SHIPPING
Seaways Group inducts m.v. Seaways Prestige into E. Coast service
Pentagon Marine Services & Finaval consolidate strengths
STX PanOcean announces launch of CSI service
Caravel Shipping carves out niche in logistics sector
TS Lines joins CSI service to provide full S-E Asia/FE port coverage ex-Nhava Sheva
NEWS BRIEF :
SCI plans to become world-class shipbuilder
New bauxite loading record set at Porbandar port
90 TEUs loaded in record 15 minutes at JNPCT
MPT invests Rs 500 cr. to expand cargo handling capacity
16,000-TEU behemoth!
Railways haul 370 MT of freight during April-Sept. 2007
Paradip Port banks on SPM to boost cargo throughput
China develops sea-river intermodal containership
96 TEUs in 6 mins at GTI
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inducts m.v. Seaways Prestige into E. Coast service
Capt. P. V. K. Mohan
Dr A. K. Chanda
The Hyderabad-based shipping company, Seaways Group, has strengthened its hold on the East Coast, by inducting one more container vessel—the 629-TEU m.v. Seaways Prestige—into service.
The newbuilding arrived at Kolkata from Singapore on its maiden voyage. its plaque ceremony coincided with the 137th anniversary celebrations of the Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT).
Seaways Group is a major player in the shipping industry and has been successfully operating feeder services on the East Coast and between India and Bangladesh. The company recently extended its East Coast service to connect Singapore and Malaysia, enhancing tonnage deployed to meet the growing demands of the trade.
The KoPT Chairman, Dr A. K. Chanda, HoDs of KoPT, and the Commissioner of Customs, Mr B. B. Agarwal, were present at the plaque exchanging ceremony of the vessel.
The Seaways Group Chairman, Capt. P. V. K. Mohan, other Directors and CEOs of the company, were also present on the occasion.
The Master of the vessel, Capt. Naum P. Arter, and his crew expressed their delight in coming to Kolkata for the first time and said that it was a great experience to undertake the passage on the Hooghly River.
Capt. Vijay Gopal, CEO of the Seaways Group, said that the addition of m.v. Seaways Prestige would enable the company to deploy additional tonnage on the East Coast and connect into the existing service to gain a stronger control on cargoes originating in this sector.
This significant addition of tonnage to its fleet, he added, was another step towards the Group’s commitment to the trade and becoming a formidable feeder operator in this sector.
The Group has been operating feeder vessels since 2005, connecting the East Coast of India with Bangladesh. The company had added its second and third container vessels—m.v. Mir Damad and m.v. Kissama—to the fleet during 2006.
In the current year, Seaways added three vessels, m. v. Kinship Bangar, m.v. Marina Star 2 and m.v. Seaways Prestige, and also extended its services to include the West Coast of India, South-East Asian ports and now Colombo.
The services were highly successful with exporters and main line operators (MLOs) giving an overwhelming response, Capt. Gopal said.
Pentagon Marine Services & Finaval consolidate strengths
Addressing the seminar is Capt. Enrico Rossi, in the presence of (seated from left) Capt. Nalin B. Pandey, Capt. Fabrizio Mazzucchi, Mr Giovanni Fagioli, Capt. Daniele Badalucco and Capt. G. S. Rao
The association between Pentagon Marine Services Pvt. Ltd and the Italy-based shipping company, Finaval S.p.A., Rome, has grown to a new level over the last three years, with Pentagon handling for Finaval activities such as manning, training and business prospecting, among other things.
This was highlighted to The LINK by Finaval President, Mr Giovanni Fagioli, and Capt. Enrico Rossi, Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice-President, Finaval, during a dinner reception organised in Mumbai recently in their honour by Pentagon Marine Services.
Finaval is one of the leading companies in Italy and the entire Mediterranean region.
Capt. Nalin B. Pandey, Managing Director of Pentagon Marine Services, in 2004, when Finaval decided to go in for a change in business strategy, established Pentagon Marine Services, in which was incorporated the entire operations of the Liaison Office. It’s been a mutually beneficial relationship since then.
The visit of the Finaval delegation also coincided with the Finaval Global Seminar on ‘Excellence in Tanker Operations’. The three-day event, jointly organised by Finaval, Tekne Sam and Pentagon Marine Services, saw deliberations on the company philosophy and procedures, duties and responsibilities, safe working practices and future targets with regard to crew policy, coping with the challenges of a shipboard environment, best maintenance and management – An emerging tool for customer satisfaction, lessons learnt from the significant accidents that have occurred, STCW issues, etc.
Besides Mr Fagioli, Capt. Rossi and Capt. Pandey, the seminar was attended by Capt. Fabrizio Mazzucchi, Crew Manager, Finaval, Capt. Daniele Badalucco, Designated Person Ashore, Tekne Sam and Capt. G. S. Rao, Operations Manager, Finaval.
Focusing on crude and products, Finaval currently has an Indian fleet of 9 vessels (of its 15-ship fleet), with 6 more under construction and plans to go in for another 4. Of the 6, it is scheduled to induct into its fleet 2 Aframax vessels each in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
The company only recently forayed into the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) shipping trade, the segment today has its largest owned group type of vessels.
Finaval’s area of operations is primarily the Mediterranean and North Europe, and occasionally the US. Though calls at Indian ports are few and far between, the company is hopeful of improving its business prospects here in the times to come.
The reception was attended by a large cross-section of the maritime fraternity.
STX PanOcean announces launch of CSI service
South Korean shipping major, STX Pan Ocean Co. Ltd, has recently announced launch of a new China-India service, China Straits India (CSI), from Shanghai.
Shanghai-Nhava Sheva-Shanghai round voyage in 35 days
The service is in joint operation with prominent carriers such as Samudera Shipping, Evergreen, Yang Ming Line and TS Lines, with each deploying one vessel.
CSI port rotation will be: Shanghai, Ningbo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Nhava Sheva, Colombo, Singapore, Pasir Gudang, Laem Chabang, Hong Kong and Shanghai on a 35-day voyage.
With CSI, STX Pan Ocean will have a total of three services, including the existing KSI and GAX, covering India and the Subcontinent.
Logistic Services Pvt. Ltd (a division of the Parekh Group) is STX Pan Ocean’s general agent in India for container services.
Caravel Shipping carves out niche in logistics sector
Mr Saju Chacko
Caravel Shipping Services, one of the leading multimodal transport operators (MTOs) and non-vessel operating common carriers (NVOCCs), has carved out a niche for itself in the logistics sector through efficient and dynamic services.
Set up as an NVOCC, stevedoring and CHA company in 1994 in Chennai, Caravel has grown beyond all expectations and consolidated its position in almost all areas of the logistics sector.
Two intrepid, young men—Mr C. Jayakrishnan and Mr Saju Chacko—started Caravel Shipping 12 years ago. They viewed customer service from a different angle, i.e. in terms of time, reliability and promptness and placed Caravel in an enviable position within a short span of time.
Caravel’s business units include Caravel Lines, Caravel Freight Forwarding, Caravel Customs house agency, Premier Transport Company, Caravel Domestic Logistics, Seawaves Shipping-Stevedoring Services and Chennai Trucking Services – Inter Terminal Vehicle (ITV) operators for CCTL, Chennai.
Mr C. Jayakrishnan
Caravel Lines is one of the country’s leading freight forwarders and NVOCCs serving the South-East Asia, India and Middle East region.
It has a valid MTO licence and its subsidiary Caravel Lines Pte. Ltd, Singapore, looks after the NVOCC operations outside the country.
Caravel Lines makes annual investment in containers, IT, etc. by developing/acquiring-dedicated software for tracking containers to serve the customers.
Caravel’s Forwarding Division in India and the Middle East—Asian Sun Cargo Services LLC—has close cooperation with both air and ocean carriers, which has helped it to provide better services worldwide.
The NVOCC division has agencies in Malaysia – Fortune Caravel Shipping SDN BHD and Dubai – Asian Sun Cargo Services LLC.
Caravel also coordinates its customers’ air and land logistics needs through its value-added service packages.
The CHA division offers excellent logistics export and import services. It also handles project shipments, its CHA/FF service offerings include airfreight (direct and consolidation) and ocean shipments (containerised or LCL).
Premier Transport Company manages a fleet of 35 container trailers and operates a larger fleet across India.
Caravel Domestic Logistics looks at providing total solutions to move bulk cargo and heavy cargo through containers of 20’ and 40’, LCVs, MGVs and trucks.
Caravel is keen to provide multimodal transport solutions, and its immediate focus is to build a warehouse near Ennore, Chennai, and also acquire warehouses/CFSs at other port locations in India.
TS Lines joins CSI service to provide full S-E Asia/FE port coverage ex-Nhava Sheva
TS Lines (TSL), headquartered in Hong Kong and operating out of Taipei, Taiwan, has imparted a new dimension to its liner services connecting India with the launch of the China Straits India (CSI) service, providing comprehensive port connections linking Nhava Sheva with ports in South-East Asia and the Far East.
TSL has joined hands with Yang Ming Line, Evergreen Line, Samudera Shipping and STX Pan Ocean Co to launch this service, which deploys five vessels of 1,200-TEU each, with a speed of 20.5 knots, thereby breaking ground in providing one of the fastest services between key trading and commercial centres in the most dynamic regions of South Asia and Far East.
The port rotation is: Nhava Sheva, Colombo, Singapore, Pasir Gudang, Laem Chabang, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Ningbo, Hong Kong, Singapore and Nhava Sheva.
TS Lines was established in early 2001 by Mr T. S. Chen, primarily as an inter-Asia container carrier with a full service range operating within North, South Asia and the Far East. It is now spreading out to the most strategic points of North and South China, Far East, Africa and Asian countries, part of which is by its participation in the CSI service.
With a current modern fleet of over 20 container vessels, TSL provides comprehensive coverage through independent, joint and feeder services, especially in the Far East and South-East Asia, Arabian Gulf and Africa covering a wide range of ports in almost all countries in the region.
In India, TSL covers Kolkata, Haldia, Chennai, Tuticorin, Cochin, Nhava Sheva, Mumbai and Mundra ports and caters to inland container depots (ICDs) located in northern and western India.
Targeting a box throughput of close to about one million TEUs in 2007, TSL is known in the industry for providing prompt, reliable and efficient services with competitive ocean freights and comprehensive service network within Asia and Africa.
At present, TS Lines operates out of Nhava Sheva on HGX (Hyper Galex) service, KSI (Korea Straits India) service, AMA (Asia Middle East) service and GIA (Gulf India Africa) service, which are fixed-day, weekly services that cater to ports located in China, South-East Asia, Far East, Arabian Gulf and Africa, all of which will continue, in addition to the new CSI service.
Oasis Shipping Pvt. Ltd is TS Lines’ general agent in India.
NEWS BRIEF
SCI plans to become world-class shipbuilder
The Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) proposes to set up world-class shipbuilding yards that can build vessels of up to 3.20 lakh DWT capacity.
SCI has submitted a proposal in this regard to the Shipping Ministry, the SCI Chairman and Managing Director, Mr S. Hajara, disclosed.
SCI’s move follows the Centre’s decision to set up one yard each on the East and the West Coasts. And SCI may bid for both of them, it is understood.
SCI had asked Ernst & Young to prepare a feasibility report in three months. The report would then be sent to the Cabinet for approval, he elaborated.
The shipyards may, however, take at least 3 to 4 years to begin operations as government clearances alone are expected to take at least a year.
New bauxite loading record set at Porbandar port
A new record quantity of 29,713 tonnes of bauxite was loaded in 23.30 hours on to the vessel m.v. I Duckling at Porbandar port recently.
The vessel, which arrived at the port under the agency of Ambica Maritime Ltd, Kandla, loaded a total 38,080 tonnes of the commodity in just 30 hours.
The vessel stevedore was Keyur Shipping, Porbandar, with the shipper being Ashapura Minechem Ltd, Mumbai.
The previous bauxite loading record was 29,050 tonnes. The vessel was m.v. Kestrel-1, which had the same agent, stevedore and shipper.
90 TEUs loaded in record 15 minutes at JNPCT
The Jawaharlal Nehru Port Container Terminal (JNPCT) has created a record by loading an inland container depot (ICD) train in just 15 minutes.
The train, No. R 073146, arrived empty on JNPCT’s Line No. 6 at 10:25 hours on October 9 with 45 wagons. The loading was completed at 1040 hours on the same day.
A total of 90 TEUs was loaded on to the train, comprising 42 TEUs and 24 FEUs.
MPT invests Rs 500 cr. to expand cargo handling capacity
The Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) will invest over Rs 500 crore to expand the Port’s iron ore handling capacity.
Mormugao Port, which handles 40 per cent of iron ore exports, proposes to develop additional berths as well as a carrier-cum-container berth at the adjoining Vasco bay in south Goa.
"Increasing our capacity will help augment trade as bigger ships will now be able to dock at our Port," the MPT Chairman, Mr Praveen Agarwal, explained.
In this connection, MPT is holding discussions with a private company to form a public-private partnership (PPP). The entire project is expected to be commissioned by the middle of 2008.
16,000-TEU Behemoth!
Illustrative Pic
Samsung Heavy Industries recently reported that it would be the first shipbuilder to build a 16,000-TEU vessel, which would be the world’s biggest containership.
With 20 per cent more cargo capacity than the current largest container vessels of 13,500 TEUs, the new giant ship would be able to hold 2.2 million 29-inch TVs.
Plus, its length (400 metres) would be greater than the height of the Eiffel Tower (327 metres).
Railways haul 370 MT of freight during April-Sept. 2007
The Railways has carried 369.66 million tonnes of revenue-earning freight traffic during April-September 2007-08.
This shows an increase of 25.09 million tonnes over the freight traffic of 344.57 million tonnes carried during the same period of 2006-07, reflecting an increase of 7.28 per cent, a Railway release said.
During September alone, the revenue-earning freight traffic carried by the Railways was 60.77 million tonnes, an increase of 5.01 million tonnes over the 55.76 million tonnes carried during September 2006, reflecting an increase of 8.98 per cent.
Paradip Port banks on SPM to boost cargo throughput
The commissioning of the single point mooring (SPM) system at Paradip Port by the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) will boost liquid cargo throughput by about a million tonnes a month, Paradip Port Trust (PPT) officials said.
The work that remains to be completed includes installing the mooring and connecting the laid-out pipeline with the mooring. An Australian ship, which is to undertake the work, is expected to arrive soon.
After several revisions, IOC had set December 2007 as the deadline for completing the work and commissioning the SPM.
The Shipping Ministry as well as the PPT authorities had fixed the Port’s throughput target for 2007-08 at 45.7 million tonnes.
Till September-end 2007, the throughput handled at PPT was around 20 million tonnes despite the choppy seas and inclement weather.
China develops sea-river intermodal containership
Freight Shipping Terminal on Yangtze River
Shanghai Ship & Shipping Research Institute has designed a new kind of ship suitable for carrying containers between the Yangtze River feeder ports and Shanghai’s Yangshan terminal, it has been reported.
The new vessel is small enough to sail on the river and powerful enough to be seaworthy. It has passed expert inspection, and is now considered as one of the most technologically advanced ships in China.
Cosco subsidiary Shanghai PanAsia Shipping Co. Ltd said it plans to produce them in considerable numbers.
96 TEUs in 6 mins at GTI
After creating a record for being the first terminal to handle the first dedicated reefer train at Nhava Sheva, Gateway Terminals India (GTI) has yet again created a record of sorts by handling as many as 96 TEUs in an unbelievable time of just 6 minutes!
The rake arrived from inland container depot (ICD)-Tughlakabad in the morning of October 17 at 04:05 hrs. GTI’s operations team commenced working on the rake at 04:06 hrs and skilfully discharged six TEUs and loaded 96 TEUs in an astonishing 6 minutes! The entire operation was completed by 04:12 hrs.