Commodity Online
Mercator Lines Limiited, India's 2nd largest private sector shipping company (in terms of tonnage) has acquired 1993 built MR Tanker of 42,235 DWT. Similar type of vessel was acquired in December '09. Cost of acquisition of both the vessels was about Rs 83 cr, which was financed through mix of debt and internal accruals. Both the vessels have been deployed gainfully immediately after acquisitions.

Further, the Singapore based subsidiary Mercator Lines (Singapore) Ltd. Listed on SGX has recently contracted to purchase a modern gearless Panamax Dry bulk carrier for approximately Rs. 175 Cr. The vessel is less than 3 years old, built in 2007 and has a capacity of about 74,483 DWT. The vessel is expected to join the fleet in April/May 2010 with an attached charter with a reputed company for a period of 3 years of an aggregate amount of about Rs. 110 cr. Mercator Lines has an uninterrupted dividend record since its listing on the Stock Exchange in 1993.

NA 2010: The largest logistics show of North America
The 2010 North American Material Handling and Logistics show hopes to provide exceptional opportunity to learn directly from industry experts the trends in the industry. This year’s program, focused on the latest equipment and technology innovations and trends, provides unparalleled educational and networking opportunities to manufacturing, distribution, and supply chain professionals. It also spotlights several important areas driving change in business today – supply chain sustainability, workforce, training and retail distribution, according to a press release.

The NA 2010 Knowledge Center  is lead by more than 50 experts with 45-minute sessions conveying a broad array of manufacturing and distribution topics.  Keynote Seminar Series  from Monday & Tuesday, April 26 and 27, 2010 -will address the  future track for sustainability, training, retail distribution, and workforce. Speakers will offer their unique market insights and innovative solutions to these important supply chain issues. They will feature how a Crate and Barrel DC became the largest industrial facility in US to achieve LEED Gold designation and more.

Supply Chain Summit —Wednesday afternoon, April 28, 2010  brings together four distinct views of the supply chain from industry, the military, universities and government. Gain from their insight into today’s supply chains and discover how they will mold and shape leading supply chain models of the future. You’ll learn first hand the impact of these supply chain shifts on your business. In addition to their presentations, attendees will be able to network with their peers and talk directly with Summit speakers during the reception following the full afternoon event, the press release said.

NA 2010 is sponsored by Material Handling Industry of America (MHIA). MHIA is an international trade association that has represented the material handling & logistics industry since 1945.

SFL ties up with leading international banks to refinancing
Ship Finance International Limited (NYSE: SFL) has announced that it has agreed with a syndicate of leading international banks to upsize the planned refinancing of 26 vessels on charter to Frontline by $50 million to $725 million.

The background for the increase is the significant oversubscription in the banking market, combined with conservative leverage on underlying asset values. The upsize will not affect other terms and closing of the refinancing is expected to be finalized within March 2010. In addition, the Company announced that is has today taken delivery of the newbuilding Suezmax Everbright from the shipyard. This is a sister vessel of the Suezmax Glorycrown which was delivered from the shipyard in November 2009, and both vessel are employed on 5-year bareboat charters to an affiliate of North China Shipping Holdings Co. Ltd. ("North China")

The delivered cost price per vessel is approximately $70 million, and Ship Finance has received $40.5 million net upfront per vessel from North China. In addition, the Company has secured $42.6 million financing per vessel, and the net effect of this is a significant positive cash contribution. There was a book gain of approximately $24.5 million relating to the delivery of the first vessel in the fourth quarter, and we expect a similar effect also with respect to the delivery of the second vessel in this quarter.
Ship Finance has also agreed to sell the single-hull VLCC Golden River to an unrelated third party for a net sales price of approximately $12.6 million. Delivery to the new owner is expected to take place in April 2010, and Ship Finance will receive net cash proceeds of approximately $4.7 million after prepayment of associated debt and compensation to Frontline for the termination of the current charter.

The reduction of the single-hull tanker exposure is in line with the Company's strategy of focusing on modern assets in various shipping and offshore segments. Following this sale, and excluding one vessel previously announced sold on hire/purchase terms, Ship Finance will have only five non-double hull crude oil tankers remaining in the fleet.

Ole B. Hjertaker, CEO in Ship Finance Management AS, said in a comment: "The increase in the loan facility amount demonstrates our standing in the bank market, and the additional $50 million will further strengthen our ability to take advantage of opportunities that may arise. In our view, access to both attractively priced capital and deal opportunities will be instrumental in our efforts to continue our accretive growth and building the distribution capacity. We are also very pleased with the delivery of the second newbuilding Suezmax to North China. In addition to a significant positive cash contribution, we are also building our charter backlog with quality."

LNG as alternative ship fuel
LNG is emerging as a viable alternative to heavy fuel oil in ships,according to experts who participated in a recent GL First Class Exchange Forum at Hamburg, Yourshipbuildingnews.com reported. Maritime industry needs to work out measures to reduce environmental impact while remaining competitive or even better, save costs, Torsten Schramm, COO of GL's Maritime Services commented. He said heavy fuel oil has its merits cost wise but contributes to a rather negative image for shipping.

Dr. Pierre C. Sames, GL's Senior Vice President Strategic Research and Development, mentioned that there appears to be general consensus on developing gas engines that can be used on vessels operating regular or shorter routes. Coastal shipping, which accounts for more than 33% of the world's fleet, will be subject to more stringent controls than liner container vessels. "LNG fuel is a viable alternative to heavy fuel oil,"he said. The environmental benefits of LNG as a fuel are well documented, with zero sulphur-oxide emissions and much lower CO2 as well as significantly reduced nitrogen-oxide and particle emissions compared to standard marine fuels. "Coastal traffic can benefit from LNG fuel, especially as regional emission control areas are tightened or coming into force."

More than 140 experts from all over Europe gathered at GL's new head office in Hamburg to discuss the status and trends of using gas as ship fuel. The opportunity to analyse the implication of LNG as ship fuel correlates with discussions at IMO. Its sub-committee on Bulk Liquids and Gases (BLG) is working on new regulations to meet present demands for safety standards in the use of natural gas as a marine fuel. Interim guidelines by IMO are available in June 2010 and the IGF-Code is planned to enter into force with the SOLAS 2014 revision.

Gulf of Aden-- the Pirate Alley'
Piracy continues to be a concern for containers ships going through Gulf of Aden, nicknamed the 'Pirate Alley' accoridng to Allison Cross, reporting for Canwest News Service. He has quoted Cmdr. Steve Waddell, Captain of HMCS Fredericton as saying that upwards of 70 vessels travel through Gulf of Aden and into the Red Sea towards Suez Canal and large portion of these is bound for Canada. Heavy ransom is often paie dot release captors.Cmdr Waddell says that if maritime security is not assured on international waters through the deployment of ships, pirates are going to have an easy time. The Fredericton is currently focused on preventing terrorism off the coast of Yemen under the command of Combined Task Force 150, a multinational coalition of navies, but is obliged to intervene if it comes across an act of piracy.Although the Fredericton has since switched from its counter-piracy mission to focus on counter-terrorism in the same region, acts of piracy continue to plague the waters surrounding Yemen and Somalia, the report said.

China has just begun its fifth mission to the region. The European Union is also conducting a mission, one of the goals of which is to ensure World Food Programme shipments arrive safely in Somalia. The Fredericton's six-month deployment to the region is near completion and the ship is scheduled to return to Halifax in May.

Orient Overseas Intl suffers $401 mn losses in 2009
Orient Overseas International, one of Asia's biggest container shipping companies has posted losses of $401 mn for 2009, Financial Times reported. CC Tung, whose family controls the Hong Kong listed company is depressed about the assessment of the sector in 2010 and ahead with economic recovery and consumer demand expected to be sluggish. The excess ships would have to be absorbed over the next three to four years, he told FT.

Prices would fall further if operators brought currently idle ships – which account for about 10 per cent of current world capacity – back into service too quickly. “An imprudent reintroduction of capacity currently idling or laid up, if mismatched to demand, could see fresh rounds of rate cutting,” Tung told FT.

OOIL owns OOCL, which operates the world’s 13th-largest container ship fleet and was for many years consistently among the sector’s most profitable large operators. Senior container shipping executives are sharply divided between pessimists over the sector’s immediate outlook and those who insist the industry has now pulled through the worst crisis in its 53-year history, the FT report added. A number of shipping lines have all needed emergency rescue packages to survive the slump caused by falling traffic and a huge oversupply of ships, the FT report noted.

Neptune Orient plans to boost capacity by 7%
Neptune Orient Lines Ltd., owner of Southeast Asia’s largest container line, plans to boost capacity about 7 percent this year as a rebounding global economy revives trade and freight rates, Bloomberg reported. The report quoting Chief Executive Officer, Ron Widdows said that it will charter as many as 10 vessels thisy year, each with a capacity of as much as 6000 standard twenty-foot equivalent boxes. It also plans to return its last 10 idled ships to service by about June. The Bloomberg quoting Drewry Shipping Consultants said that container lines lost close to $20 bn in 2009 due to slump in trade, overcapacity and price wars,

APL Ltd., Neptune's container-shipping unit, posted the biggest monthly traffic jump in at least six years in January as U.S. and European retailers restocked amid easing job concerns. Industrywide volumes on transpacific routes will likely rise as much as 5 percent this year, with Asia-Europe demand growing even faster, Widdows said.

RDPL holds supply chain management software event
RDPL which develops supply chain management software recently organizes a quarterly event namely APPS User Conference. It brings together APPS Users and provides them with updates on the latest features. It further provides users the opportunity to interact and learn from their peers in the industry.

RDPL Garment Software that is used in designing, production and order processing of garments by garment manufacturers and importers. This cutting edge software manages and entire life cycle of garment production and distribution. Being web enabled, the software provides remote or easy access. In fact, this software is divided into various modules such as production, admin, fabric, cutting, trimming, warehouse, store, and payable utilities. In addition, product sampling and sourcing gets easier owing to the exclusive features of the software.

Streamlining the total process cycle in garment industry garment ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) is a web based software. It provides end-to-end software solutions for garment manufacturers, importers and exporters. This modular software package encompasses different modules from inventory, purchase, production, packing, billing and outsourcing. Providing better business process management this software provides high return on investments taking care of high degree of variables in apparel manufacturing.

RDPL develops supply chain management software with user friendly application. Its easy navigation and quick downloading features makes it's a preferred choice across different industry verticals. Efficient in managing and compiling data in an effective manner, this software streamlines the entire supply chain. Besides, ensuring total software solutions this cutting edge software is available with order placement screen, supplier access screen etc.

Owing to its dedicated efforts, RDPL has nurtured strong business associates and a broad client base all across the country and abroad. Providing end-to-end solutions to the esteemed customers, it is engaged in software development, website development, ERP, digital marketing, technical support and IT outsourcing. www.rdplapps.com showcases the different various cost effective software solutions services offered by RDPL that proves beneficial for assured business profits, a press release said.

China Shipping Container Line agrees to pay penalties to FMC
China Shipping Container Line and three other freight forwarders have agreed to pay $625,000 in penalties to the US Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) for alleged violations of the US Shipping Act of 1984 according to a repot in Manila Bulletin Publishing Corporation (www.mb.com.ph)

The compromise agreements resulted from investigations conducted by the FMC's area representatives in Los Angeles, Seattle, South Florida, and Washington, D.C. Staff attorneys with the Bureau of Enforcement negotiated the compromise agreements. The parties settled and paid penalties, but did not admit to violations of the Act or the Commission's regulations.

Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Richard A. Lidinsky, Jr. praised the Commission's Area Representatives and Bureau of Enforcement for their hard work protecting competition and the shipping public: "These penalties should serve as a reminder to any carriers or intermediaries who may be tempted to disregard the Commission's rules against unfair or deceptive practices. The Federal Maritime Commission's team on the front lines will be vigilant in protecting the emerging green shoots of recovery in the ocean shipping industry, international trade, and the larger economy."

China Shipping Container Line, an ocean common carrier headquartered in Shanghai and controlled by the government of China agreed to pay $440,000 as part of a compromise agreement.

That agreement settled alleged violations of the Shipping Act of 1984 that involved more than 1,000 shipments over four years. These alleged violations included providing transportation services to intermediaries that did not have tariffs, licenses, or bonds as required by the statute; misdescribing cargo they shipped; allowing use of service contracts by persons who were not parties to those contracts; and providing transportation that was not in accordance with the rates and charges set forth in published tariffs.

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