Maersk cuts workforce by 10,000 as earnings turn negative
Danish shipping giant Maersk has announced it will cut a further 3,500 jobs as earnings for its core container shipping business plunged into negative territory in the third quarter. The move will bring the total job cuts since early 2023 to 10,000 positions. The company said up to 2,500 roles will be eliminated in the coming months, with the remainder in 2024.
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EU ETS to include calls at Tanger Med and East Port Said
The European Commission agreed to include containership port calls at the Moroccan port of Tanger Med and Egypt’s Port Said East as part of its Emissions Trading System, as the bloc seeks to tackle evasive port calls ahead of the system’s implementation in two months, according to a press release. The commission adopted a delegated act to identify Tanger Med and Port Said East as neighboring container transshipment ports, which means that boxships sailing from a non-EU port to discharge cargo at an EU port via Tanger Med or East Port Said will still pay for 50% of the emissions of this voyage despite calling at a non-EU port. A port located less than 300 nautical miles from an EU port can be identified as a neighboring container transshipment port if the transshipment of containers at that port exceeds 65% of its total container traffic.
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Box terminal giants join up to push electrification agenda
APM Terminals and DP World have joined forces to drive forward the electrification of container terminal handling equipment. A new White Paper commissioned by the two global terminal operators seeks to accelerate the decarbonization of the world’s terminals through the widespread electrification of container handling equipment. One of the key findings of the White Paper is that the 1,000-plus container terminals in the world using diesel equipment emit 10m-15m tonnes of CO2. The two companies also call on governments and port authorities to incentivize the move to electric, making it a requirement when new concessions are granted and existing ones are renewed.
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Southeast Asia LNG bunkering picks up on lower prices, says analyst
LNG bunkering has picked up in Singapore and Malaysia this year as gas prices fall, making it more competitive with conventional fuel. Rystad Energy senior analyst Lu Ming Pang said as LNG prices have started to come down slightly from their 2022 highs, driven by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, “there is definitely more conversation in Southeast Asia as this is a typically more price-sensitive region.” Lu said LNG bunkering was a competitive alternative to traditional bunker oil prices, which remain high because of high oil and oil derivative prices. LNG East Asia spot prices at $10 per m Btu (British thermal unit) and $17.91 per m Btu were cheaper than marine gas oil at $22.03 per m Btu.
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Yara and North Sea Container Line form joint venture for ‘world‘s first’ ammonia-powered boxship
Ammonia producer Yara Clean Ammonia and North Sea Container Line formed a joint venture to long-term charter an ammonia-fuelled containership newbuilding for service between Norway and Germany. The vessel will operate between Oslo, Brevik, Hamburg, and Bremerhaven with the base cargo, said to represent 40% of the vessel’s capacity, being bagged fertilizer from Yara, Bente Hetland, North Sea Container Line’s chief executive added.
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Shipowners shift antitrust campaign to UK after EU loss
Shipowners are lobbying the UK government not to follow the EU’s decision earlier this month to end its consortia block exemption regulation, allowing container lines to avoid elements of antitrust law. The World Shipping Council and the Asian Shipowners’ Association have urged the UK to retain its bloc exemption from antitrust rules for shipping consortia, which is due to expire in April 2024, pending a review by the UK Competition and Markets Authority. In a letter to the CMA, the WSC and ASA argue that the EU’s decision to end its exemption was based on the reasoning that it was “deeply flawed and incoherent” and its findings were “unsound.”
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Shipping emissions data-sharing initiative launched by DNV, GSBN
Trustworthy data at the shipment level is vital for customers to participate in decarbonizing container shipping as the industry faces tightening environmental regulations, according to classification society DNV and the Global Shipping Business Network (GSBN). The two entities formed a partnership on 30 October aimed at improving the sharing of verifiable emissions data across the shipping supply chain and accelerating the use of alternative fuels. According to a memorandum of understanding, DNV and GSBN will collaborate to conduct pilot programs with GSBN’s existing shipping line members to connect verified shipment data from DNV to issue reliable and accountable green claims to end users.
Read more: JOC
