Delivering debate
Friday 9 May 2008
ANOTHER month, another IMO committee, another address by the secretary-general, another swathe of regulations to be agreed and adopted.
This week’s Maritime Safety Committee feels a lot like MEPC, with too many agenda items chasing too little time. As MEPC proved, IMO can get work done when it needs to, but there is also a tinge of the student leaving things to the last minute.
This time, the hot potato is Long Range Identification and Tracking, a system that many member states do not want and fewer still want to pay for, but which has a drop-dead implementation date a little over six months away.
Efthimios Mitropoulos made clear in his opening address that the IMO’s history of delivery demanded another demonstration, but as some members regularly complain, every item is these days considered urgent. They also grumble that they and the industry are being asked to pay for the security requirements of one country rather than for a system that is a global benefit to all nations.
Hapag-Lloyd - the real loser in tug of war
Thursday 8 May 2008
TUI chief executive Michael Frenzel has been a hard nut to crack for many unhappy shareholders since he took the helm at the group in 1994. Thwarting John Fredriksen’s first appearance in the German corporate landscape is only likely to bolster this reputation. The Tui AGM voted down Mr Fredriksen’s motion for a resignation...
Lighthouses under spotlight
By Janet Porter
Thursday 8 May 2008
SHIPOWNERS face two formidable foes of history and politics in their campaign for a reform of the general lighthouse authorities responsible for providing navigational aids around the British Isles, and the fees charged for this service. The controversial issue of light dues levied on ships calling at ports in the UIK and...
Tradition lives on
By Julian Bray
Wednesday 7 May 2008
THE more things change, the more they stay the same. So it seems in the shipping markets this week with two fascinating factoids for the news junkies. First to catch the eye were reports from Hong Kong that venerable shipping group Wah Kwong planned a return to the market after nearly a decade’s absence with a $200m-$300m...
Weighting game
Friday 2 May 2008
TWICE in as many weeks we have heard calls for greater transparency on the weight of containerised cargo. Weighing every container before it is loaded might be a practical difficulty at present but the argument for better information on the weight of container contents can only get stronger. Classification societies commenting...
Talent spotting
By Janet Porter
Thursday 1 May 2008
WILL container freight rates move up, down or sideways when the conference system ends later this year? Is further consolidation inevitable or unlikely? Has the industry over-ordered new ships or judged future demand correctly? Will niche carriers struggle or flourish under the new regulatory regime? Is liner shipping a service...
Blue sea thinking
By Julian Bray
Wednesday 30 April 2008
FEW could have predicted that this week freight rates would reach a record high for the year. The Baltic Exchange Dry Index touched 9,344 earlier this week, up 39% since it hit a low in January. The benchmark dry freight index is now within 2,000 points of its all-time record of 11,039 reached last November. With such...




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