“We are enthusiastic about expanding our already strong footprint in Africa with this new order to ESLSE. We look forward to actively support and be part of their expansion plans and are confident that our machines will meet their requirements and boost productivity,” says Andreas Falk, Sales Director IMEA at Konecranes. The twenty-three forklifts are made up of SMV 10-1200Bs, SMV 15- 1200Bs, SMV 20-1200Bs, SMV 25-1200Bs and SMV28-1200Bs. The machines will operate in Djibouti, the main coastal port of Ethiopia, as well as at the dry port of Modjo. Konecranes fork lift trucks ready for shipment to Ethiopia. Djibouti serves as the principle import/export hub for Ethiopia, handling general cargo and an annual container throughput of 800,000 TEU. Dry port Modjo is situated 800km from Dijbouti. Containers are transported by trucks from Djibouti to the dry port at Modjo for onward distribution. Ethiopian Shipping and Logistics Services Enterprise (ESLSE)

is a state-owned enterprise and was established to provide shipping and logistics services within the country. They will take delivery of the equipment in April 2014, a swift 12 weeks after finalization of the contract. The first lift trucks are now being shipped from the Konecranes production unit Markaryd, Sweden. Mr Ahmed Tusa, Chief Executive Officer of ESLSE, commented that ESLSE is pleased to have reached this agreement with Konecranes. “During the evaluation process Konecranes proved to be the most suitable supplier for our heavy fork lift trucks operation. The lift trucks will play a crucial role in increasing the efficiency of cargo handling both at the Djibouti port and at the dry port at Modjo”, he said.

Lowest Total Cost of Ownership

The heavy duty fork lift trucks to be delivered are designed for demanding operations in tropical climates. They are equipped with load-sensing hydraulic systems, a state of the art control system, heavy duty chassis and lift masts and accessories for handling various types of goods; making it the hardest working lift truck in the world. The design of Konecranes equipment provides customers with low fuel consumption and performance at the bottom line: the lowest total cost of ownership.

Picture taken outside Konecranes manufacturing facility in Markaryd, Sweden. Photo shows: (Left to right) Andreas Falk, Sales Director IMEA, Konecranes and Ahmed Tusa, Chief Executive Officer of ESLSE.

Looking forward, Ben Hackett of Hackett Associates warns: “As the ECB cuts its interest rate to 0.5 per cent (…), the demand side of the equation is firmly in the hands of the consumer.” Still, the growth of container trade (as opposed to the handling which also includes empties and trans-shipment) is expected to accelerate in 2014 for both imports (2013: +2.2 %; 2014f: +3.9 %) and exports (2013: +1.6 %; 2014f: +3.4 %). Looking at the total level of boxes handled in the ports (including those that are empty or trans-shipment), ISL’s economist Dr  Sönke Maatsch predicts that all in all, the North Range ports will be handling 3.3 % more TEU in 2014, finally breaking the 40 million TEU threshold driven by a more robust economic performance. The handling growth will appear at different paces though. Hackett Associates and ISL expect that the Belgian ports Antwerp and Zeebrugge will be able to defend most of the market shares gained during the course of 2013, hence growing at rates of 7.1 % respectively 7.6 %. The ports of Rotterdam, Le Havre and Bremerhaven are expected to grow but at rates below 1 %. Rotterdam is expected to re-conquer some of the market shares it has lost during 2013 with the opening of the Rotterdam World Gateway in the second half of the year. Last but not least, Hamburg is more or less expected to grow in line with the market average: 3.4 %. “All in all, the considerable shifts of volumes between ports that make forecasting so difficult show that capacity utilization is still comparatively low”, concludes

Maatsch.

The innovative new cargo transfer terminal off Louisiana’s Gulf Coast will be the largest deep-water port in the United States and will cater to the new classes of larger, more economical ships. The port will enhance America’s international trade capabilities. LIGTT Project Company expects the new port to generate more than 33,000 jobs in Louisiana and Mississippi.

“This terminal will increase America’s shipping efficiency by accommodating the larger vessels to come through the expanded Panama Canal, as well as the even-larger Super Post-Panamax vessels currently in operation,” said Patrick Harvey, principal of LIGTT Project Company LLC. “It will also expand America’s shipping capacity by using a hub-and-spoke system to transport goods to and from America’s heartland via the Mississippi River and its tributaries. Given the high-level nature of this project, we’re glad to have such a world-class partner in Bechtel, a company synonymous with quality.”

Bechtel has already begun pre-construction work for the 250-acre deep-water port and will provide preliminary services for overseeing the design and permitting of the facility. The company also will prepare for early procurement and terminal operator integration.

“This is an innovative infrastructure project that will help the United States in the Post-Panamax era, by enabling the nation to handle the larger ships of tomorrow, while increasing the utilization and efficiency of our extensive inland waterway system,” said Walker Kimball, managing director of Bechtel’s global infrastructure business.  “We will build on our long-term presence in the Gulf Coast region to support the development of job creation and training programs, with an emphasis on hiring veterans,” he said. “We look forward to working with LIGTT Project Company on this important project.”

Bechtel has overseen more than 80 port and harbor projects across the world, including 28 in the last decade. Notable projects include Jubail Port (Saudi Arabia), Port of Los Angeles Container Port (USA), Hay Point Coal Terminal (Australia), and the recently completed Khalifa Port (UAE).

This potential win-win initiative, with a clear commercial and business focus, was a chance for business owners from the Canaries and the two port communities to pool their strengths and look for synergies to start up new services and new traffic.

Connectivity to the Iberian Peninsula and Europe

The Port of Barcelona offers the Canary Islands’ importers-exporters and logistics operators excellent infrastructures and connectivity, providing access to the markets of the Spanish mainland and Europe, thanks to its privileged geographical position, rail services that link up to an extensive inland market, and the fact that is the only Spanish port with direct rail connections to Europe.

Barcelona is a powerful distribution centre for fresh products from the Canary Islands such as bananas and tomatoes. The Port offers regular, safe and reliable connections with strategic markets for the distribution of perishable goods, such as Mercabarna, Mercamadrid, Mercazaragoza, and large European markets such as St. Charles (Perpignan) and Rungis (Paris).

The Port also offers a wide range of shipping lines with the Far East and Short Sea Shipping services offering daily connections with destinations in Italy and North Africa, making it a hub for cargo coming from or going to the Canary Islands.

Other services and benefits presented by Barcelona include its enlargement project, its container terminals (currently in the midst of their own extension programme), and its customer orientation, which has led to a wide range of value-added services, such as the Efficiency Network quality label.

Links to West Africa

The ports of the Canary Island, especially Las Palmas, offer Catalan operators with valuable maritime and commercial ties with West Africa and very good connections with Latin America. Aside from mineral traffic from Mauritania to Europe, for which it acts as a distribution hub, the port of Las Palmas is developing a new line of business focusing on Ro-Ro traffic with African ports. In this connection, representatives of both ports have begun work to establish synergies that will help to increase traffic and provide growth to their economic environments.

The business relationship between Barcelona and the ports of the Canary Islands has a long tradition, with the first regular service established in the nineteenth century, and today involves five shipping lines (four for containers and one for goods on trucks) operated by six shipping companies. The managers and senior representatives of these companies (Boluda, WEC Lines, NISA, JSV, OPDR and Flota Suardíaz) were also involved in these presentations to help create new traffic and generate business.