Hutchison Ports News

Dutch manufacturer Huisman has entered the port and logistics market with the order for series of automated stacking cranes (ACSs) from Hutchison Ports ECT Rotterdam (ECT).The ACSs will serve for the efficient handling and buffering of containers. The cranes feature a fully automated process for handling and buffering containers, providing a solution for enhanced operational efficiency, required for 24/7 operational time.The diversification in port automation underscores Huisman's…

CK Hutchison Holdings port unit said on Thursday it would invest about $700 million in two major Egyptian ports, bringing its total investment in the country to more than $1.5 billion.Hutchison Ports said it would invest in the development of a new container terminal in the Red Sea port of Ain Sokhna, and in B100, a new container terminal in the Mediterranean port of Alexandria.In a separate statement, Cosco Shipping Ports Limited said it would invest 25% in the Sokhna New Container Terminal - a new terminal built by the Egyptian government.The operating period for the project is 30 years…

More than 1,900 workers at Britain's biggest container port, Felixstowe, have begun eight days of strike action that will cause disruption to trade and supply chains.The staff at Felixstowe, on the east coast of England, are taking industrial action in a dispute over pay, becoming the latest workers to strike in Britain as unions demand higher wages for members facing a cost-of-living crisis. read moreBelow is a look at Felixstowe's operations and the possible impact from the strike:How big is the port?About 48% of all containers brought into the UK are transported through the Felixstowe port…

More than 1,900 workers at Britain's biggest container port are due on Sunday to start eight days of strike action which their union and shipping companies warn could seriously affect trade and supply chains.The staff at Felixstowe, on the east coast of England, are taking industrial action in a dispute over pay, becoming the latest workers to strike in Britain as unions demand higher wages for members facing a cost-of-living crisis."Strike action will cause huge disruption and will generate massive shockwaves throughout the UK's supply chain…

The company that operates Britain's biggest container port, Felixstowe, said on Friday it believed its pay offer to workers was fair and it was disappointed strike action due to begin on Sunday had not been called off.More than 1,900 workers at Felixstowe represented by the Unite union plan eight days of strikes from Aug. 21 in a dispute over pay."The company is disappointed that Unite has not taken up our offer to call off the strike and come to the table for constructive discussions to find a resolution…

Staff at Britain's largest container port, Felixstowe, have voted in favor of strike action in a dispute over pay, the Unite union said on Thursday, warning of huge disruption across the supply chain.The dockworkers join a growing wave of employees, in a range of sectors from rail to telecoms, resorting to industrial action as pay rises fail to keep pace with inflation which is expected to hit double digits in Britain by the end of the year."Strike action would bring Felixstowe to a standstill and would cause major logistical problems for maritime and road haulage transport entering the port,"

Oman's state-owned Asyad is considering buying ports and terminals abroad and could divest assets outside its core logistics business, such as a college and project management operation, its chief executive said on Thursday.The plans by the company, which is owned by the Oman Investment Authority, align with the small oil producing Gulf state's broader strategy to reduce reliance on crude revenues and expand its non-oil industries.Chief Executive Abdulrahman Salim Al Hatmi told…

Three Cuban-flagged tankers that are under U.S. sanctions for transporting Venezuelan oil to the Communist-run island have been serviced in the port of Veracruz on Mexico's Gulf coast, according to vessel tracking data and industry sources.The maintenance work on the vessels—one of which was serviced as recently as this month—is a potential breach of sanctions on Venezuela, two lawyers who specialize in U.S. sanctions said.However, the United States has in the past not brought enforcement actions against shipyards for doing work on blacklisted vessels from those countries, according to U.S. Treasury Department data.Under U.S. law, companies and individuals are prohibited from materially assisting sanctioned entities.

This week, various parties in Rotterdam will be launching a new pilot project, in which containers are handled and released without a PIN code: a widely used verification method in this transport segment. The project revolves around a new application, Secure Container Release, which replaces the PIN code with a digital signal: a solution that is significantly less susceptible to fraud. It is not only intended to make container handling more efficient, but also safer. Participants in the three-month trial include CMA CGM…

The unloading of the final containership at the Frihamnen port in Stockholm marks the end of an era.The 1,349 TEU Dutch-flagged containership Essence unloaded the final cargo at Frihamnen on June 1, but the CTF container terminal will remain open until June 23 to allow customers to collect the last of their containers.Going forward, Stockholm's container cargoes will be redirected to the city's new freight port, Stockholm Norvik Port, which recently opened and is better equipped…

Unifeeder containership SCA Tunadal on Wednesday claimed the maiden call at Sweden’s newest freight port, Stockholm Norvik Port, following the completion of a long port construction project.The container terminal is now open, both for vessel calls and for shore-based business operations at the port. The 32 hectare container terminal is run by Hutchison Ports, one of the world’s largest container terminal operators, with 52 ports in 27 countries.Nine goods in 10 arrive in Sweden by sea, and the Stockholm region accounts for half of Sweden’s entire consumption.

Mammoet, a Dutch company specialized in engineered heavy lifting and transport of over-sized and heavy objects, said that its  team has successfully completed the second phase of the relocation of several shipping container cranes for Hutchison Ports ICAVE as part of a planned port expansion in Veracruz, Mexico.Mammoet used 56 axle lines of SPMT to transport two ship-to-shore (STS) cranes and ten rubber-tired gantry cranes (RTGs). The completion of the crane relocations has increased the port’s capacity to more than 95 million tons. According to the company, the biggest challenge faced by the team was the execution of the moves during the ‘North Winds’, which are seasonal winds that hit the region regularly from November to February.

The Netherlands-based terminal operator APM Terminals, a subsidiary of Maersk Group, has signed a letter of intent for the sale of APM Terminals Rotterdam to Hutchison Ports, owner of the adjacent ECT Delta terminal.The complete transfer of shares is based on the agreement that, in the short term, APM Terminals Rotterdam will continue to exist as an independent organisation with a 5-year volume guarantee from parent company, A.P. Moller-Maersk and no forced redundancies within 4 years of signing the agreement.Under the ownership of Hutchison Ports, APM Terminals Rotterdam will have the opportunity to grow into a leading, modern, future…

Ports are essential for the global supply chain - but do they need more international regulation?High-level speakers engaged in a lively debate at a joint Hutchison Ports, International Maritime Organization (IMO) and IMO International Maritime Law Institute (IMLI) seminar (9 September), to address the question: "Do ports need international regulation?"IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim reminded the audience that the IMO Convention does give the Organization a mandate to regulate in ports and some current IMO regulations do indeed extend to port operations - for example those surrounding security, reception facilities and the Facilitation (FAL) Convention."However…

The outlook for global container port demand is modest growth and numerous uncertainties, but in the face of this, capacity expansion plans are also muted, said the global shipping consultancy Drewry."This means that most world regions will see an increase in average terminal utilisation," said Drewry in its Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review and Forecast 2019.Drewry’s container port demand forecast for the next five years is for global growth of 4.4% per annum on average, lifting world container port throughput from 784 million teu in 2018 to 973 million teu by 2023, an absolute increase of almost 190 million teu.The…

The provider of software-as-a-service based shipping and logistics solutions, CargoSmart has announced the official execution of the Global Shipping Business Network (GSBN) Services Agreement with shipping majors.According to a statement from the shipment management software company, CMA CGM, COSCO Shipping, COSCO Shipping Ports (CSP), Hapag-Lloyd, Hutchison Ports, OOCL, Port of Qingdao, PSA International and Shanghai International Port Group have signed up with it.As per the agreement, each signatory commits to provide resources to support preparatory work required to establish the GSBN, a not-for-profit joint venture to accelerate the digital transformation of the shipping industry.The preparatory work includes obtaining all necessary regulatory…

Canadian Québec Port Authority (QPA) has signed a long-term commercial agreement with Hong Kong's Hutchison Ports and Canadian National Railway (CN) to build and operate a new container terminal, known as project Laurentia.The agreement increases Hutchison Ports' global network to 52 ports spanning 27 countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, Poland, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, China, Pakistan, Egypt, Argentina, Mexico and Panama, said a press release.Hutchison Ports plays a strong role in the maritime industry worldwide and handles close to 85 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) per year, representing…

KA Petra, a Malaysian ship-to-ship (STS) transfer specialist, has signed a Heads of Agreement (HOA) with Hutchison Port Holdings to jointly develop the world’s largest STS transfer hub in the country.Under the terms of the HOA, KA Petra will have 70% interest in the project, whilst Hutchison Ports will take a strategic 30% stake.Based on preliminary studies, construction of the STS Hub is estimated to cost USD150 million to USD180 million, and will be funded by a combination of internally generated funds and debt financing. Construction will be done in phases with commencement within the next 12 months.Dato’ Shahrul Amirul, Executive Chairman of KA Petra Sdn Bhd said…

Hutchison Ports Thailand (HPT), the largest container terminal operator in Thailand, has officially opened Terminal D at Laem Chabang Port, , the most advanced deep-sea container terminal in the country.Dr. Pailin Chuchottaworn, Deputy Minister of Transport, presided together over the official opening of Terminal D at Laem Chabang Port. Alongside the Deputy Minister of Transport, representatives from government agencies, the private sectors and other distinguished guests were also in attendance.One of the most notable features of the new terminal is that it will be the first and only terminal at the Port to feature remote control technologies.Terminal…

United Kingdom's Port of Felixstowe and Danish ferry operator, DFDS, have agreed to increase roll-on/roll-off (ro/ro) capacity at the UK port by over 40%.The decision has come about after investment in a new linkspan, tractor units and additional trailer parking facilities.As part of the investments, terminal operator Hutchison Ports has planned to replace one of the existing ro-ro bridges with a floating linkspan which is capable of handling the latest generation of ro-ro vessels.Additionally, for unaccompanied ro-ro traffic, Hutchison Ports has planned to create over 300 additional trailer spaces.Clemence Cheng, Chief Executive Officer at the Port of Felixstowe and Executive Director…

The rail freight company in the United Kingdom, GB Railfreight has launched a new intermodal rail freight service connecting the Port of Felixstowe with the Birch Coppice terminal in the Midlands.The first locomotive on the service left Birch Coppice at 14:14 on 23 January 2019 and arrived at Felixstowe at 20:14, having passed through Hams Hall, Leicester, Peterborough and Ipswich along the way. Made up of 33 platforms, the service transports a mixture of intermodal containers, and will initially run 5 days a week.Commenting on the new service, Clemence Cheng, Chief Executive Officer at the Port of Felixstowe and Executive Director of Hutchison Ports, said: "We are delighted to welcome this latest service offering from GB Railfreight.

Hutchison Ports Thailand (HPT) recently welcomed M.V. ONE Columba, the largest vessel to ever call Terminal D at Laem Chabang Port. HPT’s new Terminal D played host to Ocean Network Express’ (ONE’s) M.V. ONE Columba.The vessel was met by delegates of Terminal D in the morning of 24 Nov, and the vessel departed Laem Chabang Port one day later. M.V. ONE Columba, with a total length of 364 meters and a total gross tonnage of 145,647 tons, it is the largest container vessel ever to call at Laem Chabang Port in Thailand. The vessel was met with new remote-controlled quay cranes and remote-controlled rubber tyred gantry cranes that HPT used to discharge container boxes from the vessel to the yard with fast…

Nine leading ocean carriers and terminal operators today signed a formal statement of intent for a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to form a consortium to develop the Global Shipping Business Network (GSBN), an open digital platform based on distributed ledger technology.According to a statement, the participants include COSCO Shipping Lines, CMA CGM, Evergreen Marine, OOCL, Yang Ming, DP World, Hutchison Ports, PSA International and Shanghai International Port, as well as software solutions provider CargoSmart.The new platform will establish a digital baseline that aims to connect all stakeholders, including carriers, terminal operators…