Dear Readers,
It is Thursday the 14th of October and we are back again.
I was reminded about something serious last week. What happened was that my father who had been complaining about serious pains for 6-8 weeks, particularly to his own local doctor, had a kind of a breakdown during my visit there last Friday.
I decided that it was time for a 2nd opinion and, after some urgent effort, found him an appointment in a private hospital to have him checked with fresh eyes – so to speak. A proper diagnosis was established and it seems that things are now finally moving in the right direction.
What angers me, especially in a highly acclaimed western society where we applaud ourselves in having the best medical care standards, is that capabilities are diminishing and once you are caught in a bureaucratic system you have little to no say.
There is seldom less than a month of waiting for the next treatment, test or analysis after each time you visit your local doctor and so the circus keeps on running, keeps people (particular older ones who have a higher degree of belief in “authority”) at bay and ultimately it leads to a much poorer quality of life in your final years! Embarrassing for my country Denmark, but I have heard the same song from a few other western “civilized societies”.
That is not to say that stating the arriving at the correct diagnosis is an easy thing to do, far from it, but at the very least parts of the medical profession could perhaps learn to look inward, be less arrogant and listen a bit more to their patients. My father got prescribed so much penicillin and “painkillers” that he was almost seriously injured. Incompetence, arrogance and pride of a profession comes to mind – it wouldn’t hurt once in a while to take a look at what you are doing no matter how long and expensive your education was.
On a global scale I am quite confident that Scandinavia still ranks pretty high but in order to stay there it also requires following the times and paying more than lip service to the older generation who actually built the affluent society that we are now enjoying the fruits of!
I returned by flight back to Stockholm after a long trip to various VIP’s in shipping in Denmark, Germany and Poland (see last week’s Editorial). It was a pleasant experience to fly out of Aarhus, Denmark again and landing via Copenhagen in Stockholm which had turned into autumn colours. See some travel pictures here.
Finally before I turn to the interviews this week I would recommend you to see a most interesting documentary on HBO called: The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley. What it describes is how a business woman could entice some of the worlds most “clever” investors to put massive funds into something that turns out to be fraud and where suddenly the value of a company can go from 1 billion US dollars to zero. It leads me to think about which other companies out there are bloated and over-valued by “analysts”, based on which shareholders are betting on investing… perhaps we are going to have a major bubble bursting soon also in real estate…!
Turning to business this week we have three interesting video interviews in store for you. My time was a bit limited due to traveling so I certainly appreciated that I was able to get by short notice some interesting stories to tell. We start off in the Lion City of Singapore and there we speak to the APAC regional logistics head of the project and mining forwarder Access World, who tells us more about their exciting line of business. We then visit the place of the worlds tallest building, Dubai, U.A.E. and talk to a hardcore (as they put it) NVOCC called CargoGulf, he puts on a good and informative show. Finally we return to a nice country by the Baltic Sea, a country famous for many things but not least for some of the most beautiful women of Europe (in my eyes at least) and the country is Poland. We speak to the MD of Martin Bencher Poland which is one of the many successful offices of the now global Martin Bencher Group involved in project freight forwarding. We are told about solutions and we learn that a small sized company, if the right people are there, can be a global contender!
We also provide you with shipping news, trade intel, a featured video and photo of the week and wise words.
Finally, and again may I take the liberty of reminding you to download our mobile app, it is free of charge and makes it easy to find, read and share PCW newsletters and interviews.
Until next week, we remain,
Yours sincerely,
Bo H. Drewsen
bo.drewsen@projectcargo-weekly.com
Video Interview
Access World – Projects
Mr. Corne du Toit, Project Forwarding & Freight Commercial Manager at Access World – Singapore interviewed by Bo H. Drewsen, Editor in Chief at Project Cargo Weekly. Visit the Access World Website.
Video Interview
CargoGulf Inc. – Dubai, U.A.E.
Hans-Henrik Nielsen, Global Development Director at CargoGulf Inc – UAE interviewed by Bo H. Drewsen, Editor in Chief at Project Cargo Weekly. Visit the CargoGulf Website.
Video Interview
Martin Bencher Poland
Maciek Grabowski, Chief Manager / Chartering Manager at Martin Bencher Poland interviewed by Bo H. Drewsen, Editor in Chief at Project Cargo Weekly. Visit the Martin Bencher Website.
Biden Administration Announces Huge Expansion of Wind Farms Along Almost All of US Coastline
Editor’s Note:
Renewable energy is growing big time, now also in the US with a massive investment in offshore wind power. It makes for golden days, I believe, for the shipowners with the right tonnage.
The move was announced by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland who says that the government will identify and lease federal waters to wind farm developers by 2025.
Ms Haaland told a wind power conference in Boston that the White House wants to lease waters off the coast of California, Oregon, North Carolina, South Carolina, mid-Atlantic states, as well as the Gulf of Mexico and the Gulf of Maine, according to The New York Times.
First Speakers Confirmed for European Silk Road Summit 2021
Editor’s Note:
Railway transport (especially during Corona) has propelled into a viable alternative to sea freight….finally. Here is an interesting summit that you may wish to attend.
Rail freight along the New Silk Road proved its efficiency by keeping the supply chains running during the pandemic. The industry acquired a more reliable and resilient profile, but new concerns and opportunities emerge as the New Silk Road develops. Rolling stock is not always available, and container prices fluctuate. What determines the container prices? What steps lie ahead for rail freight to reach stability and benefit from the competition? On 7 & 8 December 2021 the fifth edition of the European Silk Road takes place in Amsterdam, where we dive into this trending matter. Mark your calendar and join us!
Milestone for UAE National Railway Network
Editor’s Note:
Again railway, and this time, developments in the UAE where it is interesting to see that intermodal possibilities will soon exist in this desert region across borders enabling smooth inland transport.
The achievement was announced at a virtual meeting of the company’s Board of Directors, chaired by His Highness Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s Court and Chairman of Etihad Rail.
‘Canada’s Supply Chain is at Risk’ Warning, as Congestion Hits Port of Vancouver
Editor’s Note:
We are by now aware that there is serious congestion outside some ports in California, and although they expanded their work hours, there still seems to be little unclogging of the situation. Canada, according to this news from Loadstar, seems to be reaching the doldrums too….
The brakes have been applied hard on traffic flows at the port of Vancouver.
In a matter of weeks, Canada’s premier ocean gateway has gone from a relatively fluid situation to serious congestion that has raised alarms that retailers could miss out in the peak shopping season.
Morocco’s OCP Group to Establish Integrated Fertilizer Complex in Ethiopia
Morocco’s state-owned phosphate and fertilizer company OCP Group, has signed an agreement with the government of Ethiopia to implement a fertilizer project in Dire Dawa.
Fluence Signs Joint Development Agreement with Beijing Enterprises Water Group (China) Investment Limited
Fluence Corporation is pleased to announce that it has signed a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with Beijing Enterprises Water Group (China) Investment Limited to optimize AspiralTM MABR solution for use in decentralized wastewater treatment applications in China and globally. “This agreement between Fluence and BEWG aligns with our strategy to collaborate with leaders in the wastewater treatment industry,” said Wong Jin Yong, CEO of Fluence China.
USA/Mexico – Furniture Giant HNI Adds its First Manufacturing Plant in Mexico, 250 Jobs
Office furniture giant HNI, the 12th largest company on the FDMC 300, will add a new 160,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Saltillo, Mexico. The facility will create 250 jobs.
This will be HNI’s first operation in Mexico. The company will be assisted by Mexican firm American Industries, which specializes in helping American companies set up operations in Mexico.
Wärtsilä Developing 120 MW Power Plant in Gabon
Wärtsilä will lead the development of a 120 MW gas power plant for Gabon Power Co. (GPC) in Africa.
Wärtsilä, jointly leading the project development with GPC, will build the plant under a full Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract and will then operate and maintain the plant under a long-term 15-year Operation and Maintenance (O&M) agreement.
HMM Le Havre – 24000 TEU Container Vessel – Up-close
Editor’s Note:
A 24000 teu container ship up close is huge, and frankly, you can only believe it when you are close up. While in Hamburg recently, I passed 13,000, 20,000, 23,000 and 24,000 containers and considering that when I started in 1980 the largest was about 3000 teu, it does tell you that size has also increased in world trade!
Editor’s Note:
First time ever I paid a visit to Rostock, a German seaport that used to be the HQ of DSR (Deutsche Seereederei), they often had break bulk ships in Denmark and Sweden load aid cargo for Vietnam and cement plants also to Vietnam. Nowadays, it is the HQ for Stinnes Line. By all means, Rostock is a nice place to visit!
