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CMIT Becomes 1st Terminal in Vietnam to Join TradeLens
Vietnam’s Cai Mep International Terminal (CMIT), a joint venture between Vinalines, Saigon Port and APM Terminals, has joined the TradeLens digital platform in support of the blockchain technology.
CMIT is one of the largest terminals in Cai Mep – Thi Vai deep-water gateway port complex, which currently accommodates mainline vessels with a capacity of up to 194,000= dwt/21,500 TEU connecting Vietnam directly with main markets in Europe, North America and Asia.
The terminal has already been applying e-solutions such as e-invoice and e-cargo to its daily operations. CMIT is now joining Tradelens with the purpose of adding a new digital platform to deliver better service.
“In the context of constantly increasing demand for high quality online services by our customers, along with the robust development of global digitalization, joining Tradelens enables immediate updates on cargo data, hence directly supporting our customers’ supply chain planning efficiency,” Jan Bandstra, General Director, CMIT, explained.
“By way of illustration, a seafood container export from Vietnam to the US has more than 30 shipping milestones and shipment data at more than 10 relevant entities with the requirement of close tracking,” Nguyen Xuan Ky, CMIT Deputy General Director, said.
Xuan Ky added that real-time information sharing at different stages in the global supply chain will increase efficiency for global trade flows.
TradeLens is a solution jointly developed by Maersk and IBM to apply blockchain to the global supply chain. It provides end-to-end supply chain information, facilitating data sharing, collaboration and improved trade flows. It is now supported by more than 100 industry players such as CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, APM Terminals, PSA and others.
Evergreen orders four feeder boxships from HMD for $100m
Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine Corporation has ordered four feeder container vessels from South Korea’s Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD) for KRW110bn ($100m).
The 1,800-teu boxships will be built to the Con-Green design developed by HMD in conjunction with Man Energy Solutions and DNV GL, the Korean yard announced on its website.
The ships will be delivered from HMD’s Ulsan shipyard in phases starting 2021.
HMD said the feeder vessels will meet the requirements of the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) Phase 3 that will be in force from January 2025, for the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
“The recent order from Evergreen, which is the first contract for containerships we have signed directly with a Taiwanese shipping company, is highly meaningful in that we were recognised for our technological competitiveness in eco-friendly ships,” a HMD official was reported saying.
“Going forward, we will further diversify the line-up of our products with a focus on securing orders for medium-sized containerships at a time when global container shipping companies are investing in more advanced vessels to meet future demand,” the official added.
HMM’s 24,000 TEU Mega Ships to Start Delivery in April
Korean shipping company Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) is set to join the elite club of megaship owners in a few months.
Namely, HMM is scheduled to start taking delivery of its twelve 24,000 TEU boxship newbuilds, the largest containerships in the world, in April, a company spokesperson confirmed to World Maritime News, hinting that the delivery schedule may be subject to change.
The ships are undergoing final touches at the Korean shipyards Samsung Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) and are scheduled to be deployed in the Far East-North Europe trade.
The sequential delivery of the new containerships coincides with the company’s entry into a new containership alliance – THE Alliance; comprising Hapag-Lloyd, Ocean Network Express, and Yang Ming.
According to HMM’s spokesperson, the vessel’s deployment plan for the year 2020 is still being finalized among THE Alliance members and will be unveiled once completed.
It is believed that the deployment of the giant ships will take place from Busan Newport International Terminal, the Port of Busan, which is the largest port in South Korea.
The company is expected to add around 34 ships to THE Alliance’s network in 2020, according to Alphaliner’s estimates, adding up to 519,000 TEU to the network.
The switch to a new alliance comes as Hyundai Merchant Marine exits the three-year cooperation deal it had with the 2M carriers, Maersk Line and MSC since March 2017.
Apart from the newbuildings that the South Korean major would receive in 2020, another eight 15,000 TEU newbuildings are set to join the company’s fleet in 2021. The latter are expected to be deployed on the Asia – US East Coast route from the second quarter of 2021.
Furthermore HMM’s fleet will be strengthened in April 2020 by redeliveries of nine 10,000 – 13,000 TEU ships currently (sub-)chartered out to Maersk and MSC.
Business performance and plans ahead
Over the past year, HMM was investing strenuous efforts to cut its loss by turning to cost-cutting efforts and business transformation aided by improved freight rates.
The shipping major managed to reduce its operating loss from KRW 123.1 billion (USD 105 million) in the third quarter of 2018 to KRW 46.6 billion (USD 39.8 million) in the same quarter last year.
“Last year, we laid a solid foundation to improve mid-to-long term profitability by joining THE Alliance, acquiring five new VLCCs, and securing operation rights of the Hyundai Pusan New Port terminal,” Jae Hoon Bae, President & CEO of HMM, said in his New Year message.
“We also have prepared a new leap forward through efforts to improve our profit structure, including the establishment of the SWAT (Strategic Work Activity TF), Logistics Service Strategy TF, and hiring of overseas sales specialists for back-haul business.”
“This year appears to be another year of considerable uncertainty. Geopolitical instability and an oversupplied market situation have intensified and are expected to persist, which might contribute to obstructing a positive outlook.
“From the US-China trade dispute to Brexit, uncertainties in the global trade environment have directly affected the world trade volume. The growth rate of shipping capacity is expected to increase as well.
“It is unpredictable whether the business environment approaching us will be a tailwind or headwind, nor can we control it as we wish, but let us all make a fresh resolution to reach our desired “destination.”
The company has defined its goals for the future and it aims to reach 1 million TEUs in capacity, over USD 10 billion in annual revenue by 2022.
“This goal will be realized by accomplishing our vision of ‘No.1 in customer satisfaction, No.1 in productivity, and No.1 in employee satisfaction’. (…)
“In particular, with the delivery of the mega container ships and new cooperation with THE Alliance, the year 2020 will be a turning point for HMM to set a new milestone.”
Shanghai Remains World’s Top Container Port
China’s Shanghai port has retained its rank as the world’s busiest container port, having handled 43.3 million twenty-foot equivalent units last year, Xinhua reports citing Shanghai Mayor Ying Yong.
Shanghai has held its top-dog position for the past ten years and aims to lead the way in the future as part of China’s commitment to restoring the Silk Road. The port overtook Singapore back in 2010 as the world’s busiest port, having handled 29.05 million TEUs at the time.
Shanghai, which is also the world’s largest port, has been a major trade gateway for China supporting its burgeoning economy.
The port invested heavily in expanding and digitalizing its operations to help facilitate handling of the growing influx of cargo and has been a strong backer of automation to boost its efficiency.
In 2018, it became the home to the world’s largest automated container terminal as part of the development of the Yanghshan Deep Water Port.
The terminal has the capacity to accommodate 6.3 million TEUs of cargo and was built as part of the fourth and final phase of the development of Shanghai’s deepwater port, which hosts 50 berths.
The Port of Shanghai is managed by Shanghai International Port Group, a subsidiary of China Harbour Engineering.
The mayor is reported as saying that efforts are being undertaken aimed at the development of smart and green ports, facilitating sea-rail intermodal transportation and waterway transshipment, as well as building up an entire industrial chain of the cruise economy.
PSA International CEO reviews 2019
PSA International has published its performance results for 2019 and the CEO of the Group highlighted investments made and the path forward in 2020 in a January 14 statement.
“2019 was a year where the PSA Group expanded our horizons, against a backdrop of trade wars, climate action and varying technological impacts on business and society,” said Tan Chong Meng, Group CEO of PSA.
For the year ending 31 December 2019 PSA International handled 85.2 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) of containers at its port projects around the world.
The Group’s volume increased by 5.2% over 2018, with flagship PSA Singapore contributing 36.9 million TEUs (+1.6%) and PSA terminals outside Singapore handling 48.3 million TEUs (+8.1%).
“By welcoming new terminals like DCT Gdansk, PSA Halifax and Penn Terminal into our fold, we have broadened our reach and ability to offer greater connectivity to new economies in the Baltics and North America,” he added.
“Beyond our traditional port domain, we also redoubled our efforts to develop more transport options for cargo owners and movers through our new PSA Cargo Solutions arm. We also continued to develop CALISTATM as a value-adding and interoperable platform for stakeholders in the global supply chain with Global eTrade Services (GeTS).”
Looking ahead, Meng said: “As we begin a new decade in 2020, PSA will continue to build on our global network of ports while harnessing technologies to improve our productivity to serve our customers better.
“Our vision is to empower supply chain stakeholders with the ability to move their goods with greater intelligence and agility through the Internet of Logistics, and to work alongside our partners to enable greater sustainability for the whole supply chain.”
With flagship operations in Singapore and Antwerp, PSA’s portfolio comprises a network of over 50 coastal, rail and inland terminals in 19 countries.
(Source: American Shipper, Seatrade News World Maritime News)
