Container Terminal Operators News

The world faces "very prolonged" disruptions to shipping cargo flows, an executive at leading ports operator ICTSI said, as logistical headaches such as truck shortages weigh on backed-up supply chains and rebounding trade drives up volume.Major bottlenecks have formed across the globe in recent months due to a surge in demand for retail goods from people stuck at home under pandemic-related lockdowns and logjams impacting the supply of container ships and boxes to transport cargo.The situation has been particularly severe in major retail markets such as the United States…

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.

Kalmar, the provider of cargo-handling solutions and services to ports and terminals,  is delivering two rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs) with hybrid drivelines for Exolgan S.A. container terminal in Buenos Aires, Argentina.The order that follows the delivery of four hybrid RTGs to the terminal this December, was booked in Cargotec's 2019 Q4 order intake with delivery scheduled to take place in late 2020, said a press release from the unit of Cargotec.The Exolgan terminal in Buenos Aires is a container-handling port terminal with strategic road, rail and river transport connections. Exolgan Container Terminal is owned by International Trade Logistics (ITL)…

Commission Expresses Concerns about Puerto Rico Terminal Facilities Agreement.An agreement filed at the Federal Maritime Commission allowing a joint venture between two adjacent terminals at the Port of San Juan, Puerto Rico, will go into effect on August 29. However, concerns about the agreement and its impact on the marketplace will lead the FMC to adopt a more vigorous oversight plan than its traditional monitoring program.Under the terms of the Puerto Nuevo Terminals LLC Cooperative Working Agreement (FMC Agreement No.

Turkey's Yilport Holding signed a concession agreement with Port Network Authority of the Ionian Sea (PNAIS), the managing institution of the Port of Taranto in Italy for the multipurpose terminal.The deal was signed on 30 July 2019, at Castello Aragonese in Taranto, Italy by Robert Yuksel Yildirim, Yilport Holding Chairman, and Sergio Prete, the President of Taranto Port Authority.The agreement appoints Yilport to undertake all operations at the multipurpose terminal of Taranto Port for 49 years.This is the 22nd marine port in Yilport Holding’s portfolio, and its first terminal in Italy. The company, ranked 12th among international container terminal operators by Drewry…

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…

Hongkong International Terminals Limited, Modern Terminals Limited, COSCO-HIT Terminals (Hong Kong) Limited, and Asia Container Terminals Limited jointly announced the formation of the Hong Kong Seaport Alliance (The Seaport Alliance).The joint operating agreement designed to deliver more efficient service offerings to carriers that call Hong Kong, while enhancing the overall competitiveness of the Port of Hong Kong across the region.The Seaport Alliance will offer a total of 23 berths and the planning for which is conducted by an Operations Coordination Team using a common terminal operating system.“The formation of the Seaport Alliance will further enhance efficiencies…

The marine industry equipment manufacturer Kalmar is to deliver a further order of straddle carriers to Maher Terminals LLC for use at their marine container terminal located in the Port of New York and New Jersey.According to a press release from Kalmar, part of Cargotec,  the order of 26 straddle carriers was booked in Cargotec's 2018 second quarter order intake, and delivery is scheduled to take place during Q1 of 2019.Maher Terminals is one of the largest privately held, multi-user container terminal operators in the world. The company has developed North America's largest marine container terminal in the Port of New York and New Jersey. The terminal covers a total area of approximately 500 acres (200 hectares) and has an estimated capacity of 2 million TEU.

Cosco Shipping Ports (CSP), one of the world’s largest container terminal operators, said despite the the US-China trade war, as it posted a 70.1 percent jump in adjusted profit for the first six months ended 30 June 2018."2018 is a year full of challenges. Sino-US trade frictions, the rise of trade protectionism, geopolitical uncertainties and the upward trend of interest rates have the potential to place serious pressure on the development of global trade. Despite all these uncertainties, the growth momentum of global economy in 2017 continued in the first half of 2018," said a statement from CSP.Driven by sustained economic growth…

The medium term outlook for global container port demand growth is positive thanks to strong underlying economic momentum across the world’s major economies. While there may be clouds on the horizon in the form of tariff and trade war fears, economic fundamentals are likely to win-out in the long run, according to the Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review and Forecast 2018 by global shipping consultancy Drewry.Against this positive picture near term container port capacity expansion will remain relatively subdued following several years of under investment, particularly in greenfield projects. As a result, average utilisation…

Yilport Holding has submitted its offer for Taranto Container Terminal concession in Italy. Ionian Sea Port Authority (AdSP), the managing institution of Port of Taranto has officially received the request of Yilport Holding to operate the entire set of multi-purpose port facilities in the Port of Taranto. These terminals in Southern Italy handle container traffic, bulk cargo and serve ro-ro traffic. Well located as a relay hub for the Mediterranean Sea, the terminals are integrated to intermodal networks, connecting Southern Italy to Northern Italy and finally to the center of Europe. Yilport’s proposal covers developing and revamping the terminal facilities to attract and grow container volume…

Recognizing the need for the container terminal industry to prepare for the 4th industrial revolution and to further advance digitalization, an open group of 15 global private container terminal operators and some port equipment manufacturers has recently met in Brussels on 30thMay 2018 at FEPORT (The Federation of European Private Port Companies and Terminals) premises to discuss the current challenges for the cargo handling industry. A press release from Port Equipment Manufacturers Association (PEMA) said that it has been acknowledged that transformations occurring in the logistics chain call for a closer technical interaction between terminals and manufacturers to engage discussions on the elaboration of industry standards that will favor the development of Internet of Things…

At 70 million tons, first-half seaborne cargo throughput in Hamburg in 2017, including the general and bulk cargo segments, all but matched the previous year’s, being only one-fifth of one percent (0.2%) lower. In the first six months of 2017 containerized general cargo throughput at 4.45 million TEU (20-ft standard containers) was at the previous year’s level. Up by one percent at 23.5 million tons, bulk cargo throughput in Germany’s largest universal port continued to grow. "In the first half of 2017 the Port of Hamburg generally succeeded in asserting itself in a difficult environment, producing a stable result compared to other German ports in the North Range," said Axel Mattern, Joint CEO of Port of Hamburg Marketing.

The outlook for global container port demand growth is now more optimistic, and Chinese players are on the acquisition trail in an aggressive and highly confident manner, said a report from Drewry. Major M&A deals are changing the landscape, with more to come, according to the Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Report 2017, now in its 15th year of publication by global shipping consultancy Drewry. Drewry’s container port demand forecast is more positive than in last year’s report, exhibiting a 4 percent CAGR and adding a further 152 million teu of port throughput to the global total by 2021. This is a consequence of improved port throughput growth rates in the second half of 2016 and into 2017, and a more positive general global economic outlook.

The European Commission said on Friday it had opened an in-depth investigation into alleged state aid to two container terminal operators in Europe's second busiest port, Antwerp in Belgium. The Commission said concession agreements for PSA Antwerp NV and Antwerp Gateway NV contained a requirement for the handling of a minimum tonnage. The two did not reach this between 2009 and 2012, meaning they would have to pay compensation to the publicly-owned port authority. However, the Antwerp Port Authority decided in 2013 to reduce the minimum tonnage retroactively, reducing the compensation to be paid by some 80 percent. The Commission said…

Kalmar has received a large order for  27 straddle carriers from its long-term customer Maher Terminals LLC in Elizabeth, NJ. The order has been booked into Cargotec's 2015 third quarter order intake and deliveries are expected to be completed during the spring 2016. Maher Terminals is both renewing and expanding their straddle carrier fleet, now with environmentally responsible diesel-electric power utilizing U.S. EPA-mandated Tier 4 Final emission controls. The Kalmar ESC350 diesel-electric straddle carriers are rated for 50 metric tons (mt) with twin 20 feet containers or 40 mt with single containers. Included also in these straddle carriers are special features to improve productivity and performance in the challenging operating conditions of the customer.

DP World’s British container terminals are to offer container weighing services for UK exporters to determine the Verified Gross Mass (VGM) of each container ahead of new legislation coming into effect from the July 1, 2016. Both DP World London Gateway and DP World Southampton will “implement scalable solutions” to weigh containers shortly after arrival in the port and provide the VGM, the company said in a statement, following extensive consultations with the Maritime Coastguard Agency. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has adopted an amendment to the SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) regulations to require that shippers of goods obtain the VGM of packed containers and communicate it to the ocean carriers sufficiently in advance of the ship stow planning.

COSCO-PSA Terminal Pte Ltd (CPT), a joint venture company formed by Cosco Pacific Limited (Cosco Pacific) and PSA Corporation Limited (PSA), is investing in new container berths in Singapore capable of serving the next generation of mega container vessels. The new investment agreement was signed in Shanghai by Qiu Jinguang, Managing Director, Cosco Pacific and Mr Ong Kim Pong, Regional CEO Southeast Asia, PSA International. When the new berths begin operations from 2017, they will be fully integrated with PSA’s infrastructure and supported by the latest automated and intelligent port technologies. These will help to raise port productivity and enhance PSA’s ability to manage greater business complexity for the benefit of its customers.

DP World is prepared for the implementation of the new International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) regulation which comes into effect on 1 July, 2016. The new regulation mandates that shippers of goods must obtain the Verified Gross Mass (VGM) of laden export containers and communicate it to ocean carriers sufficiently in advance of the ship stowage planning. Ocean carriers and container terminal operators will be legally obliged to ensure that containers without a VGM are not loaded on to a ship in all 162 IMO member states that are required to enforce the new law. DP World’s global terminals will have certified weighing capabilities if this is permitted under the locally adapted implementation of the SOLAS regulation.

Turkish port operator Yildirim Holdings AS has announced plans to sell its 24 percent stake in the French shipping major CMA CGM, Bloomberg reported. The company mandated China Citic Bank Corp. to find investors from Asia or the Persian Gulf for its interest in the world’s third biggest container shipping company. “We will either exit our investment completely or remain as an ordinary shareholder,” said Yildirim. Yildirim invested $600 million to become a shareholder in CMA CGM between 2010 and 2011. According to the company, the current value of the shares ranges between USD 2.5-3 billion based on recent deals in the industry. A report in Hürriyet CMA CGM has confirmed it is in talks with the Yildirim Group over the sale of the Turkish conglomerate’s 24% stake.

For Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH), one of the world’s leading container terminal operators, Stockholm is strategically important. In April the final permit was obtained to begin construction of the new Stockholm Norvik Port. Ports of Stockholm will build and own the container terminal, while HPH will operate the terminal. Today HPH already operates the Container Terminal at Frihamnen, Stockholm. “We believe in the importance of Stockholm and the whole Baltic Sea area. After our already good cooperation at the existing container terminal, we are now intensifying our work with Ports of Stockholm. The Stockholm Norvik Port offers improved conditions to optimally serve the Stockholm region.

Softening demand growth coupled with larger liner shipping alliances and bigger ships is moving the container ports industry towards a value sector from growth sector, albeit still highly profitable, according to the Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Report 2016 published by global shipping consultancy Drewry. Global and international container terminal operators are faced with the dual challenges of weaker demand growth and rising operating and capital costs due to larger vessels and alliances. On the stock markets, ports are increasingly seen as a mature value sector rather than a growth sector. Global container port demand…

The Port of New York and New Jersey is the largest port on the US East Coast and third largest in the United States with 6.37 million TEU handled in 2015. In 2014, The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey committed to a ten year, agency-wide capital investment campaign for transportation infrastructure. Over USD 200 billion in cargo value moves through the port that serves one of the most attractive consumer markets in the United States with a population of 20 million located within three hours of the port. APM Terminals’ Port Elizabeth facility is one of the largest container terminals in the port complex, handling over 2,100 trucks a day, 4000 terminal gate transactions and more than 500 vessel calls per year.