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The Danish logistics company Unifeeder has chosen its compatriot technology firm ZeroNorth for full suite of optimisation services.

The two parties signed a three-year agreement, which will see Unifeeder implement the full suite of services included in ZeroNorth’s platform, as well as ClearLynx’s bunker solution, as part of the company’s decarbonisation process.

The partnership is expected to give Unifeeder’s fleet full transparency over voyage planning, access to industry-leading voyage optimisation with integrated weather routing, as well as bunker, vessel, and emissions optimisation recommendations to unlock fuel efficiencies, reduce carbon emissions, and improve earnings, according to a statement.

Jesper Bo Hansen, chief revenue officer of ZeroNorth

It is important to note that in the first phase, 90 of Unifeeder’s vessels will adopt ZeroNorth’s technology, with the Aarhus-based shipping company being able to scale up the number of vessels easily at any point, according to Jesper Bo Hansen, chief revenue officer of ZeroNorth.

“ZeroNorth offers cloud-based software solutions in one platform that helps owners and operators to optimise voyages, vessels, bunker and emissions. Unifeeder will utilise the platform starting with 90 vessels. Nothing needs to be installed on the vessels as ZeroNorth’s platform is easily accessible online,” explained Jesper Bo Hansen at Container News.

The partnership is another move of ZeroNorth into the container market.

“In Unifeeder, we are gaining a partner that understands the urgency of the climate emergency and our mission to make global trade green, as well as the role that digital solutions can play to reduce the environmental impact of maritime operations whilst improving earnings,” said Jesper Bo Hansen.

Martin Gaard Christiansen, chief commercial officer at Unifeeder, commented, “We recognise that it is a key strategic priority to be able to connect vessel, voyage, and bunker processes to maximise our fuel efficiency and reduce our carbon emissions. Adopting digital technologies that will help us to advance our green agenda is a crucial step in our commitment to contribute to the reduction of emissions on a local and global scale.”

He went on to point out that Unifeeder’s green agenda includes efficiency targets and limiting bunker consumption to reduce the company’s overall emission levels by 50% per container by 2040.

“After extensive market research, we found that ZeroNorth is ahead of others with regards to their sustainability features, especially CII analytics. By offering all operations optimisations in one platform, on a global, 24/7 basis and with full transparency over voyage planning, ZeroNorth is the right partner to support the progress of our sustainable shipping strategy, help improve earnings, reduce emissions, and drive success for our company in the future,” concluded Martin Gaard Christiansen.

Source: https://container-news.com/90-unifeeder-vessels-to-adopt-zeronorths-technology/


The post-Covid-19 container demand boom appears to have peaked, based on Drewry’s port throughput index, which showed a decline in April.

The Shanghai lockdown took its toll as volumes in the world’s busiest port fell 25% in April, compared with March.

The Drewry Global Port Throughput Index increased by 1.7% month-on-month to reach 141.1 points in April 2022, 1.5% below the 143.1 points recorded in April 2021.

“This is further evidence that the post-Covid demand boom appears to have run its course,” said Drewry.

North America recorded a 4.5% increase in port handling, with Oceania being the only other region in positive territory. Throughput in Asia (excluding China) was 4.1% lower year-on-year, with ports in this region quick to feel the impact of Chinese lockdowns on trade.

European volumes remained below 2021 levels, with the ongoing crisis in Ukraine driving steep rises in energy costs and consequentially impacting regional manufacturing and consumer demand.

In a commentary released on 11 July, Neil Dekker, a senior analyst at maritime credit reporting agency Infospectrum, said that there are warning signals for the container shipping market, both in the short and long term.

“There have been real signs of a decline in cargo growth during Q2 2022 compounded by the factory shutdowns and port congestions in China as well as normal seasonality. Current estimates of global cargo growth for 2022 range from about zero to 2% to 3% (down from 6% in 2021), with Maersk management now more negative about future growth,” said Dekker.

Average spot freight rates on the core Asia to North Europe trade have also contracted by about 20% to 30% since early December 2021, although these remain at record-high levels when compared to early 2020.

Rising charter and bunker costs present long-term risk factors, according to Dekker.

Noting that while some liner operators are managing costs by expanding their owned fleets, others have committed to long-term charters, Dekker said, “Companies that are more highly exposed to charters (at record-high rates) for the next three to five years (and this also includes Zim Integrated Shipping) will need to carefully manage operating costs.”

Source: https://container-news.com/covid-19-fuelled-peak-may-be-bottoming-out/


America’s ports move approximately $5.4 trillion in goods annually, making them a unique target for cybercriminals. Protecting these transportation hubs is essential to preserving the supply chain and keeping the U.S. economy running.

More than 500 cyberattacks occurred in the marine industry in 2020, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. These exploits are aimed at both traditional port information technology systems and operational technology (OT) systems, which include the cranes, gantries, lifts and conveyance systems that move freight on and off ships.

The Coast Guard is the lead federal agency directly responsible for protecting America’s maritime transportation system. Its 2021 Cyber Strategic Outlook lays out specific responsibilities: “The U.S. Coast Guard will employ frameworks, standards and best practices in prevention and response activities to identify and manage cyber risks to the MTS. Within ports, the U.S. Coast Guard’s Captains of the Port will lead governance by promoting cyber risk management, accountability, and the development and implementation of unified response plans.”

The Coast Guard works directly with state and local governments in support of these duties, and more specifically with port authorities, which ultimately hold responsibility for the cybersecurity defenses of their regional seaports.

What Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities Do Maritime Facilities Face?

Seaports face familiar types of electronic assault: scanning, ransomware, malware, spear phishing and credential harvesting. In 2017, the shipping giant Maersk was laid low by the NotPetya worm, which scrambled the company’s IT and communications systems for two weeks, marking the largest maritime cybersecurity incident in recent years. That affected 76 ports across the globe, including the Port of Los Angeles, and 800 ships. In the end, the hack cost the company $300 million.

However, the Maersk attack was hardly the first. In 2011, the Belgian Port of Antwerp Bruges got hit by drug cartel hackers who surreptitiously took over the tracking of containers carrying hidden cocaine and heroin. The intruders accessed secure data giving them the location and security details of the steel boxes. That allowed the cartel to direct truck drivers to snatch them up before the legitimate owners of the cargo arrived. Port operators only got wise to the situation when they noticed containers inexplicably disappearing.

Seaports are complex facilities. While there is ample awareness of traditional IT vulnerabilities to networks, data and proprietary information, protection on the operational side is far behind, say experts. That includes cranes and container management systems, fuel terminals, shipboard controls, navigation systems, buoys, HVAC controls and more. Many are often creaky machines that have ancient, rudimentary electronic control systems.

“Operational technology is the most valuable thing in the network, and lives can be lost” without good oversight, says Rick Tiene, vice president with Mission Secure, Inc. The challenge is that the programmable logic control (PLC) boxes on maritime machinery are like 20-year-old computers, he says. “It’s a device that has an IP in/out and amps in/out.”

It’s so basic that cybersecurity technology can’t be added to it. Instead, Tiene’s company puts a protection envelope around PLCs.

“We put protection above it and below it,” he says. Practically speaking, that means monitoring the boxes for unusual power spikes that could indicate a cyber intruder has gained control.

A key strategy for security is to try and make it as transparent to the user as possible.”

Billy Marsh CISO, Port of San Diego

How Do Ports Establish Maritime Cybersecurity Initiatives?

“OT is where you have higher risk exposure,” says Ian Bramson, global head of industrial cybersecurity for ABS Group. He adds that OT networks tend to be rickety and layered for years, and they require careful monitoring.

Ransomware may cost money, but monkeying with the valves of a fuel depot or the controls of a crane could be catastrophic. Ships are no less vulnerable. The scariest scenario is the cyber takeover of the ballast control system in a large ship, causing it to capsize and sink. While that hasn’t happened yet, Coast Guard and academic hackers have proven it’s possible, and Iran reportedly included the exploit in plans to disrupt fuel shipments.

The first thing a port needs to do to secure its OT system is to do an asset inventory, Bramson says. Then, a vulnerability assessment is needed to find holes. Next comes monitoring to see whether anyone else is already in the network. Is there any visibility in this area? “You have to get a vendor that knows OT,” he says.

ABS Group is technology-agnostic, but Bramson recommends such companies as Tenable and Claroty Cyber Assurance. There’s also the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework which is used by many companies to assess risk. It focuses on five areas: protect, detect, identify, respond and recover.

Tiene warns that paper assessments are not enough. Checking boxes to satisfy the top brass or standards organizations doesn’t equate to tangible cybersecurity.

“If that will get you a pass, they do the least they have to do,” he says. The margins in the maritime industry are thin. “Companies are reluctant to spend money on cybersecurity if the competition doesn’t have to.”

What Are Elements of a Strong Maritime Cybersecurity Initiative?

The Port of San Diego has dedicated cybersecurity staff to monitor, track and respond to threats, says Billy Marsh, the port’s CISO. “We treat our OT systems with the same rigor as our IT systems, and then focus on the individual risk assessment of each system to provide additional layers of security.”

Marsh says it’s best to audit thoroughly and frequently. The port uses next-generation firewalls, advanced endpoint protection and ingress filtering, among other technologies.

“A key strategy for security is to try and make it as transparent to the user as possible. If it’s a pain point in the workflow, people will sometimes try to find ways around it,” Marsh says.

He also recommends a patching schedule that covers operating system updates as well as software updates, multifactor authentication, and an incident response and disaster recovery plan for when something inevitably occurs.

In January, the Port of Los Angeles opened the Cyber Resilience Center, created to improve readiness and enhance its threat-sharing and recovery capabilities among supply chain stakeholders. The group currently includes 20 unnamed partners, including cargo handlers, terminal operators, shipping lines, and trucking and rail companies.

The central challenge was making sure the partners can communicate from different platforms, says Kevin Albano, associate partner at IBM Security X-Force, which built the system. “They needed a central place where information could be understood, and it was a priority to focus in on shipping containers.”

In 2020, stakeholders at the Port of New York and New Jersey formed a similar maritime cybersecurity coalition to improve information sharing among port users. The group includes the Coast Guard and the Area Maritime Security Committee, vessel operators, marine terminal operators, and representatives of the energy and financial sectors.

Soure:https://statetechmagazine.com/article/2022/07/how-americas-ports-defend-against-cyberthreats

Coral Princess cruise ship carrying over 100 Covid positive individuals onboard has reportedly docked in Sydney.

After departing from Eden on the south coast of New South Wales with over 2,300 individuals onboard, the Coral Princess on Wednesday reportedly berthed at Circular Quay before dawn. It will stay there for a day before returning to its home port in Brisbane.

Passengers are required to record a negative COVID-19 result on a rapid antigen test before they disembark. However, the crew members will need to stay back.

The outbreak involves infected crew members, with 114 individuals in isolation, as reported on Tuesday. Four passengers were isolated after they tested positive, and 24 disembarked earlier in Brisbane, per John Gerrard, Queensland’s chief health officer.

NSW Health has mentioned that passengers who tested Covid positive carried the virus with them rather than getting infected at sea.

On Tuesday, the ship docked in Eden, and 800 passengers disembarked after testing negative.

Kristy McBain, the regional development minister of Eden-Monaro MP and NSW, said locals were happy to see the cruise ship dock after bushfires. The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic heavily impacted the region.

A spokesperson associated with Princess Cruises said the crew who tested Covid positive had mild or asymptomatic symptoms.

At the onset of the pandemic in 2020, around March, another cruise liner of Princess – the Ruby Princess – was linked to one of the eight NSW coronavirus cases.

The latest outbreak on the cruise ship comes as concern rises regarding the increasing spread of the B.5 and B.4 subvariants of Omicron, which may even reinfect those who’ve had the infection earlier.

Source: https://www.marineinsight.com/shipping-news/covid-19-hit-coral-princess-cruise-ship-docked-in-sydney/


The ship recycling market has had to endure some pretty turbulent weeks, but things are starting to pick up once more. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Clarkson Platou Hellas said that “in what has been a gloomy couple of weeks for the market, coupled with a lack of tonnage and price levels alarmingly coming off, there is now a more positive outlook in the past few days with steel prices rallying by nearly 15% locally. This has prompted end recyclers to put forward more prominent enquiries and cash buyers quoting back closer to the USD 600 $/per ldt number once again for market tonnage. It is worth noting that we are still in a precarious position due to the local currencies against the US dollar across all the Indian sub-continent areas and this could affect the market at any time, with VLCC’s being quoted 30/40 dollars below other smaller units due to the large outlay and lack of financing available to fund such large LDT units”. 

Source: Clarkson Platou (Hellas) ltd

The shipbroker added that “Bangladesh once again feels the firmest market with mixed signals coming from Pakistan as to how aggressive they are for tonnage, especially as cash buyers still feel wounded from the recent round of re-negotiations, they encountered from the waterfront in Gadani and may feel hesitant to engage with the local end buyers. Pricing is very difficult to assess however as the market needs a definitive sale so that we can start to accurately guide where pricing truly lies, but with the firming freight markets in the Tanker sector over the past few weeks, it will be some time before we start to see a glut of tonnage for recyclers to feast upon”.

In a separate note, Allied Shipbroking said this week that “with a fair number of transactions taking place under the current unfavourable conditions in the ship recycling market, the markets performance recorded an improvement driven by the slight rises and stabilization that took place in steel prices in the Indian SubContinent. Nevertheless, market sentiment and forward outlooks remain discouraging as the effects of difficult weather conditions being in the midst of the Monsoon Season, combined with weakening local currencies, continue to have a negative overall impact to the already sluggish Bangladeshi and Indian markets. Pakistan has made a very small improvement in terms of offered scrap price levels but has not been enough to secure any significant volume of tonnage. However, with regards to Bangladesh, we will probably have a clearer overview of the market’s true potential once the Eid Celebrations are over. In Turkey, in addition to the continued rising inflation rate being noted, the government imposed taxes on steel imports from companies in Europe and South Korea wanting to boost domestic production which in turn could help boost confidence amongst ship recyclers to bolster their offered prices”.

Source: Allied Shipbroking

Similarly, GMS , the world’s leading cash buyer of ships said that “as we enter the traditionally quieter monsoon season, it is of little surprise to see recycling markets remaining inert and quiet, with rains / flooding hampering production at yards in Chattogram and Alang labourers returning to their hometowns as recycling activities come to a seasonal crawl. This may have inadvertently triggered the recent leveling of sub-continent steel plate prices as steel output diminishes and plate prices stabilize / firm in reaction. Although vessel prices have cooled off by USD 100/LDT in the sub-continent markets and about USD 250/MT in Turkey, global recycling sentiments remain in the doldrums given the rate of the recent declines. As such, there is no surprise to see minimal activity emanating from all markets at present, including the respective waterfronts that are displaying the shoddy state of current affairs.

Source: GMS,Inc.

Notwithstanding, global currency depreciations remain the primary source of heartburn for the ship-recycling communities, as the worrying declines on steel prices seem to have comparatively stabilized and we hope it should start to show some signs of positivity in the coming week(s). Whilst there still remains a degree of caution and a prevailing nervousness to buy in local markets, there are unlikely to be firm / serious offers for Owners and Cash Buyers alike, and this is part of the reason why even the marginal few candidates have started to dry up of late. Of course, all freight sectors continue to be positively poised as most Owners are now passing drydock on their aging beauties, rather than scrapping their older tonnage even when recycling rates are at historically firm numbers”, GMS concluded.
Nikos Roussanoglou, Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide


The global pool of shipping containers increased by 13% to almost 50 mteu in 2021, which was three times prior trend growth. This reflected lessors and ocean carriers ordering a record number of containers, while retiring fewer ageing units, as congestion across global supply chains meant containers were an estimated 15% to 20% less productive than in pre-Covid-19 times, according to Drewry’s recently published Container Census & Leasing Annual Review & Forecast 2022/23 report.

 

Drewry estimates that each container averaged 18.1 lifts in 2021 compared with 19.2 in 2020 and between 19.5 and 20.6 in the 2010s. Moreover, the number of containers per slot of vessel capacity increased by 8% in 2020 when the pandemic started and remained at this level throughout 2021.

Drewry estimates that as many as 6 mteu of surplus containers now exist in the global equipment pool. While large by historic standards, Drewry considers this surplus to be manageable for the industry.

“The delivery schedule of new ships is very strong with slot capacity expected to increase by 3.6 mteu in 2023 and by over 3.9 mteu in 2024,” said Drewry’s head of container equipment research John Fossey. “With new IMO emissions regulations coming into force in January 2023 forcing some ships to sail slower, much of the surplus equipment currently in service is expected to be absorbed. In addition, there is evidence to suggest that some carriers are planning to have more buffer stock in their equipment pools, while fewer new containers will be built in the next two years.”

Drewry forecasts that output in 2022 and 2023 will be much lower than last year, at 3.9 mteu and 2.4 mteu respectively, with replacement accounting for most of the orders. While newbuild and second-hand prices will fall, a return to the very low prices of 2019 is not anticipated as manufacturers are expected to manage their capacity and pricing strategies very carefully. Meanwhile, the secondary market remains robust and the uses to which ex-trading containers can be put to use continues to expand.

“Looking ahead, ocean carriers will be the main buyers of equipment over the next two years with lessors then taking control again, raising their share of the pool to 54% by 2026,” added Fossey. “Moreover, per diem rates and investment cash returns will general be higher over the forecast period than in the past five years.”
Source: Drewry


Last month, in the race to tackle climate change, DNV held its Singapore Energy Transition Conference with presentations and panel discussions for industry stakeholders and clean energy experts. Focusing on maritime decarbonization, the conference discussed what role Singapore can play in the green energy transition in Southeast Asia. As this thriving maritime hub intensifies its efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate greenhouse gas emissions, the conference was a place to explore what the energy transition journey looks like in 2022.

Remi Eriksen, Group President and CEO of DNV, believes that achieving net zero is politically and economically achievable – but it will take effort, he told the conference in a keynote address.

“Hydrogen, which is the lightest of elements, needs a heavy lift in order to reach the Paris Agreement. Much stronger policies are needed from governments. In this region, particularly with Singapore as a major bunkering hub today, there are huge opportunities for new fuels like ammonia, synthetic methanol, and hydrogen in its purest form,” Eriksen said. “As a high-income country, Singapore must be a catalyst for change in this region. We admire [Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance] Lawrence Wong’s commitment to achieving net-zero by 2050.”

Drawing on DNV’s Energy Transition Outlook, Eriksen predicted that the world’s energy consumption is headed for a rapid transition from an 80/20 split (80 percent fossil / 20 percent non-fossil) to a 50/50 split by 2050. However, achieving net-zero by midcentury may be out of reach without further action.

“It will not be fast enough to meet the Paris Agreement, [and] the earth is heading towards 2.3° C of warming above pre-industrial levels,” Eriksen cautioned.

He suggested that to get the world’s climate ambitions on track, Europe and the United States need to achieve net-zero by 2040, then become net-negative by finding ways to absorb carbon from the atmosphere.

For Southeast Asia’s pathway to net-zero, Eriksen suggests that bringing the region down from its 2019 emissions rate of 1.7 gigatons of CO2 per year will require rapid penetration of renewables and reduction of fossil fuel use. He believes this will need to be driven by much higher carbon pricing and a ban on internal combustion engine cars by 2040.

DNV predicts that Southeast Asia can reduce its greenhouse emissions down to 1990s levels by midcentury (DNV)

Eriksen admits that it will be hard to chase fossil fuels entirely out of the global energy mix in less than thirty years, given the demand for oil in industry and transportation. To address this, DNV is making efforts in carbon capture and storage (CCS), direct air capture, and nature-based solutions. Beyond 2050, once fossil fuels are fully eliminated, DNV sees the ideal energy mix as 70 percent direct electrification via renewables; 20 percent indirect electrification from green hydrogen and hydrogen-derived products; and 10 percent biofuels. Hydrogen will be critical for decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors like high-heat industrial processes, shipping, trucking, and aviation.

To make enough hydrogen to supply just five percent of the global energy mix, an estimated $7 trillion of investment would be needed by 2050. However, three times more hydrogen – enough for 15 percent of world energy demand – is required to reach net-zero by 2050. That’s an additional 90 million tonnes, equal to the total amount of “grey” hydrogen produced today for industrial and agricultural uses. The challenge is to clean up the world’s hydrogen supply chain and simultaneously double its size to support new uses.

Hydrogen will be critical for shipping. In the 2030s and beyond, Eriksen predicts that ammonia made from green hydrogen will become the industry’s low-carbon fuel of choice. Therefore, ammonia production, storage, and bunkering will hold strategic importance for Singapore, the world’s leading bunkering hub.

“Hydrogen, the lightest substance, needs a heavy lift. Dramatic and urgent changes in all energy value chains are necessary through much smarter end-use enabled through digitalization. For this to happen, we require stronger policies for carbon pricing, subsidies, tough mandates, and bans. There is much work to be done and much to be discussed,” he concluded.

Though the net-zero goals are two to three decades away, and there will be unpredictable changes in technology, finance, politics, and public will over the intervening years, it is nonetheless inspiring to see that a common goal and effort of a cleaner planet is uniting the industry. Singapore has chosen to become a first mover in the race to decarbonize and digitalize the maritime and energy sectors. The “Little Red Dot” city-state is taking drastic efforts to show leadership in the rapidly shifting global landscape, and the industry and the region will closely examine Singapore’s moves.

Source: https://maritime-executive.com/editorials/dnv-predicts-a-key-role-for-singapore-in-shipping-s-hydrogen-future


Recorded numbers are “likely to be inaccurate and too low,” Ipsos study finds

wellbeing at sea
File image

PUBLISHED JUL 14, 2022 1:42 AM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

The UK Department for Transport and the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) have released a new research study on seafarer wellbeing, and it suggests new avenues for improvement in providing care and understanding the scope of the challenges facing mariners today.

Mental health issues are still taboo and are poorly understood in many parts of the industry, “not just by employers but among seafarers themselves,” the study found. The solution could be to integrate mental-health support for seafarers more deeply into onboard life, and new a MCA app for assistance could help in breaking down barriers to access.

“There is – sadly – still a stigma around mental health. The fact seafarers still don’t feel able to talk about it or access services says a lot about how far we still have to go in terms of reducing that taboo,” said Katy Ware, the Director of UK Maritime Services. “This is exactly why we have launched our Wellbeing at Sea Tool. By identifying stressors and issues at an early stage, we hope that the tool will help to reduce stress among seafarers which is a contributory factor to mental health problems.”

In parallel with the tool’s development, MCA hired research firm Ipsos to conduct an interview-based study of seafarer wellbeing, and specifically about suicide. Ipsos’ team drew on the input of chaplains, seafarers’ charities, unions and other stakeholders over a series of 20 interviews in March and April.

The interviewees identified non-reporting as an obstacle to care. Many seafarers are reluctant to discuss mental health due to perceived taboos, especially in certain cultures. This reluctance has a financial aspect as well: The disclosure of mental health issues could affect employment, depending upon the policies of the specific employer.

“If someone wants to admit they have a mental health problem the [captain] would probably not allow that person to go to sea with them. So, again, they would then not be earning a living,” a chaplain explained to the researchers.

The resources available to seafarers include chaplains, union representatives, charities and (for some) employer-provided support benefits. However, access is uneven across the industry.

“I would say all of the majors, the big companies have some fantastic support in place. Conversely, you’ve got other companies where there’s nothing. They don’t talk about it,” one shipowner told the research team.

Reporting challenges

The participants agreed that seafarer suicide is a serious issue and that the industry can do more to address it. They described it as a damaging event for all, including the victim’s crewmates – who are often traumatized by the experience – and for the vessel operator (in terms of disruption and reputational harm).

A thorough understanding of the problem could benefit from better data. Suicide reporting is uneven, and the stakeholders agreed that any published numbers are “likely to be inaccurate and too low.”

They identified multiple barriers to accurate reporting. First, there are significant challenges for determining whether any given incident is a suicide – particularly if the seafarer is lost over the side. With little to no evidence, a definitive classification is often impossible.

Even if there are clear indications that the death is a suicide, the crew may not wish to accurately report it. Interviewees told the researchers that there is a widespread belief that a report of a “suicide” would prevent relatives from collecting life insurance, which would be a large financial loss. Whether or not this belief is accurate, “seafarers circle the wagons to make sure that the family’s looked after,” one manager explained. “Allow for suicide to be an insured risk and the data would clarify itself very quickly.”

Lastly, each company and flag state has its own approach to recording reports, and the interviewees agreed that some flags are more rigorous than others. “There are a lot of cowboy flag states out there that I’m concerned about . . . that don’t have robust reporting in place,” one shipowner said.

Source: https://maritime-executive.com/article/study-suicide-at-sea-is-likely-underreported


If you want to understand a country’s economy, as the adage goes, just look at the ports. And a close look of Africa’s ports tells us that natural resources will remain the driving force of trade across many parts of the continent for years to come. Despite a global Energy Transition that favors renewables over hydrocarbons and a push for local manufacturing, we are witnessing a trend of new ports infrastructure influenced by a huge appetite to export natural resources that will transform African economies.

There is a general consensus that Africa is the region most endowed with natural resources. Its arable land accounts for almost a quarter of the world’s arable land, giving the continent unrivalled agricultural potential. This abundant land also has the particularity of containing natural resources that are strategic for world industry and for the continent’s economic development: 85% of the world’s platinum, 60% of manganese, 50% of cobalt, etc.

For the past two decades, the region has experienced sustained growth in the exploitation of its natural resources, driven by the increased interest of foreign investors and the willingness of African governments to identify new sources of funding for their development policies. The significant increase in commodity prices, combined with the exponential demand from emerging powers such as China, therefore provide an encouraging context for the emergence of a sustainable African mining industry. New ports infrastructure being built across West Africa, from Gabon to Ghana to Cote d’Ivoire, are accommodating this demand.

However, the sector is still facing numerous challenges to meet expectations. The intensification of mining has led to a redefinition of geographical spaces on the continent. The mining sector requires both the construction of supporting infrastructure for the extraction of resources and their transport to the areas where they will be processed. In areas that were previously almost exclusively dominated by traditional crop agriculture, the development of mining sites is leading to significant structural changes in the local economy. While mining is a capital-intensive sector, it is the economic activities that develop around the mines that ultimately provide the most employment. However, as the literature on the economic impact of natural resources in developing countries shows, the transformation of natural resources into economic prosperity is not a guarantee (especially in the absence of strong governing institutions).

Indeed, the structure of minerals, metals and hydrocarbons exports has changed significantly over the last two decades, both in absolute terms and in terms of trading partners. For many hydrocarbon poor countries, the growing interest in exploiting their minerals and metals provides a crucial link to global markets and value chains. However, without infrastructure that facilitates the movement of goods and people (land transport, shipping, storage, etc.) that is both well-maintained and technologically equipped, African economies struggle to exploit the potential of their vast resources. Faced with this situation and the huge need for investment and technical expertise that these projects represent, governments are increasingly resorting to public-private partnerships.

In Gabon, for example, the government is clearly demonstrating its desire to finance this new phase of its development by becoming a key player in the mining sector. Indeed, faced with the decline of its oil reserves, which represented an average of 45% of the country over the last five years, the country has endeavored to set up an attractive framework to attract international economic operators in the mining sector. The country has 885 kilometers of coastline, making it one of the largest maritime windows on the African Atlantic coast. As the historical port infrastructure did not have the capacity to support the country’s economic transformation, the Gabonese government turned to foreign partners to establish a link between the country’s mineral trade activity and international demand. The Owendo Mineral Port, born out of a public-private partnership between Arise Ports & Logistics, the French investment fund Meridiem and the Gabonese government in 2017, is a direct result of the transformation of the Gabonese economy.

Similarly, the Ivorian government has been able to take advantage of its maritime assets to attract new economic flows. For example, the Terminal Industriel Polyvalent de San Pedro, the result of a collaboration between Arise Ports & Logistics and the Ivorian authorities, now exports 95% of nickel. This new economic asset, which is part of the overall project for the San Pedro industrial zone, bears witness to the ongoing transformation of African port areas. With two deep-water docks (13 and 15 meters respectively), the terminal is capable of handling up to 160,000 tonnes of ore. These quantities were unimaginable a few years ago.

However, it is clear that the operational success of a port depends on many conditions, and the failures of some new African ports bear witness to this. The operational efficiency of a port depends on its ability to develop efficient logistical tools and to integrate the port system into a much wider multimodal transport network. Finally, it can be said that a port draws its strength from the quality of its partners. By developing tailor-made solutions adapted to the industrial ambitions of the regions in which they are located, and by working together with the public authorities to ensure that the site is properly connected to the country’s (or even the sub-region’s) transport networks, port operators give the industries of African countries a definite comparative advantage.

Ebrima Sawaneh is CFO of Arise Ports & Logistics.


Denis Petropoulos, Chairman of the Baltic Exchange and the newly appointed Chair of the LISW23 Board of Advisors, has announced the team he will lead in the months running up to the delivery of London International Shipping Week in September 2023.

Representing commercial shipping industry decision makers who will sit on the LISW23 BOA is Jan Dieleman, President of Cargill Ocean Transportation and Chair of the Global Maritime Forum. He is accompanied by Kit Kernon, Head of Shipping at Vitol SA as well as Claire Wright, General Manager, Commercial & Strategy at Shell Shipping & Trading and Paul Wogan, immediate past CEO of leading LNG company Gaslog.

Additionally from the owners’ side, Denis will work alongside Markos Lyras, Chief Executive Officer, Lyras Maritime; Dr Nikolas Tsakos, President & CEO of the Tsakos Group; in sustainability and finance Marianne Økland, Board Director of Scorpio Tankers and the UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) joins the group as well as the experienced Michael Parker, Chairman, Global Shipping, Logistics & Offshore at Citigroup; Guy Platten, Secretary General of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS); John Denholm CBE, Chairman of J. & J. Denholm Limited; Katharina Stanzel, Managing Director of INTERTANKO; and Robin Mortimer, Chief Executive, Port of London Authority (PLA) and Chairman elect (2023) of Maritime UK.

Nick Shaw, Chief Executive Officer of the International Group of P&I Clubs; Sarah Kenny OBE, CEO BMT Group and current Chair of Maritime UK; Ben Palmer OBE, President of Inmarsat Maritime and Nick Brown, Chief Executive Officer at Lloyd’s Register are also included.

Carrying on the maritime legal theme, Lindsey Keeble, Managing Partner, Watson Farley & Williams; and Harry Theochari OBE, Chair of Maritime London and Senior Consultant at Norton Rose Fulbright, are also on the board.

Representing the UK Government on the Board of Advisors is Petra Wilkinson CBE, Director of Maritime at the Department for Transport and representing the Royal Navy is Cdre Robert J A Bellfield CBE ADC, Naval Regional Commander for London and Eastern England at the Ministry of Defence, where security plays an enormous role.

Thanking the Board of Advisors for their support, Mr Petropoulos said: “I am delighted to have been asked to take on the responsibility of LISW23 BOA Chair and I look forward to working alongside this excellent team.”

He added: “LISW23 will bring the shipping world together for a full week of events in London and it will be the perfect opportunity for very high-level debate and blue-sky thinking. The work of the LISW23 BOA is to support the Steering Group to ensure the week delivers on all its promises.”

LISW23 will be held during the week of September 11-15, 2023 and will play host to the maritime world with hundreds of events attracting thousands of international industry decision makers into London during the week. The headline LISW23 Conference will be held on Wednesday September 13th while the LISW23 Gala Dinner will be held on Thursday September 14th.
Source: LISW23


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