Cargo Business Newswire Archives
Summary for March 7- March 11, 2011:
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Monday, March 7, 2011

Top Story

Greek ship owners to get $10 bil in loan funds from China

China is reportedly going to double the amount of a ship-building loan fund made available to Greece’s ship owners to approximately $10 billion.

The original funding amount was set at $5 billion last October. New construction ships funded through the Chinese loans must be built in China.

China’s biggest shipping group, COSCO, has said it would charter Greek-owned, China-built cargo vessels, according to a Reuters report.

For the full Reuters report: www.reuters.com

Report: Maersk part of $4.6 bil investment team at Qingdao

Shipping group A.P. Moeller-Maersk will reportedly be part of a foreign investment consortium poised to invest $4.6 billion in Qingdao Port Group in China’s Shandong Province.

The five-year expansion plan is aimed at increasing containerized capacity by two thirds to 20 million TEUs, and doubling bulk handling to 600 million tons, according to a Reuters report.

Qingdao Port Group has 29 percent of the container terminal venture; with the rest of the shares include holdings by Maersk, DP World and COSCO.

For the full Reuters story: www.reuters.com

New governor pledges $77 mil to Port of Miami dredging project

The new governor of Florida, Rick Scott, has pledged to pump $77 million into the Port of Miami’s effort to dredge it shipping channel down to 50 feet, pending approval by the state’s legislature.

The governor also rejected $2.4 billion in federal money that was designed for Florida’s high-speed rail investment.

Scott said there are a “number of worthy infrastructure projects that deserve our attention and as Floridians, we know best where our resources should be focused,” according to a news report in the Miami Herald.

Scott was also quoted as saying the port’s dredging project is “the type of infrastructure project that will pay permanent, long-term dividends, and provide a solid return on investment for Florida’s taxpayers.”

For the full Miami Herald report: www.miamiherald.com

New Jersey man sentenced for stealing $500,000 in shipping services from FedEx

A man from Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey was sentenced to five years in state prison for stealing close to $500,000 in shipping services from FedEx.

Kumar Hathiramani, 51, pled guilty to second-degree theft stemming from opening shipping accounts using fraudulent names and companies, according to the New Jersey Newsroom.

Hathirimani began opening the accounts with bank gift cards and subsequently shipped 134 large orders of cosmetics from 20 separate accounts around the world from his home and a warehouse of his between 2003 and 2007.

Hathirimani has reportedly paid FedEx restitution.

For the full New Jersey Newsroom story: www.newjerseynewsroom.com

U.S., Turkish warships assist in freed Japanese crew, vessel

A Japanese oil tanker with 24 crew was released by suspected pirates this weekend off the coast of Oman when the U.S. destroyer Bulkeley, assisted by a Turkish warship, intercepted the vessel as commandos subsequently boarded, according to various news reports out of the region.

The tanker Guanabara’s crew was found hiding in the vessel’s “citadel” Four suspected pirates were detained.


Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Top Story

Port of Baltimore gets greener

Going green is the thing for the Port of Baltimore, Maryland, where there’s an industry-wide effort to clean up, and stay cleaner.

"The port is becoming the last line of defense in keeping stuff out of the bay," Richard L. Sheckells Jr., chief of environmental initiatives for the Maryland Port Administration, told the Baltimore Sun.

The port authority has installed screens in storm drains, leveraged federal grant funds to install clean diesel technologies on 142 pieces of equipment, and the main tugboat company in the harbor runs at slower speeds, the Sun story said.

Port tenants are getting into the swing as well, such as Ports America Chesapeake, the operator of the Seagirt Marine Terminal, is recycling its used oil, batteries and scrap metal, in addition to utilizing greener diesel technology on more than half of its 122 yard trucks.

Scandinavian ro-ro shipping line Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics is working towards a zero-emissions terminal in Baltimore and eventually worldwide in a major initiative it terms the “Castor Green Terminal” named after an endangered species of beaver.

For the full Baltimore Sun story: www.baltimoresun.com

Georgia, South Carolina ports meet over Jasper County terminal

According to news reports out of the region, officials from the port authorities of Georgia and South Carolina are meeting today to discuss the future of a proposed $500 million container terminal on the heels of a letter written by the latter’s port chairman, Bill Stern, that said plans to dredge at the Port of Savannah would hurt development of the Jasper County project.


HP to lease 1.4 mil square feet of DC space in San Bernardino

Southern California’s inland region will see a big tenant move in – tech giant Hewlett Packard.

The Palo Alto-based firm announced this week it would lease two facilities for seven years totaling 1.4 million square feet located on a 63-acre industrial property.

Great Lakes will see “SS Oberstar”

He might be out of a job, but former U.S. Rep. and chairman of the House transportation and Infrastructure Committee, James Oberstar, will get a Great Lakes freighter named after him, according to news reports out of the region.

Interlake Steamship Co. will reportedly rename the Charles M. Beeghly after Oberstar, the 18-term Democrat, in honor of his service to the transportation and mining industries.

Monterey Aquarium to search sea bottom for a 40-foot container

The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute is going to send a robotic submersible down 4,200 feet just outside of the bay to search for a 40-foot shipping container-full of steel-belted tires.

The forty footer was one of 15 containers washed overboard from the cargo ship Med Taipei when it rolled from a 30-foot swell back in 2004, about 17 miles offshore.

The Monterey Bay team’s mission is to search for any ecological damage from the steel box of 1,000 tires.

The submersible project is funded out of the $3.25 million the ship’s owners paid to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration after it was concluded the vessel’s containers were improperly stacked and that the captain didn’t slow down on his way to the Port of Los Angeles, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

For the full Chronicle story: www.sfgate.com

 

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Top Story

Jasper County terminal project hits the breaks over dredging

The proposed $500 million container port on the north side of the lower Savannah River in Jasper County, South Carolina is only getting $500,000 this year as the project is currently stalled, primarily over dredging issues, after a meeting in Garden City, Georgia yesterday of a bi-state panel representing the two big U.S. Southeast port authorities.

At stake is the eventual widening of the Panama Canal and the Port of Savannah’s push to get its shipping channel dredged down to 48 feet at a price tag of $588 million, while Charleston’s port is after $400 million to study digging its harbor down to 50 feet.

In the middle of the two competitive ports is the proposed 1,500-acre Jasper County terminal project that was after $631,000 to perform two studies that would advance development. Instead, the panel voted for just $500,000 for basic maintenance. The two states have spent $3.4 million on the project since they signed a memorandum of understanding for joint oversight in 2007.

Yesterday, the South Carolina contingent, with port commission head Bill Stern at the forefront, raised the question of whether there would be enough capacity on the river for two container ports as well as prompting the call for dredging the shipping channel down to 50 feet.

Last month Stern sent a letter to his counterpart at the Georgia Port Authority, Alec Poitevint, that the project should be placed on hold while his state and port focus on their own harbor deepening process.

The response from Georgia’s port officials was that South Carolina was holding up Savannah’s own dredging project.

Georgia’s side countered again at the meeting yesterday with what they say is the need for their port to be ready for the post-Panamax containerships that are projected to be plying the Eastern seaboard once the Panama Canal widens by 2014.

The latest estimate for the opening of a Jasper County terminal wouldn’t be until 2025.

Retailer group opposes revision of hours of service rules for U.S. truckers

A major retailer group is opposing proposed reduction of hours in a day that a U.S. trucker can operate from 11 hours to 10, among other potential related changes being considered by the Federal Motor Carrier Administration.

“The most recent data from DOT shows that under the current system there have been significant gains in safety, making the trucking industry the safest it has ever been even as higher numbers of vehicles are on the roadways,” said Kelly Kolb, vice president of global for the Retail Industry Leaders Association in a statement.

“Imposing these unnecessary changes deviates from the positive safety trends and sustainable advancements that the current system affords and comes at the expense of drivers and businesses, creating a string of future problems without making any valid improvements right now,” Kolb said.

The retailer group cited a December 2009 Department of Transportation study that traffic congestion costs $87.2 billion to the U.S. economy, “with 4.2 billion hours and 2.8 billion gallons of fuel spent sitting in traffic.”

“Those figures can only go up if the proposed rulemaking is set into place,” RILA said in its statement.

Port of Oakland solidifies relationship with China Merchants

The Port of Oakland and China Merchants Holdings International jointly hosted a symposium in Oakland last week that grew out of a memorandum of understanding signed between the port and China’s major port logistics firm in November to develop and market a stronger trans-Pacific import, export pipeline for California’s Central Valley agricultural region.

“This partnership between the Port of Oakland and China Merchants means more containers, and more containers mean more job opportunities, which in turn will strengthen the regional economy,” said James Head, president of Oakland’s board of port commissioners.

As part of the MOU, the Port of Oakland said it plans to develop trade and logistics facilities “which will mirror the CMHI facilities already in operation at the Port of Shenzhen.”

The port also said that it and CMHI are working together on “joint marketing activities, market research, and exchange of best practices.”

Port of Vancouver USA director to retire in a year

The Port of Vancouver, USA’s executive director Larry Paulson will retire as of April 2012 and the current deputy director, Todd Coleman, will succeed him the Washington State port authority announced.

The board of commission vote was unanimous over the appointment of Coleman as new executive director. Coleman has been with the port since 2001.

Paulson has been executive director of Port of Vancouver since 1999 and represented the port before that as its legal counsel.


Pirates attempt another attack on Maersk Alabama

The crew of the same U.S. -flagged containership that was seized in the Indian Ocean in the highly publicized hostage taking and subsequent rescue operation in 2009 thwarted another attack yesterday, according to a statement by the owner of the Maersk Alabama.

Four pirate suspects approached the ship in a skiff with a hook ladder, Denmark’s Maersk Line said.

"The captain followed the appropriate protocol and authorized an embarked security team to fire warning shots in order for the pirates to turn away," the statement said.


Thursday, March 10, 2011

Top Story

Jasper County terminal project hits the brakes over dredging

The proposed $500 million container port on the north side of the lower Savannah River in Jasper County, South Carolina is only getting $500,000 this year as the project is currently stalled, primarily over dredging issues, after a meeting in Garden City, Georgia yesterday of a bi-state panel representing the two big U.S. Southeast port authorities.

At stake is the eventual widening of the Panama Canal and the Port of Savannah’s push to get its shipping channel dredged down to 48 feet at a price tag of $588 million, while Charleston’s port is after $400 million to study digging its harbor down to 50 feet.

In the middle of the two competitive ports is the proposed 1,500-acre Jasper County terminal project that was after $631,000 to perform two studies that would advance development. Instead, the panel voted for just $500,000 for basic maintenance. The two states have spent $3.4 million on the project since they signed a memorandum of understanding for joint oversight in 2007.

Yesterday, the South Carolina contingent, with port commission head Bill Stern at the forefront, raised the question of whether there would be enough capacity on the river for two container ports as well as prompting the call for dredging the shipping channel down to 50 feet.

Last month Stern sent a letter to his counterpart at the Georgia Port Authority, Alec Poitevint, that the project should be placed on hold while his state and port focus on their own harbor deepening process.

The response from Georgia’s port officials was that South Carolina was holding up Savannah’s own dredging project.

Georgia’s side countered again at the meeting yesterday with what they say is the need for their port to be ready for the post-Panamax containerships that are projected to be plying the Eastern seaboard once the Panama Canal widens by 2014.

The latest estimate for the opening of a Jasper County terminal wouldn’t be until 2025.

Retailer group opposes revision of hours of service rules for U.S. truckers

A major retailer group is opposing proposed reduction of hours in a day that a U.S. trucker can operate from 11 hours to 10, among other potential related changes being considered by the Federal Motor Carrier Administration.

“The most recent data from DOT shows that under the current system there have been significant gains in safety, making the trucking industry the safest it has ever been even as higher numbers of vehicles are on the roadways,” said Kelly Kolb, vice president of global for the Retail Industry Leaders Association in a statement.

“Imposing these unnecessary changes deviates from the positive safety trends and sustainable advancements that the current system affords and comes at the expense of drivers and businesses, creating a string of future problems without making any valid improvements right now,” Kolb said.

The retailer group cited a December 2009 Department of Transportation study that traffic congestion costs $87.2 billion to the U.S. economy, “with 4.2 billion hours and 2.8 billion gallons of fuel spent sitting in traffic.”

“Those figures can only go up if the proposed rulemaking is set into place,” RILA said in its statement.

Port of Oakland solidifies relationship with China Merchants

The Port of Oakland and China Merchants Holdings International jointly hosted a symposium in Oakland last week that grew out of a memorandum of understanding signed between the port and China’s major port logistics firm in November to develop and market a stronger trans-Pacific import, export pipeline for California’s Central Valley agricultural region.

“This partnership between the Port of Oakland and China Merchants means more containers, and more containers mean more job opportunities, which in turn will strengthen the regional economy,” said James Head, president of Oakland’s board of port commissioners.

As part of the MOU, the Port of Oakland said it plans to develop trade and logistics facilities “which will mirror the CMHI facilities already in operation at the Port of Shenzhen.”

The port also said that it and CMHI are working together on “joint marketing activities, market research, and exchange of best practices.”

Port of Vancouver USA director to retire in a year

The Port of Vancouver, USA’s executive director Larry Paulson will retire as of April 2012 and the current deputy director, Todd Coleman, will succeed him the Washington State port authority announced.

The board of commission vote was unanimous over the appointment of Coleman as new executive director. Coleman has been with the port since 2001.

Paulson has been executive director of Port of Vancouver since 1999 and represented the port before that as its legal counsel.

Pirates attempt another attack on Maersk Alabama

The crew of the same U.S. -flagged containership that was seized in the Indian Ocean in the highly publicized hostage taking and subsequent rescue operation in 2009 thwarted another attack yesterday, according to a statement by the owner of the Maersk Alabama.

Four pirate suspects approached the ship in a skiff with a hook ladder, Denmark’s Maersk Line said.

"The captain followed the appropriate protocol and authorized an embarked security team to fire warning shots in order for the pirates to turn away," the statement said.

 

Friday, March 11, 2011

Top Story

U.S. -Mexico border dispute ending; D.O.T. to fund EOBR

On the heels of the recent meeting between President Barack Obama and President Felipe Calderon, the U.S. -Mexico border dispute is ending with the former agreeing to lift the Mexican truck ban and the latter country agreeing to cut tariffs on $2.4 billion worth of U.S. goods.

Mexico’s economy minister, Bruno Ferrari, said the current tariffs would be cut in half between now and when the agreement is signed in June, and the other half would be eliminated once the first Mexican truck is granted access to the U.S.

Ever since the North American Free Trade Agreement was signed in 1995, the U.S. had yet to allow full access to Mexican trucks into the U.S prompting Mexico to impose tariffs over the years on U.S. goods that have included fruits, vegetables, beverages, and a range of consumer products.

An 18-month agreement will now be put into place to allow Mexican trucks to haul freight into the U.S. subject to inspections and meeting U.S. trucking regulations.

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced it would fund the requirement for electronic on-board recorders that have global positioning system capabilities on Mexican trucks crossing the border.

U.S. railroads to spend record $12 bil this year

A record $12 billion will be invested in tracks, equipment and staffing this year by U.S. class one railroads, according to the Association of American Railroads.

Manufacturing is picking up, more freight is being moved, furloughed railroad employees are returning to work, and consequently, rates are up, as the railroads plan to spend 13 percent more than in 2010.

HPH lowers public offering to $5.56 bil

Rising oil prices from unrest in the Middle East and rising inflation in Asia are among the reasons that reportedly prompted Hutchison Port Holdings Trust to reduce Southeast Asia’s largest-ever public offering from $5.8 billion to $5.56 billion, according to un-named sources in a Bloomberg report.

The HPH group is part of one of Hong Kong’s biggest trading houses, Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. under the leadership of billionaire Li Ka-shing.

For the full Bloomberg report: www.bloomberg.com

Chinese logistics company acquires industrial building in L.A. for $5.3 mil

A Chinese logistics company has acquired a 71,360 square-foot industrial facility in Los Angeles for $5.3 million, according to the L.A. Business Journal.

Hong Kong-based F.C.C. Logistics Ltd. reportedly plans to convert the building, which is five miles from the Port of Los Angeles, into mixed use that includes operations and headquarters.

The building has been vacant for a year and features loading docks and a freight yard, the Business Journal story said.

For the full L.A. Business Journal story: www.labusinessjournal.com

European Commission raids Baltic rail companies

Authorities from the European Commission raided rail companies operating in the continent’s Baltic region this week over suspicion of cartel behavior.

"The European Commission can confirm that on the 8th of March, Commission officials undertook unannounced inspections at the premises of companies active in the rail freight sector and related products industry in Baltic countries," the EC said.

The Commission’s statement went on to say that it “has reason to believe that the companies concerned may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices and/or the abuse of a dominant market position."

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