Dear Readers,
It is Thursday the 12th of November, and we are back in your in-box hopefully.
The big story of the week past has, of course, been the US election, and it became almost like a Hollywood thriller, waiting to know the final results in the swing states.
The media and opinion polls got it wrong again-again, and frankly speaking, I am beginning to wonder whether they are any good at their job. They weren’t in 2016, and they certainly were also not this year.
I suppose taking polls depends a lot on the quality and political opinion of the ones doing it, and someone once told me that you can make an opinion poll tell you anything you want. Clearly, predicting the outcome with a blue wave didn’t fly as it didn’t fly back in 2016.
It is the opinion of PCW that Trump did do a few good things whilst in office but also that the world is more complex than black and white, good and bad, and thus it is the hope here that President-elect Biden will turn out to be the healing force that the US seems to need. In some ways, the rest of the world does need a reliable figure in the White House, too.
Having said that, I find it very good that Trump did manage to show the way in which the EU and mainly their Nato members kept on trying to weasel out of paying their dues. Frankly, why should the US taxpayer pay for having soldiers in Germany—a country that by far has been earning enough to pay their own way—and the same with some other NATO members.
So it’s not black or white. Both colours matter, by the way, along with any other colour available or imaginable. No one has the monopoly on wisdom, and no one has a very long memory except for our wives….right? But then again, most men would know that ?.
I spent some evenings looking at a series on Netflix (called ” I am a killer “), looking at how kids—mainly with poor childhoods—became killers. These were real life stories, and to my mind, it is indeed scary. We need to go to class to get a degree. We need to learn something to get a driving licence, but anyone can become a parent. For that you don’t need any degree, common sense in how to treat your offspring or anything of the like.
I guess the argument is still around whether the reason for adverse behaviour is what you inherit/have in your genes versus the environment in which you have grown up. Drugs and alcohol certainly has helped none but the few, and overusing that quickly becomes like peeing in your pants. It’s warm at first, but it turns cold pretty fast. Inequality already is and will continue to be the scourge for many countries in the world, and it should be addressed urgently. My respect goes to all the social workers out there trying to make a difference, and whatever they are paid, it just ain’t enough.
Before I turn to the shipping interviews of this week, and to get out of the rather gloomy mood from the start of this editorial, I perused through some old video clips and found one to cheer me up. True Blue with Madonna was great, but true blue in a shipping context—as seen from this clip in the Atlantic en-route to Kingston a few years ago with almost a week with weather like this—does remind you that life is worth living to the fullest each and every day!
Shipping-wise this week, we start off by visiting the “lucky country”, and the country of the “mate” and “sheila”, and the continent rather than the country of size, and we speak about AUSTRALIA. We speak to renowned shipowner ANL Container Lines who tells us how they cover this vast continent from a shipowner’s perspective, ALSO offering breakbulk and OOG solutions.
We then return to the Med in Europe and visit a much smaller country but with a long history, and here we talk about Tunisia. We speak to a local shipping agency called MOHAB, and they tell us a story worth reading.
Finally, we wrap up the interviews of the week with a visit to the gate of INDIA, rather called MUMBAI, and we interview a close friend and personality named Mr Pratap Nair, owner of FEI Cargo.
We obviously conclude our newsletter with shipping news, trade intel, featured video and photo of the week, and we wrap it all up with wise words—in case you didn’t find any in this editorial.
Until next week, we remain,
Yours sincerely,
Bo H. Drewsen
bo.drewsen@projectcargo-weekly.com
Intra Oceania Lines for ANL – Melbourne, Australia
Interview with
Mr. Chris Peck
General Manager
ANL is a strong brand in the Australian market. Could you first of all elaborate a bit on the history of ANL? I believe the abbreviation stands for Australian National Line but in today’s context, you belong to a global group, right?
ANL calls in all major ports in Australia, namely Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Fremantle (Perth). We have expanded in the last few years to also include secondary ports including Darwin, Townsville, Esperance and our most recent, new calling of Port Hedland in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
The Pilbara region is a very exciting opportunity for us as we launch the first containerised service into this port, which is the powerhouse region of Australia, powered by some of the largest mining, gas and mineral resource deposits anywhere in the world. The service will also cater for breakbulk and OOG cargoes. Traditionally, containerised cargo has been shipped via Fremantle some 1650 kilometres (1021 miles) to the south and road transported to the Pilbara region. We will be offering a regular feeder service from Singapore to the Pilbara, allowing access from all parts of the world through the CMA CGM Group’s global network. The mutual benefits that will be derived from the service include CO2 reductions, less road traffic, shorter supply chains and reduced handling which will lead to less risk of cargo damage.
Agence Maritime Mohab – Tunisia
Interview with
Mr. Hatem Bouricha
Vice President
First of all, Hatem, please tell us about the history of your company, and can you tell us who the owners are?
Agence Maritime Mohab is owned by Mr. Abderrazek Bouricha, CEO who took over the company from his father. This makes Mohab a family-owned company created in 1972.
Mohab started as a shipping agency in Sfax and performed some of the most challenging project cargo shipment for various multinationals in Tunisia.
When Mr. Abderrazek took over the company in 1983, he developed Mohab to be one of the top 5 freight forwarders in the country. First, he expanded the company and opened offices in different areas in Tunisia such as our office within Tunis Carthage Airport « TUN » since we were nominated to IATA in 1995. He also constructed both bonded and private warehouses for logistics and supply chain management.
FEI Cargo Ltd – Mumbai, India
Interview with
Mr. Pratap Nair
Competition in India is fierce to say the least. Many freight forwarders outside India have told me that it is often difficult to find a reliable partner in India, especially a freight forwarder that can say no. What makes FEI Cargo stand out in your opinion?
We have always believed that partnerships are not based on top line/bottom line numbers, but more so on thoughts actions and trust.
We only team with like-minded people who stand by the principles of trust and transparency in everything they do. Where we find the trust factor missing, we politely refrain from engaging with that partner, in order to ensure that our word to our customers is kept at all times. We accept that we probably lose money sometimes, but we are not willing to lose the confidence of our customers. We believe in choosing not only our partners, but our customers as well.
The 5th Issue of the Wallem Pulse Magazine
Editor’s Note:
Wallem Ship Management based in Hong Kong—but I believe with Norwegian roots—has a great in-house magazine. Enjoy its contents here and get a broader idea about shipping overall.
HHLA Expands Intermodal Activities to Ukraine
Editor’s Note:
Giant port operator, HHLA in Hamburg keeps on expanding in its “hinterland” and now with intermodal activities in Ukraine. They are already active in Georgia and Azerbaijan—difficult places for some but not for HHLA.
Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) has established its own intermodal company in Ukraine. The new Ukrainian Intermodal Company (UIC) offers container transport by rail between the Port of Odessa and important economic centres in the country. HHLA is thus expanding its successful intermodal business and extending its product range for fast, reliable and efficient hub-to-hub transport services in seaport-hinterland traffic.
United Heavy Transport is Shipping World’s Most Powerful Cutter Suction Dredger
Editor’s Note:
An impressive project took place earlier this year—with a Chinese, semi sub vessel active in a project intra-Europe (Croatia to Poland)—and all organised by United Heavylift. Enjoy not only the beauty of Croatia but also the sheer size of this mega transport.
United Heavy Transport is shipping world’s most powerful cutter section dredger Willem van Rubroeck with semi-submersible vessel MV Hua Yang Long from Croatia to Poland in May 2020.
Dan-Gulf Shipping, Inc. Joins Oslo Caribbean Carriers (OCC) to Expand Project Cargo Segment Between the USG/USEC and Caribbean as well as NCSA/ECCA
Editor’s Note:
Moving breakbulk and project cargo to some of the smaller islands and countries in the Caribbean and South American north part is not always easy. Whom to ask? Who has geared vessels for these smaller islands? Dan-Gulf has, and has now reinvented itself together with Oslo Bulk, offering an old but “newly packaged” service.
Africa Intelligence – Daily Exclusive Information Essential to Understanding the Local and Regional Challenges the Continent Faces Today
Editor’s Note:
This newsletter seems to contain a lot of interesting news about the vast African market. Perhaps something for you to take a look at.
Domtar Signs Agreement with Voith to Supply Equipment for Kingsport Mill Conversion to Containerboard
Domtar today announced it has signed an agreement with Voith to provide equipment and technical services to convert the paper machine at its Kingsport, Tennessee, mill from the production of uncoated freesheet to recycled containerboard, including high-performance lightweight packaging grades, as well as industry standard grades.
Mongolia Engineering JV Shoots to International Prominence
Massive ore handling chutes produced for the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia’s South Gobi region have opened a new expansion window for Murray Mining Services in the country. Previously, it was believed that these huge chutes could not be manufactured locally in Mongolia.
The four 60-70-tonne chutes, designed by Variant Mining Technologies, have been delivered to Oyu Tolgoi in record time. Variant, which has a clear-cut reputation for providing the most technologically advanced loading systems in the world, selected the team at Murray Mining Services to fabricate the chutes for the mine.
Thermo Fisher will Add 2 New Filling Lines to Global Expansion Plans with $130M Singapore Plant
With global expansion plans underway, New Jersey contract manufacturer Thermo Fisher Scientific has signed some big checks in recent years to support its ambitious aims. Now, the company is set to build a new sterile filling facility in Asia that will help boost its regional presence.
Transiting the Suez Canal onboard mv CMA CGM Andromeda as passenger
Editor’s Note:
Being on deck on a giant containership whilst transiting the Suez Canal is simply an awesome experience. Here is a short video that I took during transit onboard mv CMA CGM Andromeda as a passenger, along with my (then 16-year-old) daughter.
Editor’s Note:
Where is the supercargo? Who approved this stowage…?? I took this picture some years ago whilst visiting Niigata, Japan. Not sure but I could envisage that it was a shipment of used cars with destination Russia.
