British and Irish markets,
traditionally key outlets for
Terberg terminal tractors.
“The new models have been
very well received and customer
feedback has been very positive,”
said Terberg DTS’s sales manager
Richard Woodings. “There are
more orders in the pipeline and
we are handling many new enquiries.” Orders in hand include
RT223s for Harwich Naval
Dockyard and Bristol Port Company. Other recent deliveries include RT223s to Harwich International Port, Isle of Man Steam
Packet, Portsmouth Handling
Services and PD Ports.
Irish Rail recently took delivery of two RT283s in Rosslare,
while more RT283s were supplied
to P&O Hull, Portroe Stevedores
in Dublin and Sea-Ro.ABP Hull,
another Br itish user of the
SafeNeck gooseneck, took delivery of two RT283s equipped with
translifter hydraulics for handling
cassettes with paper imports.
Steel industry logistics company Harsco Metals recently took
delivery of two RT382s. The
RT382 is Terberg’s heaviest 4x4
tractor with a GCW of 190t and
a fifth wheel capacity of 45t.
Fleet renewal
Terberg DTS has also announced
that more than 50% of its rental
fleet will be replaced over the next
two years, and more vehicles with
the latest specification will be
added to the fleet. In addition, the
company is using this month’s CV
Show in Birmingham to launch a
range of “self-maintained”YT182
distribution tractors, avalable on a
hire only basis.
“We are currently the largest
supplier of specialist vehicles to the
distribution sector, with the highest availability in the market place,”
said Terberg DTS’ managing director, Alisdair Couper.
“This commitment to investing in the upgrading of our rental
vehicle fleet over the next two
years will ensure that customers
benefit from the technical and fuel
saving advantages of operating the
latest up-to-date vehicle specifications, with their inbuilt reliability and increased uptime.”
The new Terberg rental fleet
will handle all different distribution applications and will be available on rental agreements from as
short as one-day rentals right up
to 5-, 6- or 7-year deals. ❏
Capacity of Texas, Inc currently offers the widest choice of engines
More info:
Gothenburg office
+46 (0)31 298 600
32
www.rentalworld-ag.com
[email protected]
April 2012
01/05/2012 09:56:53
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING
Reach out for more business
I
n what must be one of the biggest
single reach stacker procurements so
far this year, Cargotec has just reported an order from Europe Container
Terminals (ECT) in Rotterdam for 13
Kalmar reach stackers and four Kalmar
ECH mast trucks. The order has been
booked by Cargotec into 1Q/2012.
All the machines, DRF 450-60S5
reach stackers, DCF100-45E7 and
DCF90-45E6 mast trucks, are slated for
delivery before the end of this month, to
a number of inland terminals.
The reach stackers are the latest ‘F’
series ContChamp machines with distributed CANBus controls. They are 6m
wheelbase machines with a 45t SWL to
4 x 9ft 6in high in the first row and 42t in
the fifth tier. The ‘F’ series ECH mast
trucks are on a 4.5m w/b. The DCF100
has an SWL of 10t and stacks up to 7 (+
1, with double side twistlock side handler) x 9ft 6in high. All the machines are
fitted with Stage 3b-compliant engines
from Volvo, with optimised combustion
and SCR to take care of the NOx.
Fuel savers
There now seems to be little doubt that
the fuel-saving claims made for Stage 3b/
Tier 4i engines, in relation to Stage 3a/
Tier 3 engines, by the engine makers and
OEMs, have been borne out in practice.
This applies to both the EGR +
particulate filter (DPF) and the urea after-mix (SCR) route to Stage 3b/Tier 4i
compliance, and there are pros and cons
associated with both approaches.
Since Stage 3b/Tier 4i kicked in at
the beginning of 2011 (and 2012 for diesel engines in the ≤ 129 kW range), Hyster
has been particularly pro-active in emphasising the advantages of its EGR +
DPF approach with Cummins engines,
other drive train enhancements and various “soft” systems in reducing fuel consumption of its big trucks.
Hyster has recently reported that one
customer, Barge Center Waalhaven
(BCW) in Rotterdam, received such significant fuel cost reductions by introducing a new Hyster reach stacker that the
Waalhaven Group placed another order
for a new Hyster reach stacker and an
ECH mast truck when it was sourcing
new equipment for its rail and barge terminal operations in Born (BTB).
“During a tour of the Hyster factory
in Nijmegen, the benefits of the new Tier
4i engines used in the new Hyster reach
stackers were clear,” said Peter De Witte,
Terminal Manager at BCW, which took
delivery of its Hyster RS 45-31CH reach
stacker last October.
The machine, says Hyster, delivers
similar performance levels as the previous model, but with much lower fuel
consumption, saving significant costs on
an annual basis. The measured savings by
BCW, continues Hyster, were 4 litres per
hour less than other reach stackers running in the same application. The financial savings can be calculated by taking
into account current fuel prices.
Stealing a march
De Witte says that currently BCW is paying 93¢/litre for diesel fuel (tax-exempted) and he thinks the price will rise
to €1/litre this year.The fuel saving comparisons relate to older reach stackers, but
Cargotec has won another multiple order for
Kalmar reach stackers
SAVE UP TO
15%
ON FUEL CONSUMPTION
Find out about the Hyster range
of Tier 4/Stage IIIB Compliant
Ports Handling Equipment.
Visit: www.Hyster-BigTrucks.com
FLT chains
UK-based chain manufacturer FB Chain
Ltd, an affiliate of Addtech AB in Sweden, has announced a new range of chain
specifically for container handlers and
other heavy duty FLTs operating in and
around ports and terminals.
The new SuperEndurance (SE) chain,
says FB, can withstand the impact of
shock loading - the effect on a lift truck’s
chain caused by regular operation over
rough terrain - and the kind of corrosive
working conditions encountered at ports
for far longer than conventional leaf chain.
Tests are claimed to have shown that
SE chain offers 25% greater fatigue
strength and 50% lower wear rate than
standard chain – even when used with
trucks fitted spreader attachments and
working almost constantly under load
throughout the longest shifts.
The combination of conventional and
‘press fit’ inner links gives the chain its
increased load bearing and fatigue resistance qualities. This construction method
also allows the truck’s load to be more
evenly distributed across the chain’s pins
– thus reducing pin turning, which is a
common cause of chain malfunction.
Made to order, SE Chain is interchangeable with all equivalent LH (DL)
chain types that are made to ISO 4347
and is suitable for use with all leading
makes and sizes of lift truck and container
handling equipment.
SE chain is also available with additional bushing (SuperEndurance Bushed,
or SEB chain), which reduces lifetime
wear still further by eliminating imperfections in the plate holes.
Peter Church, managing director of
FB Chain, commented: “The new chain
is ideal for extending forklift chain service life in high load leaf chain applications. Its inherent strength and fatigue resistance means that truck downtime
caused by chain failure is reduced.” ❏
April 2012
33
01/05/2012 09:59:16
WorldCargo
news
he does not think that other suppliers have
caught up with Stage 3b/Tier 4i to the
same extent as Hyster has, at least locally.
BTB then ordered a Hyster RS 4531CH reach stacker and new 4-high
Hyster ECH mast trucks with similar fuel
saving benefits. The mast truck is fitted
with an Elme double twistlock spreader
so it can stack 2 over 4 x 9ft 6in high. All
the new Waalhaven group machines were
supplied through Hyster’s local distribution and service support partner,
Barloworld Intern Transport (BIT).
Close working
As previously reported, Hyster worked
closely with a single engine partner,
Two Hyster ECHs and a reach stacker were
ordered for Barge Terminal Born
CARGO HANDLING
Cummins, to achieve lower fuel consumption as well as Stage 3b/Tier 4i NOx
and PM emissions compliance. It integrated the new Cummins QSL9 EGR
diesel engine with an improved High
Pressure Common Rail (HPCR) fuel
system to provide cleaner and more efficient combustion and control NOx
emissions. It also features cooling on demand, load sensing hydraulics, RPM management and alternate engine idle speed.
According to feedback from BIT, the
rear-mounted ‘Vista’ cab, which is forward
sliding on the reach stacker so the driver
can optimise his view, was also an important selling point for Waalhaven group.The
machine is also claimed to be the quietest in its class, while the ECH, which is
fitted with a high rear-mountedVista cab,
is claimed to have class-leading lifting
speeds. Other recent business for Hyster
incudes a total of 14 FLTs from 2t to 8t
capacity, supplied to the Merchant Seaport of Saint Petersburg (MPSP) from
Hyster plants in the UK and the Netherlands. MPSP is part of the Dutch holding
with Russian control, UCLH bv.
Spanish deal
Recent business for Terex includes two
Fantuzzi type CS 45 KM machines ordered by Noatum Container Terminal
Valencia, through Fantuzzi Noell Iberia
SL, a Terex Port Equipment affiliate.
Known recent tenders for lift trucks
include one from the Ghana Cocoa Board
in Accra, which is part of the Ministry of
Finance & Economic Planning. Last
month the Board launched an international tender for a total of 26 FLTs for
unloading trucks and stuffing containers,
and three reach stackers. At the time of
writing the tender is open.
Sany and Cargotec are the biggest
reach stacker suppliers in China, but last
month a tender organised by Shenyang
Railway Bureau for two 45t reach stackers was won by Heli, based in Shaanxi.
Anhui Heli has been making FLTs since
the 1960s, and was encouraged into big
trucks, specifically reach stackers, by a
company in Singapore using Italian
know-how. Heli has also just shipped two
45t reach stackers to South America. ❏
Bristol Combilift
WE MAKE
LIFT TRUCKS
WITH HEART
Bristol Port Company recently took delivery of two Combilift 4-way FLTs, after winning a new contract with a North
American timber company for undercover storage at its Royal Portbury Dock.
Due to the increased volume of timber
handled following the new agreement, the
company needed to improve storage density in existing sheds.
After investigating a number of possibilities, Combilift trucks were deemed to
be the best machines for optimising space
and increasing operational flexibility.
“Since we started this contract we have
had to adapt to a much larger workload,”
said BPC’s Development Engineer Paul
Osborne, “but to maintain flexibility we
did not want to install racking across the
designated 10,000 m2 storage area.
“We therefore kept the block stacking system, but needed to reduce aisle
widths to create maximum storage space.
The Combilifts’ 4-way ability enables
them to work in narrow confines as well
as to block stack and we can accommodate 30% more packs than we could have
achieved with counterbalance trucks.”
The diesel-powered trucks have XL
style driver cabs and air conditioning.
They are rated at 6t so can carry and stack
two packs of timber, and have hydraulic
fork positioners to allow for varying pack
lengths. Aisle widths are 4m, rather than
the 7m needed for a counterbalance FLT.
Last year, logistics company Howard
Tenens installed a new system of cantilever racking, served by a Combilift 4way entry lift truck, at its Sharpness depot in Gloucestershire, on behalf of a customer specialising in drilling equipment.
Previously the equipment was stored
in bulk, but the racking means that the
space required by the customer has been
reduced, helping to ensure payback on
the racking.“We asked our materials handling consultants Briggs Equipment for
advice and they recommended the 4-way
Combilift as the one machine solution,”
said the depot’s manager, Mike Jones. ❏
Combilift machine at the Port of Bristol
Meet Stefan (at left) and Lars-Göran (at right), lift truck craftsmen.
They’ve been working as a team for over ten years. Their mission is
to make the hardest-working, longest-lived lift trucks in the world.
Konecranes fork lifts, reach stackers and container lift trucks are
the lift trucks with heart. Test drive one soon to feel the difference.
Konecranes Lifttrucks AB Box 103 SE-285 23 Markaryd, Sweden
Tel. +46 433 73300, Fax +46 433 73310 www.konecraneslifttrucks.se
34
April 2012
03/05/2012 17:45:09
WorldCargo
news
CARGO HANDLING
Grabbing at new opportunities
T
he market for general purpose grabs has turned
down somewhat, due to
reduced sand and aggregates handling because of the slowdown in
the construction industry. So far
European and US grab manufacturers have been the most affected,
but Far East suppliers have also
started dropping prices.
The general purpose sector of
the market is highly competitive
in any case. Better returns are still
available at the “top end,” in coal
and ore handling, both of which
remain attractive for heavy duty
grab manufacturers.
Export focus
Traditionally, grab markets have
been “local,” but manufacturers are
now looking further afield, challenging the view that transportation costs make exports difficult.
Countries such as India are importing more coal and iron ore,
despite having workable reserves
and there is also potential in South
America.The Chinese market will
always remain difficult, but in a
breakthrough order, Netherlandsbased Nemag has secured its first
delivery to Japan, often considered
an “impenetrable” m arket.
The order was secured through
Konecranes, which itself achieved
a breakthrough when it secured
the contract for a 3000 tph gantry grab unloader for Nippon
Steel (NS).The Finnish company
has a close working relationship
with Nemag and priced in its
grabs as part of the tender.
NS could have opted for a local supplier, but chose not to.The
order comprises four scissor grabs,
two with 60 m3 capacity for coal,
while the other two will be for
iron ore with a 20.5 m3 capacity.
Dusting down
Japanese steel makers have long
favoured continuous ship
unloaders (CSUs), but g rab
unloaders are no longer out of the
running, partly because of their
improved environmental credentials. As CSUs operate in a closed
cycle with a fully-enclosed marine
leg and horizontal conveyor to the
shoreside conveyor, they appear to
have in-built dust-free advantages
over open grab cranes.
However, research has shown
that this is not necessarily the case.
On a bucket wheel or bucket
chain type CSU, air is trapped in
the empty descending bucket.
When the bucket digs into the
cargo, the air is compressed slightly
and the only way for it to be released as the bucket fills is to blow
through the cargo, generating dust
in the process.
While air will still be present
in a grab’s shells when it opens and
drops into the cargo, when the
grab closes, this air is displaced
through the top of the grab without coming into contact with the
commodity handled and thereby
not generating dust.
Biomass questions
Biomass handling has been put
forward as a key new market for
grab cranes, but grab suppliers are
cautious.This is partly because political commitment to biomass has
weakened, but also because of specific problems in handling the
wide range of materials that constitute “biomass.”
Clamming up
If wood pellets are handled,
clamshell grabs are suitable, due to
the higher product density. However, Verstegen considers that a
better solution for handling wood
chips is an “orange peel” grab
rather than a clamshell design.
The problem with manufacturing high capacity clamshell
grabs for a very light commodity
is to ensure the seal between the
two shells remains tight as its
length increases. An orange peel
grab, by virtue of its, normally
eight, segment construction has
more seals, but each will have a
shorter length, which exerts
greater pressure between the edges
to maintain a seal.
They can also incorporate
fully-enclosed scales to minimise
material loss and do not have to
be fitted with trimming plates as
the grab will never be overfilled.
Clean-up
While an orange peel grab’s volumetric efficiency may suit wood
chips, its spherical construction
proves a greater challenge during
clean-up operations than a conventional clamshell design.
It may be necessary to change
the grab for a smaller clamshell
design for hold clean-up or incorporate other measures, such as
lowering an open top bin into the
hold to be filled by a front loader
and then lifted out and tipped.
Also, this type of grab tends to
be heavier and is normally employed for more demanding applications such as scrap handling.
Verstegen has a 60 m3 design in
its range, and while it has yet to
build one of this size, it has delivered 40 m3 versions. These weigh
around 22t and have an opening
of ca. 9m diameter, while the 60
m3 design would probably weigh
25t and have an open footprint
10m across.
Nemag considers that a better
way to handle chips is by a scissor
grab, precisely due to the cleanup difficulties of an orange peel
design. The company has conducted tests with the scissor design, which is normally specified
for heavier bulks such as iron ore,
but considers that a lightweight
version operated in conjunction
with a gantry crane, could provide
a good productivity rate.
Chips with everything
When considering biomass, another interesting technical consideration has to be taken into account. At the moment it is generally assumed that wood chips and
pellets will be imported to the
power plants, based on the projections of the generators. This
applies if the basic feed stock is
timber as well as the fast growing
short rotation coppice “E-grasses,”
such as miscanthus and
switchgrass, which could be
grown close to the power plant. If
timber is part of the biomass mix,
it can be chipped or pelletised
close to the growth area and then
shipped in its final fuel state.
RWE Innogy, for instance, has
invested €120M in a biomass pellet plant in Waycross (GA), USA,
with a production capacity of
750,000 tpa, none of which is destined for the North American
market.The plant delivered its first
shipment last year of 23,000t
through Savannah to Dordrecht,
where it was transhipped by a
floating crane into barges for final
delivery to the Amer power plant.
Around 1.5 Mtpa of fresh
wood will be required to produce
the 750,000 tpa of biomass pellets, which will be transported in
handysize bulkers across the Atlantic by the Danish operator
Norden, resulting in around 30
voyages annually over the course
of the 15 year charter.
Nordic and other producers and
instead burn waste paper as part
of the biomass equation.
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35
01/05/2012 10:10:43
WorldCargo
news
CONTAINER INDUSTRY
Box leasing ups and downs
T
he current year could
hardly have started more
differently for the container leasing industry than it did
last year. In contrast to early 2011,
when demand for leased boxes was
still continuing at a record pace,
activity was muted for during the
opening quarter of 2012.
Moreover, just as the leasing
market began to cool off sharply
from early in the second quarter
of 2011, so has it started to revive
again one year on and further improvements are in prospect.
It is reported that leasing companies will have accounted for up
to 75% of all new standard container deliveries made in April
2012. This compares with a share
of just 20-40% in recent months,
with the leasing sector not accounting for a majority of purchases at any time since the first
quarter of last year.
Rather, lessors have been more
intent on reducing factory stockpiles, which built up rapidly in the
second quarter of 2011 and have
Although demand for leased containers held strong
into 2011 following the substantial upturn of 2010,
it slumped sharply from the second half onwards.
The current year started on a quieter note, but
leasing activity is now on the increase again
taken almost a year to clear completely. At the highest point, over
650,000 TEU of dry freight units
were awaiting collection by lessors from manufacturers’ yards.
Short supply
By contrast, there are already signs
that 2012 could turn out to be
more comparable to 2010, when
the leasing market heated up very
rapidly in the aftermath of the recession in 2009 and equipment
was in short supply.
Both demand and pricing
surged throughout 2010 and
reached a peak in early 2011. It
was during the opening months
of 2011 that newbuild standard
prices finally stalled, just short of
US$3,000 per 20ft and the corresponding per diem lease rate
briefly topped US$1.10.
Within a few months, however,
prices and per diems were falling
again, respectively by around 20%
and 30% , which triggered a significant drop in the lessors’ realisable initial cash investment return.
The latter had slumped to below
12%, for standard boxes fixed on a
standard five-year long term lease
by early 2012. It has not been this
low since the downturn of 2009
and contrasts with 14-15%
achieved by most lessors during
2010 and early 2011.
The average newbuild 20ft per
diem languished at US$0.75-0.80
or lower throughout much of the
second half of 2011 and into 2012.
It has yet to recover any ground,
but the latest combination of
strengthening demand and a new
round of price increases could
soon change this.
After sticking close to
US$2,300-2,350 for many
months, the average 20ft ex-works
pr ice is r ising again, with
US$2,500 being quoted for April/
May 2012 delivery and US$2,600
predicted for June.
Capacity constraint
It remains to be seen whether the
price increase will be as great as
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36
Table 1: Profile of leading lessors' operating fleets at January
2012 (rounded TEU x 1,000)
Company
Dry freight*
Textainer
2,425.0
Triton Container
1,715.0
Florens Container
1,735.0
TAL International
1,510.0
Seaco
860.0
CAI
910.0
SeaCube Containers
770.0
Cronos Group
660.0
Touax (Gold Container)
505.0
Dong Fang International
485.0
Beacon Intermodal
345.0
UES International HK
285.0
Blue Sky Intermodal
220.0
CARU Container
115.0
Other
535.0
Total
13,075.0
Shipping line/other owned 15,855.0
Total fleet
28,930.0
Leased share (%)
45.2
Reefer/Tank
45.0
140.0
40.0
115.0
130.0
20.0
160.0
65.0
10.0
30.0
5.0
115.0
875.0
1,445.0
2,320.0
37.7
Total
2,470.0
1,855.0
1,775.0
1,625.0
990.0
930.0
930.0
725.0
505.0
495.0
375.0
290.0
220.0
115.0
650.0
13,950.0
17,300.0
31,250.0
44.6
*All types (standard and special). Source: Leasing company and
manufacturing data
Table 2: New purchases made by leading lessors in 2011
(rounded TEU x 1,000)
Company
Dry freight*
Textainer
215.0
Triton Container
160.0
TAL International
170.0
CAI
125.0
Seaco
115.0
Florens Container
117.5
SeaCube Containers
100.0
Cronos Group
90.0
Dong Fang International
98.0
Blue Sky Intermodal
80.0
Beacon Intermodal
70.0
UES International HK
20.0
Touax (Gold Container)
15.0
CARU Container
7.5
Other
57.0
Total
1,440.0
Shipping line/other buyers 1,585.0
Grand Total
3,025.0
Leased share (%)
47.6
Reefer/Tank
15.0
35.0
15.0
10.0
15.0
2.5
15.0
20.0
2.0
5.0
10.5
145.0
Total
230.0
195.0
185.0
135.0
130.0
120.0
115.0
110.0
100.0
80.0
75.0
20.0
15.0
7.5
67.5
1,585.0
180.0
325.0
44.6
1,765.0
3,350.0
47.3
*Dry freight standard and special. Source: Ibid
occurred in 2010, although global box building capacity is likely
to remain constrained.The hiring
and retaining of skilled workers
remains a problem for major
manufacturers, even though most
are now better placed to increase
production than was the case in
2010 when the industry was readjusting after the enforced shutdown of the previous year.
Factory output is expected to
stay pegged at close to its current
annual single-shift capacity of
about 3.5M TEU., which is already driving prices up, with most
factories now moving back into
profit after several months of
building at near breakeven.
Significantly, steel and other
raw material costs are not increasing at present, resulting in an improved operating margin for the
majority of factories.
Upbeat demand
Crucially, box builders have been
able to exploit the more upbeat
demand pattern, which is being
fuelled by a recovery in Chinese
export volumes. Shipping lines,
many of which remain relatively
cash-strapped, are once again turning to the leasing sector to make
up any shortfall as they are reluctant to invest in what many fear will
be another period of strong box
price inflation and tight supply.
Significantly, many lines only
recommenced volume purchasing
during 2011 once prices were falling again. As a result, they accounted for a slight majority
(52%) of all production carried out
in 2011, which differed from the
more volatile year of 2010, when
lessors bought 60% of output.
Leasing companies have accounted for a little over half of all
deliveries made in 2012 so far, although their share has escalated
since the start of the second quarter. Moreover, the lessors’ share of
pure dry freight investment has
gone up even faster. This is because many leading lessors have recently been purchasing reefer containers in preference to standard
boxes due to the relatively poor
state of the dry freight market.
Leasing companies are almost
certain to increase their investment in dry freight units this year.
With factory stocks cleared, and
ample funds available, many lessors now have the appetite to
resume large scale puchasing. Just
450,000 TEU of the 1,585,000
TEU acquired by lessors in 2011
was delivered in the second half,
which was equivalent to less than
30%. At least 70,000TEU of this
was reefers.
Shipping companies, by comparison, received over 700,000
TEU (or 40%), of their 1,765,000
TEU 2011 delivery during the
second half of the year, including
100,000 TEU of reefers.
Lower replacement
Both shipping lines and leasing
companies also cut back on their
container replacement programmes in 2011, with operators
retiring only 500,000 TEU in total and lessors an even smaller
400,000 TEU.
This global retirement/resale
of 900,000 TEU was lower than
at any time since 2003 and more
than 30% down on the more recent peak replacement years of
2007, 2008 and 2009. The 2011
figure was also less than the 1.05M
TEU disposed of in 2010, when
shipping companies cleared just
350,000 TEU to the lease industry’s 700,000 TEU.
The growing shortage of tradable secondhand equipment
pushed used box prices into the
stratosphere during 2011, when
20ft units of 10-years plus age
were reported to be selling for
US$2,000 or more in the highest
demand areas. In some instances,
used prices actually came close to
matching those being quoted for
new production and the global average was put at more than
US$1,500 for a 12 year old 20ft.
The secondary market has
since cooled down a little, with
current used prices as much as 2030% down on those being quoted
during the peak of last year. However, the secondhand average still
April 2012
01/05/2012 10:13:47
WorldCargo
news
CONTAINER INDUSTRY
Table 3: Leased fleet by type at end2011 (rounded TEU x 1,000)
Type
Dry freight standard*
Dry freight high cube**
Dry freight special†
Reefer
Tank
Palletwide/domestic
Total
Fleet
6,140.0
6,450.0
275,000
735.0
140,0
210.0
13,950.0
*20ft and 40ft. **40ft and 45ft. †Open
top, flatrack, bulk. Source: Ibid
remains higher than at any time prior to
2010, which spells good news for lessors
given the importance of residual values
to their bottom line.
Must needs
Shipping lines and leasing companies have
cut back on replacement for much the
same reasons, although for the lines it has
been largely due to necessity. Since 2009,
most operators have been too hard pressed
financially to invest heavily in containers
and have simply opted to retain older
equipment in service and buy more selectively to cover expansion as dictated
by trade growth and their continued intake of new containership capacity.
At the same time, most lines have
achieved sizeable container slot efficiency
gains since the downturn of 2009 - despite their adoption of slow steaming and
other economy measures - and this has
cut the need for extra boxes.
Leasing companies, on the other hand,
have reduced their retirement volumes
because of the ongoing strength of demand, which has pushed utilisation well
above 95% for the standing leased fleet
since the upturn of 2010. This has only
slipped slightly, by a percentage point or
so, in recent months and still remains at a
record level.
High - and stable - utilisation is a natural consequence of lessors’ continued favouring of LTLs, which now account for
more than 80% of business in TEU terms.
The majority of returned equipment is
now also being re-fixed on LTL rather than
short-term master lease agreements.
However, it is also a product of the
lines’ recent actions, as these are tending
to hold on to older leased containers, often at discounted rates, in preference to
buying or leasing new equipment. As a
result, the entire container fleet (including owned and leased) is being worked
harder than ever with very little spare capacity remaining in the system.This could
again lead quickly to shortages in 2012,
especially if box building capacity remains
limited as in 2010.
was down, and retain a competitive edge
over any shipping line wishing to invest
directly in its own containers. This contrasts with the situation prior to 2008,
when the shipping industry accounted for
the dominant share of container investment, with the majority then favouring
ownership over leasing.
This resulted in a significant loss of
ground for the leasing sector in ownership terms, to the point where it barely
retained control of 40%. However, the
more favourable climate of the past two
years has reversed this trend and saw the
lessors’ fleet holding rise to over 44% by
early 2012. This could go higher still if
2012 shows further similarities to 2010.
At the same time, the leasing sector
as a whole has enjoyed a strong fiscal performance since 2010, fuelled by high uti-
lisation, a generally improving level of
initial cash return and robust secondary
demand. Revenue and profitability has
improved for all lessors, particularly those
focused on the standard dry freight sector.As a result, the majority of major leasing companies now favour only mainstream equipment types comprising
standard 20ft, 40ft and 40ft high cubes,
opentops and flatrack (mainly 40ft) and
reefer (primarily 40ft high cubes). A few
also lease 20ft tank containers, although
this remains a more specialist area.
There has also been some increase in
the leasing of 45ft containers - both maritime and palletwide - as well as cellular
palletwide (20ft and 40ft) and bulk types.
As Table 3 shows, over 90% of the current leased fleet in TEU terms comprises
standard equipment, with the high cube
portion now contributing a slightly
greater share than that of standard height
(8ft 6in). The residue is made up from
reefer (5%), dry freight specials (2%), tanks
(1.5%) and palletwide/domestic units
(1%), although many of these types have
a significant higher value rating per TEU
compared to standard equipment and thus
account for a greater share in terms of
their revenue-generating potential.
Core business
The container leasing industry’s core business thus comprises dry freight and reefer
units, with just about all the leading names
concentrating on these types. Textainer,
Textainer committed to its greatest ever level
of investment during 2011, taking delivery of
more than 230,000 TEU
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Fleet growth
Fewer retirements have also helped fuel
fleet growth for lessors and shipping companies alike. The leased fleet enlarged by
about 10% during 2011 to reach 13.95M
TEU at the year-end, as compared with a
7% growth in the 17.3M TEU balance of
equipment owned by shipping companies and other transport operators.
The leased fleet has since topped 14M
TEU and could reach 15M TEU before
the end of the current year, with over
200,000 TEU delivered in the opening
three months and up to 200,000 TEU
during April alone. By comparison, shipping lines received around 350,000 TEU
during the first four months of 2012.
The lessors’ fleet growth was further
augmented in 2011 by several sizeable sale
and leaseback transactions, which transferred over 200,000 TEU from shipping
line to leasing company ownership. A big
share was received by TAL International,
which is one of several major lessors to have
been active within this field in recent years.
Sale and leaseback has proved an attractive way for financially-stretched shipping companies to raise ready cash to clear
other debt on their books. Leasing companies, at the same time, are able to acquire additional equipment at relatively
low risk. It is another reason why the
container disposal rate has fallen, as many
of the units involved in sale and leaseback are of an advanced age and would,
in a more normal market, be resold into
secondary use.
In the money
As indicated earlier, most leasing companies have had little or no difficulty raising finance, even when newbuild demand
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37
01/05/2012 10:18:28
WorldCargo
news
which has long been the world’s
largest lessor, has always focused
on the standard box market and
now also participates in the reefer
sector. The company’s total fleet
currently stands close to 2.5M
TEU, including at least 50,000
TEU of reefers, all of which have
been acquired since 2008.
Textainer committed to its
greatest ever level of investment
during 2011 by taking delivery of
more than 230,000 TEU as
newbuilds, over 7% of which were
reefers. Its fleet grew in size by
6.7% during the year, with 75,000
TEU of older units resold through
the company’s trading division.
At the same time, the share of
equipment owned by Textainer as opposed to being managed grew from 51% at the end of 2010
to 58.6% at the end of 2011.
Textainer’s utilisation was reported at 98.3% for the whole of
2011, which cut the direct expense associated with storage by
US$7.2M and helped boost revenues and EBITDA.The latter increased 50% to US$332M, while
total turnover went up by nearly
40% to US$422.8M.
Textainer’s performance has
been enhanced by the continued
CONTAINER INDUSTRY
shift towards LTL contracts, at the
expense of master lease, with longterm (and direct finance) lease
business now accounting for 78%
of the entire fleet.
Textainer has also started 2012
on a strong note, with orders
placed for around 35,000 TEU of
standard boxes and 7,000TEU
reefers placed during the opening quarter.
Closest rival
Textainer’s closest rival is Triton
Container, which controls a fleet
exceeding 1.85M TEU and took
delivery of almost 200,000 TEU
during 2011, including 35,000
TEU of reefers. Triton was, once
again, the world’s biggest single
purchaser of reefers, with expenditure accounting for more than
40% of all investment made by the
company last year.
Triton’s overall fleet growth
exceeded 7.5% in 2011 and its
ranking as a reefer lessor is now
second only to SeaCube.
Early in 2011, Triton’s sale to
private equity interests was finalised and new owners Warburg
Pincus and Vestar Capital Partners
are continuing to finance growth.
Triton is reported to have taken
delivery of over 30,000 TEU of
dry freight boxes in the first three
months of this year, plus another
15,000 TEU of reefers thereby
maintaining its aggressive expansion in the reefer field.
Along with Textainer, Triton
has already placed further sizeable
dry freight orders for delivery during April and May.
Cosco Pacific subsidiary,
Florens Group, is not far behind
Triton, with a current fleet of almost 1.8M TEU, around 30% of
which is leased in-house to Cosco
Containerlines.
Florens, too, was an active
buyer during 2011, taking delivery of almost 120,000 TEU, over
60,000 TEU of which was fed
into Florens’ “international” division, with the remainder going
to Cosco. This intake was almost
entirely comprised of dry freight
units and represented a capital expenditure of US$315M. The international, or third party, arm was
further augmented by an intake
of 66,500 TEU on sale and leaseback from two shipping lines
Earlier in 2011, Florens completed the sale of 111,000 TEU
to a jointly-controlled entity of
the ING and DBS Banks, for
buying reefers, having taken over
5000 TEU since the start of 2012.
New owners
GE SeaCo, the world’s fifth biggest lessor, was another to change
hands last year. GE Capital and
SeaCo Ltd sold their interests in
the company to China’s HNA
Group and Hong Kong-based private equity group, Bravia Capital,
for US$1.048B, valuing the company at around US$2.5B including debt.
Despite the change of ownership, the company - now trading
as Seaco - is continuing to maintain its position as one of the more
diversified container lessors and
remains committed to a high degree of specialisation. Its current
fleet stands at almost exactly 1M
TEU, comprising an established
mix of dry freight standard/special, reefer, tank and palletwide/
swapbody equipment.
Seaco was another to invest
heavily in 2011, when it took delivery of more than 130,000 TEU.
Most was of standard type, but
more than 10% comprised reefer,
tank and other more specialised
equipment. By adding 9.5% to its
net fleet size, the company also
notched up its biggest rate of
growth in many years.
Triton took delivery of almost 200,000 TEU last year, maintaining its position
as the world’s second biggest box lessor
US$198M. The containers were
leased back to Cosco upon completion of the transaction.This action was taken in order to “increase the company’s cashflow and
to reduce the gearing ratio”.
By the end of 2011, Florens’
inter national fleet featured
556,000 TEU of owned containers, plus 674,000 TEU under management. The Cosco fleet com-
prised 317,000 TEU as owned and
228,000 TEU under sale and
leaseback. The company’s overall
fleet grew by almost 9% in 2011.
Leaseback deals
TAL International is currently
ranked fourth in the leasing company league table with a total box
fleet exceeding 1.6MTEU. This
was increased by 18% during 2011
through newbuild purchasing and
sale/leaseback arrangements.
TAL’s new container acquisitions topped 185,000 TEU in
2011, around 8% of which were
reefers, while more than 120,000
TEU (including some reefers)
were added through sale/leaseback transactions with various
shipping lines
Although TAL remains largely
focused on dry freight and reefer
leasing, it has also been active in
the tank container sector for some
years and has a current fleet exceeding 5,000 units.This was doubled in size during 2011. Its reefer
fleet has also recently topped
100,000 TEU for the first time.
In line with its main competitors,TAL reported an average utilisation of 98.5% for 2011 and has
around 80% of the fleet tied to
LTL or finance lease. The strong
expansion of 2011 yielded a 37%
gain in the company’s leasing revenue to a new high of US$451M
and near doubling of net income,
to US$110M.
Nevertheless,TAL started 2012
on a more cautious note, with orders for little more than 10,000
TEU of dry freight units placed
in the opening quarter. This has
been followed by orders of up to
20,000TEU for April delivery,
while the company has also been
Second tier
Seaco heads the important “second tier” of leasing companies, all
of which have surpassed a fleet
size of 500,000 TEU. They include CAI, SeaCube Container
Leasing, Cronos and Touax Global Container Solutions (formerly
Gold Container) and are being
chased by Dong Fang International Leasing (DFIL) and Beacon Inter-modal further down
the rankings.
CAI committed to a record
level of new box investment in
2011 and is reckoned to have received up to 135,000 TEU as dry
freight and reefers. Its total expenditure in 2011 exceeded
US$415M and the company
ended 2011 with a fleet of almost
930,000 TEU, including 30,000
TEU of reefers and other specials.
Around 10,000 TEU of reefers
were purchased during 2011 as
CAI’s overall fleet grew by 12.5%.
SeaCube was floated on the
NYSE in late 2010, following in
the footsteps of Textainer,TAL,and
CAI, and has since also committed to a strong expansion programme. It took delivery of
115,000 TEU in 2011, including
more than 25,000 TEU of reefers,
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38
April 2012
01/05/2012 10:24:11
WorldCargo
news
CONTAINER INDUSTRY
specials and palletwide/domestic equipment. Its fleet stood at around 930,000
TEU by the year-end, up by 14%, comprising 770,000 TEU of standard dry
freight units and the world’s biggest leased
reefer inventory of 160,000 TEU.Around
235,000 TEU of owned containers and
260,000 TEU of managed equipment are
fixed on operating lease, plus a further
435,000 TEU on direct finance lease. Utilisation was reported by SeaCube at above
98% for the whole of 2011.
Cronos was also very active last year,
notching up its largest annual purchase
of containers to date, together with a 10%
fleet expansion. It received a total of
110,000 TEU, over 20,000 TEU of which
comprised reefers, tanks or other specials.
The Cronos fleet is the most diversified
after that Seaco, featuring standard, special, reefer, tank, dry bulk and palletwide
boxes, plus roll trailers.
Around 15% of all Cronos equipment
is currently on direct finance lease, with
the balance on operating lease and largely
comprising managed equipment. Both its
finance and operating lease divisions received a boost in 2010 when Cronos
took management control of around
220,000 TEU of standard boxes previously managed by UES Intermodal AG.
Following the latter transaction with
Cronos, UES affiliate UES International
(HK)has retained a core fleet of close to
300,000 TEU and made only modest purchases during 2010-11. Even so, the company managed a 7% growth in 2011.
Mid-ranking
DFIL and Beacon are, meanwhile, vying
for a mid-ranking place. The former
ended last year just a few thousand short
of 500,000 TEU, having added at least
100,000 TEU almost entirely as standard
dry freight units during 2011. Its fleet di-
vides evenly between that assigned to “international” or third-party business and
that leased in-house to affiliate China
Shipping Container Lines. A slightly
greater share of production last year is
reckoned to have gone to China Shipping, although the international portion
grew by 20%.The DFIL fleet, as a whole,
increased by more than 15% during 2011.
Beacon is owned by the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi and operated as a division of BTMU Capital Corp, based in
Boston, US, and had been steadily building its position as a global lessor of standard dry freight and reefer equipment since
the end of 2007. Its operating fleet grew
by 25% during 2011 to reach 375,000
TEU by the year-end. Roughly 8% comprised reefers and just 5% of the overall
total was on finance lease. Beacon pur-
chased around 75,000 TEU in 2011, including almost 5000 TEU of reefers, and
a further 10,000TEU was ordered during the opening three months of 2012.
Still room
Even though the world’s container leasing
industry is becoming increasingly dominated by ever larger players, there is still a
role for smaller participants. Blue Sky
Intermodal continues to flourish, having
achieved the largest rate of fleet growth
amongst all lessors during 2011. This
amounted to over 50%, when the company added an unprecedented 80,000 TEU
to its predominantly managed fleet and attained a year-end size of 220,000 TEU. It
has since been holding fire, however, awaiting more positive signs of an upturn before committing to more investment.
Another emerging name is Magellan
Maritime Services, of Germany, which has
also built up a leasing presence since 2005
with a managed fleet of more than 65,000
TEU. It is understood to have taken delivery of at least 12,000 TEU during 2011
and ordered 20,000 TEU in the first quarter of this year, all of which have been
leased to major carriers. Subject to market development and pricing, the company anticiapes investing a further
US$50M in standard boxes this year.
Another, slightly larger participant is
CARU Container, of Rotterdam, which
added about 8,000 TEU last year and currently has a fleet of 115,000 TEU. Smaller
rivals exist in the shape of Waterfront Leasing and Bridgehead Container Services,
both of which are long established, each
with a fleet of around 50,000 TEU. ❏
K Line saleleaseback
Paris-based container lessor Touax
Global Container Solutions has finalised a sale and leaseback agreement
with Japanese operator Kawasaki
Kisen Kaisha Ltd (K Line), covering
11,000 TEU of standard dry freight
containers.
“This sale and leaseback will enable us to meet our growth targets for
our managed fleet more quickly and
to strengthen our presence in Asia.We
managed to design a tailor-made solution for our customer allowing it to
refinance part of its container fleet and
take advantage of highly competitive
leasing rates. We aim to develop this
expertise for the main global shipping
companies,” said Richard Barreau,
managing director of Touax Global
Container Solutions.
Formerly known as Gold Container
Corporation, Touax Global Container
Solutions is the world’s ninth largest
container leasing company with an
owned and managed fleet of around
505,000 TEU of primarily standard dry
freight equipment. Part of the Touax
Group, which is also active in the leasing of river barges, modular buildings
and intermodal railcars, the company
offers operational leasing and financing solutions to a global customer base,
both for its own account and on behalf
of investors.
Meanwhile, Textainer Marine
Containers Ltd (TMCL), the primary
asset owning subsidiary of the world’s
biggest box lessor, Textainer Group
Holdings, has announced that it has
closed its offering of US$400M of
Series 2012-1 Fixed Rate Asset
Backed Notes,
The notes, initially purchased by
Wells Fargo Securities LLC, Bank of
America Merrill Lynch and Credit
Suisse, represent fully amortising notes
payable on a straight-line basis over a
scheduled payment term of ten years.
They have a fixed interest rate, payable monthly, of 4.21% per annum,
resulting in an effective semi-annual
yield of 4.25% per annum.
“We are extremely pleased with the
US$400M debt offering,” commented
Textainer president and CEO Philip K
Brewer. “We are continuing to see
strong demand for containers and the
additional liquidity from the notes further bolsters our capacity to grow organically, support our customers and
continue as the industry leader.”
The proceeds from the issuance of
the notes, which are secured by a
pledge of TMCL’s assets, are expected
to be used to repay outstanding indebtedness of TMCL, in particular its
Series 2010-1 Notes, and for general
corporate purposes.
“The successful issuance of the
notes highlights the ever improving
liquidity and investor interest in asset-backed container debt,” added
Hilliard C Terry, III,Textainer’s executive vice president and CFO. ❏
April 2012
THE THird
iNTErNATiONAL
POrTs ANd sHiPPiNg
CONFErENCE
ANd ExHibiTiON
rUssiA
st. Petersburg
October 2-4
2012
“Russia - Developing the WoRlD’s laRgest
WateR-boRne tRanspoRt system”
COMPETITION FOR PORT BUSINESS IN RUSSIA
THE CRUISE MARKET AND RUSSIA EXPANDING THE HORIZONS
GREATER ECONOMY, GREATER
EFFICIENCY - THE NEXT GENERATION OF
SERVICE SHIPS
THE PORT CYBER WORLD
COMBINING THE INTERESTS OF PORTS,
SHIPPING AND SHIPPERS
MODERNISATION OF PORT EQUIPMENT
AND TECHNOLOGY
FACING THE ARCTIC & ICE CONDITIONS
WATCHING THE ENVIRONMENT,
WATCHING THE CLIMATE
Contact Dolphin Exhibitions:
Tel: + 44 1449 741801 • Fax: + 44 1449 741628 • Email: [email protected]
www.transtec-neva.com
39
01/05/2012 10:27:07
01/05/2012 10:28:47

Here - World Cargo News

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