DAILY SHIPPING NEWS - WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 22, 2017

Air Freight News :

ATSG: United Star Express launch expected this year.

·         The launch of new Chinese express airline United Star Express is now expected before the end of 2017, but the carrier’s joint venture partners are already starting work on building the fleet.

The new airline, a joint venture between US aviation firm ATSG, airline Okay Airways and online retailer VIP Shop Holdings, had originally been planned for launch in 2016.

However, delays in obtaining approvals mean the launch has been delayed.  Speaking at the Stifel Transport and Logistics conference, ATSG chief commercial officer Richard Corrado said: “We are about half way through our process right now and hope to have the airline up and flying in China by the end of 2017.”

Corrado said the partners were wasting no time in securing aircraft so they were ready for launch. He added that the process ATSG was going through to secure and convert the United Star Express aircraft demonstrated how its new business model will work following the recent acquisition of conversion and MRO house, Pemco.

Lufthansa and pilots' union agree to mediator's recommendation.

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The dispute over pay between Lufthansa and its pilots looks to be coming to an end as both groups have agreed to mediator recommendations.

The two groups said they agreed to the mediator’s recommendation of an annual pay rise of 2% backdated to January 2016, another rise of 2.3% from January 2017, another rise of 2.4% in 2018 and a further 2% in 2019.

There is also an additional one-off payment amounting to a total of approximately €30m, which is expected to total around €5,000 to €6,000 per full-time employee.  The new agreement will cover Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and Germanwings and will run until the end of 2019.

Lufthansa said that implementing the agreement would cost around €85m per year. The dispute resulted in strikes late last year.  The agreement will now be voted on by members of the Vereinigung Cockpit union

Atlas Air scoops Asiana Cargo B747 deal.

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Asiana Cargo has awarded Atlas Air with a contract to operate one of its Boeing 747-400 freighters on a transpacific route.

Atlas said that the contract would initially cover a single aircraft covering "key global routes across the transpacific", connecting South Korea with several destinations in the US.

Atlas Air Worldwide president and chief executive William Flynn said: "We are delighted to welcome Asiana Cargo as an important addition to our customer portfolio.

“Asiana takes pride in providing reliable, high-quality service, and we are very pleased to be chosen to manage an important part of its international network.

We look forward to providing Asiana and its customers with unmatched service and a platform for future expansion.”

Kwang Suk Kim, executive vice president, Asiana Cargo, added: “Asiana Cargo is pleased to announce its partnership with Atlas Air, the most reliable air cargo partner.

Sea Freight News :

Will Alang Cross the Bridge to Sustainable Ship Recycling? India Tradeways The world’s largest stretch of ship breaking beaches located at Alang in India’s north western state of Gujarat, is anxiously awaiting its moment of truth in its transformation into a sustainable ship recycling spot. Green groups are piling pressure to block a handful of ship recyclers in Alang, India who have upgraded their facilities to comply with an impending global rule on safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships, from gaining an entry into a list to be approved by the European Union based on its own recycling regulations, where EU-flagged vessels can be recycled. The relentless onslaught by industry watchdogs against upgraded Alang yards is scaring away large shipping companies from considering the Indian facilities for their green recycling needs, putting spokes in Alang’s bid to emerge as a sustainable recycling place and erase its reputation for unsafe and unsound breaking practices.

MANSA appeal to CBEC to withdraw service tax circular or defer it to Oct 1 Hellenic Shipping News In order to avoid claims and disputes ending into long standing legal battles, Mumbai and Nhava Sheva Ship Agents Association has appealed to the Central Board of Excise and Customs to withdraw the notification on service tax completely or defer to Oct 1. In a letter addressed to Najib Shah, chairman of CBEC, MANSA said, “The implementation of such taxation countervails the Governments earnest efforts in achieving ease of doing business lest it might lead to loss of business to Indian Enterprises. It may be noted that the meagre earnings the Ship Agent realized for attending and rendering services to the ships are far below the required level of resources for meeting the payment of the prescribed Service Tax as proposed.” The association has called for full deliberation and requested to issue sufficient advance notice to the Principals/Owners of the vessels as well as all other stakeholders

Gujarat coastal economic zones in the works DNA The three Coastal Economic Zones (CEZs) proposed in Gujarat will have facilities related to petrochemical, apparel, automobile, marble furniture, cement and maritime. A consultant will be appointed within a month to prepare a detailed master plan for CEZs in the region. Under the larger Sagarmala Programme, there are plans to have 14 CEZs at different locations across India, of which three will be in Gujarat at Kutch, Saurashtra and South Gujarat (Suryapur). "The industrial clusters proposed to be developed in these three CEZs will be related to petrochemical, automobile, cement, etc. The perspective plans were also prepared for these CEZs," reads the tender document inviting request for proposal (RFP) for preparing the master plan. Kandla and Mundra ports have been appointed as nodal agency for the project to develop CEZ and Coastal Economic Units (CEUs) in Kutch region.

India’s warehousing market after GST – Industry perceptions ET Retail While India is still in the process of finalizing the blueprint of its most important tax reform, more than 160 nations have already adopted a unified indirect tax structure. In Asia, countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines adopted a Goods and Services Tax (GST) during the 1980’s and 1990’s, creating an effective tax system with a comparatively lower cost of administration and collection. Due to the multiple tax rates at the state and city level, goods often spend a substantial amount of time in transit. This increases the overall cost of transport and makes the system inefficient. The removal of various federal tax barriers and creation of a common market will improve supply chain efficiency and attract more FDI. Stipulations in the proposed law are expected to result in better tax conformity, while removing the cascading effects of the current tax regime.

China-Brunei JV starts running Brunei's container terminal - Xinhua Times of India A joint venture between China's Guangxi Beibu Gulf Port Group and a government-linked Brunei investment company started running Brunei's largest container terminal on Tuesday, the official Xinhua news agency said. The move is the latest in a series of steps taken to further China's "One Belt, One Road" scheme to promote infrastructure projects along historical land and sea trading routes as a way to bolster the country's slowing growth. Muara Port Company Sdn Bhd, a joint venture between Guangxi Beibu and Brunei's Darussalam Assets, will manage operate, maintain and develop the Muara Container Terminal in Brunei, on the north coast of Borneo. "Brunei is an important country along the 21st century Maritime Silk Road. We hope that bilateral cooperation in every field can be further deepened," Chinese Ambassador Yang Jian was reported as saying at the opening ceremony.

Perishables centre officially launched at India's Kempegowda airport Air Cargo News Air India SATS Airport Services has officially launched AISATS COOLPORT, India’s first integrated on-airport perishable cargo handling centre, at Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru. The 11,000 sq m facility is designed to meet handling requirements for perishable cargo such as pharmaceuticals, fruit, vegetables, flowers, meat and seafood. It is able to handle up to 40,000 tons of cargo per annum and offers end-to-end cold chain benefits including refrigerated trucking services, cool trolleys and thermal blankets, as well as temperature controlled container handling. The trial operating period of AISATS COOLPORT, which extended from October 2016 to January 2017, saw a 27% growth in perishable tonnages in comparison to the same period last year.

The Chabahar-Gwadar Conundrum Kashmir Reader The geo-political situation in South Asia is changing swiftly. This can be credited to the fact that the emerging powers in the region are redefining their presence. Friends are becoming foes and vice versa. The proximity of the South Asian region to the oil rich West Asia has changed politics of the region. Pacts are being signed; alliances are being made between countries of the region, befitting their economic and political interests. For instance, Pakistan’s quest to boost its ailing economy by signing China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with People’s Republic of China is seen as a landmark of economic cooperation between the two nations. Pakistan as part of a CPEC agreement handed over construction of Gwadar Port to China. Gwadar is a deep sea port located in the Baluchistan Province, the Southwestern part of Pakistan.

EU Regulators to Rule on Maersk, Hamburg Sud Deal Next Month G Captain EU antitrust regulators will decide by March 27 whether to clear world No. 1 shipping company Maersk Line’s bid for German rival Hamburg Sud, its first major deal for more than a decade. The deal, one of several in a sector seeking consolidation to offset low freight rates and oversupply, was filed to the European Commission on Feb. 20, according to the EU executive’s website on Tuesday. The EU competition enforcer can extend its review by about two weeks if Maersk offers concessions to address regulatory concerns, or it can open a five-month investigation. Copenhagen-based Maersk may have to pull out from some shipping alliances to gain EU approval, following in the footsteps of rivals, which offered such concessions to regulators in recent deals. Maersk, with a fleet of more than 600 ships, would boost its presence in global trade and in Latin America following the takeover of Hamburg Sud.

Norwegian firms keen on investing in Sri Lanka ports: envoy Economy Next Norwegian companies are interested in investing in Sri Lanka’s shipping and ports sector, the country’s envoy Thorbjorn Gaustadsaether has said. Norway is s small country and lacks the money to make big investments like in China and India, he was quoted as saying in a statement by the ports and shipping ministry. But Norway is world renowned for its maritime industry expertise and experience, Norwegian ambassador Gaustadsaether said. Norwegian companies in the power generation, ‘green technology’ and container shipping and terminal operations sectors are looking at the island as a possible investment destination, he said. Norway has skills in developing natural gas power plants, he added. Sri Lanka is well placed geographically on main trade route between Dubai and Singapore, a location that is attractive for investors, Gaustadsaether said.

K” Line (India) Shipping Pvt. Ltd. Becomes Member of INSA Hellenic Shipping News “K” Line (India) Shipping Private Ltd (KLISP), affiliated company of Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., joined Indian National Ship owner’s Association(INSA) at the end of January 2017. KLISP was established in 2014 and actively participates in Indian Coastal Trade as well as International Trade business as an Indian Shipping company. In the same year, KLISP successfully entered into a long-term CVC contract with an Indian Charterer. From December 2016, KLISP acquired ownership of an Indian flag vessel, “GANGA K” (58,000DWT Bulk Carrier) for this contract, and by acquisition of this Indian flag vessel, KLISP was officially entitled to join INSA. By becoming an INSA member, we anticipate this will enable us to become more actively engaged in the Indian Shipping industry as well as become even more deeply rooted in activities of the local market.