Shipping and Maritime

Australia - Wood Chip Exports

Annual Australian Woodchip Exports Down 21.3% Year-Ended April

By Tim Woods Managing Director of IndustryEdge (for Forest2Market's blog)

June 30, 2020 - Australia’s combined annual exports of hardwood and softwood woodchips for the twelve-months-ended April 2020 were recorded at 5.728 million bone dried metric tons (bdmt). Monthly export volumes began dropping around the middle of 2019 and have not been above the 500,000 bdmt mark since October 2019.

Hardwood chips make up the majority of Australian exports. Their annual volume fell 23.5% across the year to total 5.165 million bdmt, well below the 6 million bdmt per annum mark, and the lowest annual total since October 2015.

Always variable, total exports of softwood increased, albeit off a smaller base, up 7.8% compared to the prior 12 months, to total 562,335 bdmt for the year-ended April 2020.

The chart displays total woodchip exports on a monthly basis.

Australian Wood Chip Exports

Examined month-on-month, April 2020 saw the monthly export volumes decrease again, after a small lift in March. Combined exports of Hardwood and Softwood were recorded at 397,335 bdmt in April, (367,092 bdmt Hardwood, 30,243 bdmt Softwood). This monthly total sits well below the 477,296 bdmt average monthly export volume for the 12-months to April.

Based on our monitoring of ship movements, we anticipate May’s export volumes will be 342,675 bdmt. We project June’s exports will fall to 217,971 bdmt.

As the latest edition of Wood Market Edge was being finalized, IndustryEdge’s vessel tracking observed only three vessels in transit to Australia and one in port, with 8 departures anticipated in June.

The slowdown is definitely on. The question is how long it will last.

For more detailed analyses of the Australasian wood market, including specific export data and price movements, visit IndustryEdge

SOURCE: Forest2Market

 

Kuehne + Nagel Extends 2030 Net-Zero Carbon Goal to Include All Transport by Suppliers

Kuehne + Nagel The Kuehne+Nagel Group has published its Sustainability Report 2019. The company sets out its performance in the areas of environment, social and governance (ESG). The report follows the structure of the Global Reporting Initiative as well as the 17 goals for sustainable development of the United Nations.

Dr. Detlef Trefzger, CEO of Kuehne+Nagel International AG, says: "Sustainability is a social responsibility and is the duty of every individual. Following the successful completion of our environmental goals set ten years ago, we are now starting the next phase of our sustainability strategy. With our Net Zero Carbon programme, we are taking responsibility for sustainable logistics, hand in hand with our customers and partners".

The KN Green environmental programme initiated in 2010 was completed at the end of last year. All targets were reached or exceeded. Over the last ten years, Kuehne+Nagel was able to reduce the CO2 emissions of its own locations by an impressive 27%. The share of renewable energies in total electricity consumption was 18% and the recycling rate over the ten-year average was 77%. By the end of 2019, the area equipped with LED lighting technology corresponded to around 3.8 million sqm.

With Net Zero Carbon, Kuehne+Nagel has launched a sustainability programme for the next ten years. Kuehne+Nagel is playing a pioneering role in the logistics industry with this programme. By the end of 2020, the company's own CO2 emissions (Scopes 1 and 2 of the greenhouse gas protocol) will be neutral; by 2030, this will be extended to all transport by suppliers such as airlines, shipping lines and haulage companies (Scope 3). Net Zero Carbon leverages three fields of action: detection, reduction and compensation of CO2.

Kuehne+Nagel is a member of SXI Switzerland Sustainability 25, the most important sustainability index in Switzerland. In addition, the company was awarded the prestigious EcoVadis Gold status.

About Kuehne+Nagel

With over 83,000 employees at 1,400 locations in over 100 countries, the Kuehne + Nagel Group is one of the world's leading logistics companies. Its strong market position lies in Sea Logistics, Air Logistics, Road Logistics and Contract Logistics, with a clear focus on integrated logistics solutions.

SOURCE: Kuehne+Nagel

 

A.P. Moller - Maersk Updates Expectations to Volumes and EBITDA for Q2 2020

AP-Moller-MaerskCopenhagen, 17 June 2020 - Based on the market development, combined with cost measures across the organisation and significant blanked sailings in Ocean, A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S (APMM) expects an EBITDA before restructuring and integration costs for Q2 2020 slightly above the level for Q1 2020 (USD 1.5bn).

With the current trading, the market demand in the second quarter of 2020 is developing more favourable than orginally expected with volumes downfall for APMM now anticipated to be in the range of -15% to -18% for Q2 2020, compared to the intial guidance of -20% to -25%.

Given the uncertainty on demand recovery in the second half of 2020 as economies are still impacted by COVID-19, the full-year guidance on earnings remains suspended.

Søren Skou, CEO of A.P. Moller - Maersk, said, “Despite an expected 15-18 pct. drop in demand due to Covid-19 during the second quarter, I am pleased that we expect to deliver operating earnings slightly above our operating earnings in the first quarter. This also means we expect operating earnings to be higher than they were in the same quarter last year.

“We have been able to navigate well in a very difficult second quarter, adjusting capacity to demand to maintain high utilization of our network and managing our cost across the company. This quarter follows a first quarter where we also delivered year-on-year earnings growth despite 5 pct. lower demand and sharply increasing fuel cost as a result of the switch to low Sulphur fuel on 1 January.

“While uncertainty persist because of the pandemic and low visibility on the recovery path, we benefit from a more resilient Ocean-business.”

A.P. Moller - Maersk is an integrated container logistics company working to connect and simplify its customers’ supply chains. The company operates in 130 countries and employs roughly 80,000 people.

SOURCE: A.P. Moller - Maersk

 

BG Freight

BG Freight Line Introduces Tri-weekly Dublin-Liverpool Service to Meet Growing Demand in the Irish Sea

June 17, 2020 - BG Freight Line has taken a positive step by adding an additional weekly service call to meet the growing demands of container traffic between Liverpool and the Irish Sea hub.

The newly announced service will call between Liverpool and Dublin on a tri-weekly basis, ensuring a regular facility to the meet the dynamic needs of each customer in the fast-paced environment of short-sea shipping.

BG Freight Line, part of the Peel Ports Group, provides a comprehensive range of logistics services to and from Ireland, the UK and continental Europe. These services include door-to-door shipping, feedering and quay-to-quay shipping for all types of containerised cargo.

Koert Luitwieler, CEO, BG Freight Line, said: “Our sailing schedule is amongst the best in the business and as part of the Peel Ports Group, we are able to offer the assurance to our customers that we are both an established and reliable partner.

“We are always looking for new growth opportunities and adding another service to the Dublin – Liverpool route will strengthen our excellent Irish Sea network even further. The extra call in Liverpool allows us to meet the demands of our customer, giving them greater flexibility to move last minute cargo closer to its end destination in an ever-changing landscape”.

David Huck, Managing Director, Peel Ports said: “We are delighted to welcome this extra weekly service as it reinforces the strategic importance of this route, as well as our ambition and commitment to provide the seamless movement of goods between Dublin and Liverpool.

“During these uncertain times, it’s imperative that we remain agile for our customers and remain customer-focussed to find a fast solution that ensures cargo, especially essential supplies reaches its destination on time”.

The Port of Liverpool is ideally positioned to be at the heart of a distribution network for UK and Irish markets. The Port is adept at offering innovative and sustainable solutions for warehousing, manufacturing and retail industries, connecting the UK’s major conurbations to both the Irish Sea Hub and beyond.

SOURCE: Peel Ports

 

G2 Ocean

G2 Ocean to Take Part in USD 20 Million Automation Project

June 15, 2020 - G2 Ocean is partnering up with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and 22 maritime industry partners to study safe methods and technology for enabling ship automation.

On June 12, 2020, The Research Council of Norway announced that is awarding more than USD 20 million to Norwegian research project Safe Autonomous Ships (SFI Autoship). The strategic research project studies methods and technology for enabling safe and secure autonomous operations of maritime vessels.

The aim of the project is to ensure that Norwegian players take a leading role in the development of ship automation, especially within the areas of technology, business models and security.

G2 Ocean and one of its owners, Grieg Star, are two of the 22 partners involved in the project.

“This is an exciting collaboration between world-leading researchers and industry partners. Developing partnerships and supporting knowledge sharing is important to drive the maritime industry towards a digital future,” says Vice President Project Cargo & Innovation Leif Arne Strømmen.

Autonomous cargo handling

The development of autonomation is gaining increasing attention in the maritime industry both nationally and internationally.

G2 Ocean’s participation in the project is mainly related to autonomous cargo handling as this is expected to expand in the future.

“The largest cost to the shipowner, apart from bunkers, is the vessel’s time in port. Over the years, we expect to see more ports with 24 hours working time through better automation, without increasing labour requirements but significantly improving their safety,” VP Operations Phil Curran says.

The project’s academic focus areas include:

  • Innovations in enabling technologies, such as situation awareness, artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, simulation, and testing.
  • New business models and operational concepts for the use of autonomous vessels.
  • Guaranteeing safety and security of using autonomous ships.

About G2 Ocean

G2 Ocean is a joint venture of two of the world’s leading breakbulk and bulk shipping companies: Gearbulk and Grieg Star. The company operates the largest fleet of open hatch vessels worldwide, in addition to a substantial fleet of conventional bulk carriers. For further information, visit: www.g2ocean.com

SOURCE: G2 Ocean

 
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