Transportation Cost News

New federal money promises dramatic impacts throughout the United States’ inland waterways system in 2022 and beyond. This report focuses on America’s central rivers; the Western rivers will be covered in a future report. These central rivers reach 11,000 miles, from Pennsylvania to Florida and from Texas to South Dakota.Consider the money within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers “Civil Works Program Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), 2022 Construction Spend Plan.”In Arkansas…

German energy exchange EEX on Monday launched a zero carbon freight index (ZCFI) which combines the bourse's dry freight and emission permits prices to show operators how accounting for carbon emissions could affect freights.Decarbonization of the shipping value chain is already well underway and will continue to be front and center for ship owners, charterers and financiers in the decade ahead.The ZCFI comes as the European Union is due to unveil climate legislation this week which is likely to include the extension of the EU emissions trading system (ETS) to the maritime sector.As a conseque

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.

The repositioning of empty containers costs the liner industry an estimated $15-20billion every year according to Boston Consulting Group (BCG), as containers sit idle at a depot or are repositioned to a different loading point while empty. This is time spent not earning revenue, whil incurring additional costs, and is estimated by BCG to account for 5-8% of total operating costs for an average container liner. These expenses can include inland repositioning by rail or road onto a different port or terminal…

Monaco-based liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipper GasLog Ltd signed a new long-term charter deal with a unit of the Spanish utility company Endesa for its newbuild vessel, the GasLog Warsaw.The International owner and operator of LNG carriers said that it is scheduled to take delivery of the 180,000 cubic meter Mark III Flex Plus vessel with low pressure two stroke propulsion (LP-2S) from Samsung Heavy Industries in July 2019. The eight year fixed-term charter to Endesa will commence in May 2021.Paul Wogan, Chief Executive Officer of GasLog, stated “We are delighted to charter this vessel to Endesa, a leading European utility and very high-quality counterparty.

Innovative waterway concept vessel could deliver transportation savings for shippers on the Mississippi River. Plans to transport freight via innovative waterway vessels that backers say will revolutionize the inland waterway system and provide significant transportation cost savings for shippers, especially those accessing the Midwest by utilizing the Mississippi River and its tributaries, are underway, according to Sal Litrico, CEO for American Patriot Container Transport, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Patriot Holdings LLC.Litrico presented information about Container on Vessel (COV) innovations at two St. Louis Regional Freightway Industry Forums in late August in St.

The Mississippi River Ship Channel could be the first port complex on the Gulf Coast to reach a depth of 50 feet now that the Director’s Report has been signed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Elected officials and industry leaders have long worked to increase the channel’s depth to 50 feet, which is the same depth of the expanded Panama Canal.In signing the Report, Corps of Engineers Director of Civil Works James C. Dalton stated the project is “economically justified and…

A plan unfolds and support grows for a 50-foot Ship Channel to support economical and efficient grain exports. The Big River Coalition remains at the heart of that collaborative effort to make the Mississippi River Mightier. In 2012, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Institute of Water Resources (IWR) released a report under the direction of Congress to document the status of U.S. Ports to accept post-panamax vessels. The report, entitled, “U.S. Port and Inland Waterways Modernization: Preparing for Post-Panamax Vessels” was officially released on June 20, 2012.

Projects worth Rs. Indian Government's Minister for Shipping, Road Transport & Highways, Nitin Gadkari said that projects in the ports and shipping sector, worth an  investment of Rs. 1,20,000 Crore ($ 17.5 billion) will be showcased before potential investors at the Maritime India Summit to be held in Mumbai from 14-16 April, 2016. He was talking to news persons in New Delhi today on the occasion of Media Launch of Maritime India Summit, 2016. The Minister said that the focus of the Government is on creating more jobs in the maritime sector. He added that one crore jobs – 4 million direct and 6 million indirect - have been identified to be created in 27 port based industrial clusters, coastal shipping and inland waterways under Sagarmala project.

The Ministry of Shipping, India  will showcase all its investable opportunities  to domestic and global investors in the first-ever Maritime India Summit (MIS) to be held in Mumbai from April 14-16, 2016. The 200 projects comprise 20 projects per port and together have a US $ 6 billion investment potential. The projects will range from ports- and ship-led development to projects pertaining to connectivity and logistics. Smart cities have been conceptualised at Kandla and Paradeep. The ministry’s deputy secretary, Abhishek Chandra, said: "For ship building, South Korea is our proposed partner country since they have a high degree of expertise in this field. We have commissioned 25 new projects in hinterland connectivity. The summit would be held in Mumbai from April 14-16.

Upon competitive review and analysis of the Port of Seattle/Port of Tacoma Alliance Agreement, the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has voted unanimously to allow the Northwest Seaport Alliance to become effective as scheduled on July 23, 2015. FMC said its decision is based on a determination that the agreement is not likely at this time, by a reduction in competition, to produce an unreasonable increase in transportation cost or an unreasonable reduction in transportation service under section 6(g) of the Shipping Act.

A recommended $73 million plan to deepen the Redwood City Harbor and San Bruno Shoal channels, the navigation corridors essential for commerce and the Port of Redwood City, has been issued  in draft by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers' San Francisco District. The port is conducting a public hearing on what is called the "Redwood City Navigation Improvement Project" August 10 at 7 p.m. at Redwood City Hall to allow public comment and recommendations on the project's Draft Feasibility Study and Environment Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report.

Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) and its members and stakeholders applauded the Senate’s passage, by a vote of 76 to16, of a 9-cent increase to the barge diesel fuel user fee. The provision was a part of tax extenders legislation that was combined with the “Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE)” Act that establishes tax-favored savings accounts for individuals with disabilities. The ABLE Act that included the provision to increase the user fee by 9 cents passed the House on December 3 by a vote of 404-17.

Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) and its members and stakeholders tonight applauded the Senate’s passage, by a vote of 76 to16, of a 9-cent increase to the barge diesel fuel user fee. The provision was a part of tax extenders legislation that was combined with the “Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE)” Act that establishes tax-favored savings accounts for individuals with disabilities. The ABLE Act that included the provision to increase the user fee by 9 cents passed the House on December 3 by a vote of 404-17. The user fee – currently 20-cents-per-gallon of fuel used while operating on the inland system – will be increased to 29-cents-per-gallon, effective April 1, 2015.

Evergas has reached an agreement with INEOS to expand its new-building series of ethane/multigas vessels from six to eight units. In January 2013, Evergas announced for the first time that it had secured shipping agreements of up to 15 years with INEOS for the worlds’ first transatlantic shipments of ethane with commencement in 2015. The fleet of eight vessels will bring US ethane from shale gas to INEOS’ manufacturing sites in Grangemouth, Scotland and Rafnes, Norway. This advantageously priced feedstock will have a highly positive impact for the company’s European operations that so far have relied on declining and expensive volumes from the North Sea. Furthermore it will support the company’s longevity of being a leading and cost-efficient petrochemical producer.

With a record U.S. harvest just coming in, the river transportation system that is at the heart of the nation's farm economy is overstrained by rising demand for shipping capacity, a low barge inventory, and a dilapidated lock system. The pressure is building on an inland waterways network that is just one flood, drought or mechanical breakdown from calamity after decades of neglect, industry sources say. Looming bumper corn and soybean crops are bringing to light issues that have built for years and which have been exacerbated by new entrants to the marketplace for river logistics, such as producers of crude oil from the nation's shale boom. Rail congestion and truck shortages are shifting more cargo to the creaking infrastructure for floating heartland goods to market.

With a record U.S. harvest just coming in, the river transportation system that is at the heart of the nation's farm economy is overstrained by rising demand for shipping capacity, a low barge inventory, and a dilapidated lock system. The pressure is building on an inland waterways network that is just one flood, drought or mechanical breakdown from calamity after decades of neglect, industry sources say. Looming bumper corn and soybean crops are bringing to light issues that have built for years and which have been exacerbated by new entrants to the marketplace for river logistics, such as producers of crude oil from the nation's shale boom. Rail congestion and truck shortages are shifting more cargo to the creaking infrastructure for floating heartland goods to market.

1) For all vessels calling Cotonou port, the agent is required to send to the Harbor Master office a port of call list mentioning the last 10 ports of calls, three days prior to arrival. 2) All vessels arriving from or which have called at a ports in one of the countries infected by Ebola should have on board prevention equipment (gloves, masks, sanitizing gel, etc.). 3) All vessels arriving from or which have called at a port in one of the countries infected by Ebola, and which have prevention equipment onboard, must stay at anchorage and receive FREE PRATIQUE from port health authorities prior to pilot boarding. (Boat transportation cost for embarkation/disembarkation of port health authorities are on the vessel's account and same is to be arranged by the agent).

Collaboration is a wonderful thing. And in Washington, DC, it seems to be a concept that has become more alien than ever before, with partisan politics that have gripped the nation’s capital. But teamwork is alive and well in the inland waterways industry when it comes to supporting the concept of increasing the amount of investment raised for lock and dam infrastructure on the inland system. Since 1986, commercial inland towing operators have been paying a user fee of 20-cents-per-gallon of fuel used while operating on the inland system that is deposited into the Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF). Those monies are then matched by General Treasury dollars and spent for the purpose of new construction and major rehabilitation work on the inland waterways.

U.S. Federal Maritime Commissioner William P. The People’s Republic of China has rejected the P3 Vessel Network Sharing Alliance based on the competition concerns in the Asia-Europe shipping market. The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission had the responsibility to review the P3 Parties’ submission for their vessel network sharing alliance on the Trans-Pacific and Trans-Atlantic trade routes. The Commission did not have jurisdiction over the Asia-Europe service route; therefore, the FMC did not issue a decision with respect to that route.

Houston, Texas-based PortVision, a leading provider of business intelligence solutions for the maritime industry, shares its projections for the top vessel-tracking trends that it believes will have the greatest impact on the maritime industry during 2014. Trend #1: Improving real-time visibility and decision-making. Advances in AIS-based vessel-tracking tools and technology that move the industry beyond simple “points on a map” to on-demand and immediately actionable business insights and intelligence. Trend #2: Improving marine terminal efficiencies.

The passage of last night’s Continuing Resolution to fund the Federal government and raise the debt ceiling contained a provision to raise the 902(b) cap on the amount that can be spent on the Olmsted Project in Illinois to $2.9 billion from the current $1.56 billion. The measure does not appropriate funds, but allows work on the project to continue. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers informed the Inland Waterways Users Board in August that the Olmsted project would be shuttered in November 2013 and would displace 400 workers if Congress did not act the raise the cap.

Kurt Nagle needs no introduction to MarineNews readers. With more than 30 years of experience in seaports and international trade, he has since 1995 served as President and Chief Executive Officer for the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA). Mr. Nagle began working at AAPA, the alliance of the leading public port authorities throughout the Western Hemisphere, in 1985. And, although some may associate him more with ‘bluewater’ issues, Nagle also knows that the health of all U.S.