World Maritime News – May 1, 1999.

World Maritime News – May 1, 1999.
BUSINESS
NEW BOSS FOR NEPTUNE ORIENT
FLEMMING Jacobs will take over the helm of Neptune Orient Lines Ltd. (NOL),
Singapore’s national shipping line.
Mr Jacobs will become group president and CEO in June, succeeding Lua Cheng Eng
who will become NOL’s chairman. He is a senior executive of the Danish line AP Moller
Maersk.
The new man will have a tough job of bringing NOL back into profitability.
The company has been operating in the red for two years and has a debt of US$2.89
billion. (Schednet)
YANG MING MARINE REPORTS SECOND-HALF LOSS
TAIWAN’S second largest shipping company, Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp., suffered
a loss of US$27 million during the second half of last year.
Yang Ming Marine attributed the loss to cargo imbalance between the US and Asia.
K Line warns of book losses on stocks K LINE said its marketable securities showed an
unrealised book loss of $117 million on March 31, the end of its fiscal year.
The company said marketable securities with a book value of $316 million now have a
market value of $199 million. The company also recorded unrealised gains on marketable
securities of $148 million on March 31. (Schednet)
FRONTLINE ACQUIRES MORE SHARES IN ICB SHIPPING AB
Frontline has acquired more shares in the Swedish shipping company ICB Shipping AB.
After this acquisition, Frontline controls 65 per cent of the shares and 39 per cent of the
votes in ICB Shipping AB. (Hugin)
5 MILLION DOLLAR PROFIT P&O STENA LINE
P&O Stena Line had a headline profit of 3.5 million pound ($5 million) for the first quarter
of 1999. As the company did not commence trading until 10 March 1998, it is not possible
to give comparable figures for prior years.
P&O Stena Line itself said it had an ‘excellent quarter’, because yields have increased
significantly for both tourist and freight traffic. Freight carryings were particularly strong;
and the medium and longer term outlook is highly positive.
P&O Stena Line transported 289,000 freight units and claimed a market share of 50 per
cent in trafic between UK and the European continent. Carryings and market share include
P&O Stena Line’s two routes – Dover/Calais and Dover/Zeebrugge (freight only) – and also
Newhaven/Dieppe until 31 January 1999 when it closed.
P&O Stena Line said: ‘Total freight market volumes continue to increase and this was
particularly noticeable in P&O Stena Line’s carryings. The price rise announced last
autumn was introduced on 1 January 1999 and has been applied across the board. The
loss making Newhaven-Dieppe route was closed on 31 January. This gave rise to a one-
off cost of closure of Ł10.4 million. The net effect on carryings was slight. (Cargoweb)
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APL PROCESSES HUNDREDS OF SERVICE CONTRACTS
WITH deregulation from today, APL, the global container transportation and logistics
provider, said it has negotiated and processed hundreds of service contracts for shippers
in the US trade lanes with Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America.
The new Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 1998 (OSRA), which comes into effect tomorrow,
encourages carriers and their customers to negotiate confidential service contracts. Of the
contracts APL has signed, the company said a number include confidentiality clauses at
the request of customers.
To negotiate and process these contracts effectively and efficiently requires new systems
and a complete overhaul of internal processes.
According to Peter Hinge, the company’s vice president for pricing, APL’s systems for
electronically pricing, managing and filing contracts with the Federal Maritime Commission
are “well oiled” and running at fully swing.
“There is no backlog here,” he said, noting that the company would be filing hundreds of
new contracts via the Internet with the FMC well ahead of tomorrow’s new regulation start
date.
APL said the new systems, all of which are already functioning smoothly, will support the
company’s pricing and contracting activities under the newly deregulated environment.
For customers who choose to ship at tariff rates, APL offers on its award-winning
interactive website, www.apl.com, the tariffs it formerly filed with the FMC. Under OSRA,
rates are no longer publicly filed with the FMC.
Customers can simply input origin, destination and commodity, and the rate will be
displayed. Mr Hinge said APL decided to continue to offer comprehensive tariffs,
particularly in the eastbound trans-Pacific trade lanes, in order to support shippers of
literally any commodity who may not wish to enter into service contracts.
APL’s proprietary Customer Tariff System (CTS) translates even the most complex
contracts into electronically readable data to enable automatic rating of bills-of-lading.
Mr Hinge noted that some of the new systems capabilities have been under development
for nearly two years. “The CTS and the automated rating of bills-of-lading were
implemented in December, 1997, in anticipation of the industry’s eventual deregulation,”
he said.
Internet-based filing of service contracts, a process APL has already used successfully
with the FMC, will enable APL’s contracts to be filed directly with that agency and to
become effective almost immediately following conclusion of negotiations.
Mr Hinge commented that the FMC “readily outdid itself in the way it responded positively
to industry suggestions to develop a simple and east-to-use contract-filing system.”
APL’s systems and processes have been modified so confidential information will be
available on a need-to-know basis only. (Schednet)
CARRIERS TO RESTORE RATES ON ASIA-CENTRAL AMERICA CARGOES
OTHER shipping companies are following the lead of Transportacion Maritima Mexicana
(TMM).
TMM will restore rates on ex-Japan/Mexico-bound cargo by US$500 per 40-foot container
on May 1. American President Lines (APL), which provides a joint service with TMM, and
Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) are planning to do the same. (Schednet)
COSCO SEES US TRAFFIC RISE
CHINA Ocean Shipping Co (COSCO) has become the sixth largest containership operator
in the US import and export trades. It was ranked eighth in 1997.
COSCO reported that its containerised traffic to the US rose to 457,000 TEUs last year, up
71.5 per cent from 1997.
The increase comes after new ships were introduced in the transpacific trade and on the
Asia/Suez/US east coast route. (Schednet)
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CANALS, PORTS AND STRUCTURES
ZIM COMPLETES MOVE TO PIER C
ZIM Container Service has completed its move to Stevedoring Services of America’s new
59-acre PCT Pier C facility at Long Beach.It formally launched operations at Pier C with
the arrival on March 30 of its first ship, Zim China.
Zim’s vessels had previously called at SSofA’s Pacific Container Terminal on Pier J, where
it shared the 110-acre facility with Cosco. The move to Pier C gives Zim room to expand
its service. Beginning in May, Zim is launching a second weekly fixed-day transpacific
service.
The Pier C facility was formerly leased by the port to Hanjin Shipping Co. Ltd.Hanjin
moved to a new 170-acre terminal on Pier A in late 1997. (Schednet)
BREMERHAVEN CONTAINER TERMINAL EXPANSION
The city council of Bremen has decided to consent to a plan for expansion of the container
terminal on the River Weser in Bremerhaven.
The quay will be lengthened by 340 meters in the direction of the North Sea. Thanks to
this, larger ships can be unloaded, also larger numbers of post-Panamax vessels.
This involves an investment of well over $ 100 million. In 2003 construction will have been
completed. In 1997, Bremerhaven already took 700 meters of new quayside into use, with
800,000 m2 of terminals.
EVERGREEN MOVES VANCOUVER OPERATIONS
Taiwan’s shipping company Evergreen will move operations in Canada’s Port of Vancouver
to Deltaport, starting from the end of April.
Deltaport is equipped with four post-Panamax cranes and has on-dock capability for two
7,000ft (approximately 2,130m) trains shipside. Adjacent is a 35-acre rail yard with four
sets of tracks, the largest rail facility in Vancouver. There is direct access to the Canadian
National Railway and Canadian Pacific Rail systems, eliminating the use of intermediate
third party rail operators and intermediate handling or grounding.
Among the expected improvements in service are fewer congestion delays, better
equipment control and better container tracking functionality for cargo inbound to and
outbound from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Manitoba and the Maritime provinces, Evergreen
said. (Cargoweb)
US UNVEILS HARBOUR MAINTENANCE FEE PROPOSAL
THE US government has sent advanced copies of the harbour maintenance fee proposal
to the port industry and congressional committees.
The proposal would raise almost US$1 billion a year for port projects, by imposing a new
tax on vessel operators
But the port industry and other proponents of the proposal say funding should come from
the US Treasury.
The proposal was drawn up to replace the Harbour Maintenance Tax which was declared
unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court in 1997. (Schednet)
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SHIPYARDS AND EQUIPMENT
CESA URGES FOR POLITICAL WILL
THE Committee of EU Shipbuilders’ Association (CESA) is urging its member
governments and other countries to defend the European shipbuilding industry.
This follows Kvaerner’s withdrawal from shipbuilding, which affects about 10,000 jobs and
13 shipyards in seven countries. Kvaerner made the harsh commercial decision due to
unprofitability caused by low prices in the global shipbuilding market.
CESA has been complaining about Korean efforts to achieve market share. “Due mainly to
their large capacity increases, prices from South Korean shipyards have been falling since
1992 as they have struggled to fill this additional, and unnecessary capacity,” CESA said in
a statement.
“It should now be clear that European shipbuilders are not just complaining to advance
their own interest in retaining subsidies but are drawing attention to real and serious
problems.”
P&O NEDLLOYD ORDERS FOUR 6,788-TEU SHIPS FROM KOREAN YARD
P&O NEDLLOYD has signed a contract for four containerships. The new vessels, each
with a capacity of 6,788 TEUs, including 710 reefer slots each, are to be built at the
Hyundai Shipyard in Korea.
Among the largest containerships in the world, they will be driven by the world’s most
powerful Hyundai-Sulzer diesel engines (89,640 BHP) which give a service speed of 25
knots.
The new order will bring the total number of ships of this size in the P&O Nedlloyd fleet to
a full string of eight.
The new ships, which will replace older vessels, are to be delivered between late 2000 and
the first half of 2001. They are planned to enter the Grand Alliance Asia-Europe services.
The ships will be owned by a number of banks and leased to P&O Nedlloyd on long-term
contracts.
Commenting on the new contract, P&O Nedlloyd director Rutger van Slobbe, said: “This
latest order demonstrates our satisfaction with the performance of our similar size
Southampton Class Vessels which have brought new standards of operational efficiency
and customer service to our regular Grand Alliance Asia-Europe loops. We are confident
that the new ships will further enhance the quality of service which we provide.”
BLOHM+VOSS WILL BUILD IN NORWAY
The German shipyard Blohm+Voss has said that they will build the Norwegian Navy
frigates in Norway if they win the NOK 12 billion contract with the Defence Department.
“We will build four frigates in Norway if we are awarded the contract. We have a
co-operative agreement with Fosen, but will also include Umoe Sterkoder for building the
frigates.” says Blohm+Voss spokesman, Bernd E. Wulfer.
Since the Nor-Eskort Group’s chances of getting the huge defence contract look thinner
and thinner, Mr. Wulfer hopes to entice the UMOE Group over to their side for a co-
operative deal. The German shipyard Blohm+Voss put in their tender to deliver five frigates
for the contract
sum of NOK 12 billion.
The first of the frigates would be built in Germany. Next week the Defence Department
begins negotiations with the Spanish shipyard Bazan, which is the only one who has said
they can build six frigates for the NOK 12 billion. (SI)