Dear Readers,
This week I am visiting the island country of Malta, in the center of the Mediterranean, where I lived previously for several years. The leaders of the EU just had a conference here, which ended on Friday.
Now that they have been whisked away in their jets and limos the island (we must make sure they don’t get too close to the real world) is getting back to normal. Malta is a nice place for tourism and for shipping. I highly recommend a visit. See the video of the week for a great view of Malta.
In this issue:
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines: one of the large Japanese carriers
Torecome: a Togo based freight forwarder. Togo is an often overlooked country in West Africa
Cosmatos: A shipping and forwarding company in Greece
Wishing you pleasant reading and, until next week, I remain,
Yours sincerely,
Bo H. Drewsen
bo.drewsen@projectcargo-weekly.com
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines – A Major International Shipowner
Interview with
Jan Holst
Director North Europe
Do you accept break-bulk cargo by containership on all of your trade lanes or only to specific areas?
We do accept Out of Gauge and Break Bulk cargo on our container service to and from Europe / Asia, but also Europe / South Africa and Europe / US.
Torecom Transit, a Togo based Freight Forwarder
Interview with
Emmanuel Hounkpe
Owner
What are the main export commodities of your country and who are the major trading partners around the world?
The main export commodities of Togo are phosphate, cotton, coffee & cocoa. Actually, we have individual economic operators who travel to China, India and Dubai handling the trading business between Togo and the rest of the world.
Cosmatos Shipping: A Shipping and Forwarding Company in Greece
Interview with
Ms. Elisabeth Cosmatos
Managing Director
Is project cargo in/out of Greece and surrounding countries a business that you are active in? Tell us about projects that you have handled recently.
Cosmatos Group was first involved in Project Cargo in the late 1990’s when we became significantly involved in military transport. Apart from big vehicles, such as Leopard Tanks, we handled big volumes of ammunition and dangerous goods, which gave us the experience to enter the project business.
World Bank Group Flagship Report
Doing Business 2017
Key Highlights:
– New Zealand is first on ease of doing business among 190 economies.
– Entrepreneurs in 137 economies saw improvements in regulatory framework.
– Paying taxes topic now includes postfiling processes—such as tax refunds, tax audits and administrative tax appeals.
– Doing Business adds gender dimension in three of the 10 topics included in the ease of doing business ranking: starting a business, registering property and enforcing contracts.
– Somalia added as 190th economy covered in the report.
Plant Construction
New Pellet Plant to Launch in Butia, Brazil
Brazilian firm Butia Industria e Comercio de Pellets will invest BRL 5.16 million (€1.45m) in the construction of a pellet factory in Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state. Read more…
Pakistan: $400m British Investment in New Plant
British company Asian Precious Minerals (APML) announced plans to invest $400m US in a new cement plant in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Read more…
Automotive
Roki will Open a Factory in Romania’s Western City of Arad and Start Production in 2018
Roki group was founded in 1978 in Tokyo and currently operates 15 factories in 12 countries such as China, India, Thailand, USA or Mexico. Read more…
Pulp & Paper
Mondi to Invest in Heavy Duty Corrugated Capabilities at Polish Plant
The investment will see installation of a 2.8m corrugator with three single facers to expand Mondi’s portfolio to heavy duty corrugated items. Read more…
Oil & Gas
Kenyan Tycoon Wins Sh37.5bn Tender to Build Gas Plant in Mozambique
Mr Kariuki’s firm GL Africa Energy, which is based in the UK, will build and operate the 250-megawatt gas-powered plant in northeastern Mozambique. Read more…