Insight and Opinion – Page 30
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NewsJoining the LNG fuel train
COMMENT: LNG propulsion for vessels large and small is probably the biggest shipping ‘story’ of 2014 - the trade press and conference circuit are bubbling over with news of new projects, writes Barry Parker.
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News
The Ukrainian port bubble
COMMENT: Attending a conference in Odessa in September on the topic of the Black Sea ports and trade was like being in a bubble of peace and prosperity, writes Ben Hackett.
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NewsBig sets the agenda
COMMENT: The ongoing influx of ultra large container carriers has led to a new phase of port congestion in Europe and Asia, writes Mike Mundy.
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NewsManila shows how not to do it
COMMENT: It’s a mess in Manila: empty boxes have been left to languish on the docks, trucks have been blocking up the highways and extreme, disconnected measures have caused a catalogue of knock on effects, writes Carly Fields.
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NewsIn the slow lane
There is now serious doubt that Nigeria’s new Ports and Harbour Bill, the new legislation intended to ‘right the wrongs’ of the earlier comprehensive port concession process, will be enacted in the current term of President Goodluck Jonathan due to end in 2015.
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NewsNigeria's new regulator
COMMENT: In the wake of numerous complaints by port users to government, Nigeria has taken the interesting step of appointing the Nigeria Shippers’ Council as an arm’s length Economic Port Regulator, writes Mike Mundy.
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NewsGhana ups the ante
COMMENT: Ghana has added its name to the growing list of ports along the West African coast which have firm plans to add new deepwater capacity.
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NewsValue of schedule reliability
COMMENT: The value of schedule reliability for shippers is clear and widely understood; recent congestion concerns in North European ports, especially Hamburg and Rotterdam, have now highlighted the value of schedule reliability for terminal operators as well, writes Peter de Langen.
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NewsThe idiosyncrasies of economics
COMMENT: The life of an economist is truly challenging. We are always blamed for getting things wrong and accused of finding great excuses of why we should have been on the mark with our projections. When if we get things right it is rarely remembered for long, writes Ben Hackett.
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NewsLifting local spirits
COMMENT: The traffic reports on New York area drive-time radio have revealed that the Bayonne Bridge will be seeing closures on weekends and during overnight hours, as work continues on the ''Raise the Roadway'' project, writes Barry Parker.
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NewsPorts must be prepared for every eventuality
COMMENT: It seems like it was only yesterday that we were discussing the heavy burden of overcapacity in Northern European ports, but today those same hubs now face the other extreme of too much traffic and what to do with it all, writes Carly Fields.
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NewsDeeper dredging demands
New deeper draft vessels keep coming, as do vessels with a wider beam and length overall dictating the need for deeper channel depth and draft alongside quays as well as other requirements such as larger turning circles.
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NewsConcession challenges apply worldwide
COMMENT: I recently had the opportunity to discuss the challenges in granting concessions with a large number of port authorities in West and Central Africa, writes Peter de Langen.
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Heading for a new economic crisis
China has scuttled the development of super alliances with its negative decision on the P3 whose rationale was for joint fleet management by the top three carriers which would have resulted in a reduction of capacity, which in turn would lead to a rise in freight rates.
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NewsGet to the truth of it
COMMENT: ''Spin'' – what can be called bending facts to suit your own purposes – is no longer confined to governments and large commercial organisations, writes MIke Mundy.
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NewsTaking a unexpected dip
COMMENT: The temptation for this week’s comment is to write about the unfolding dramas on the US West Coast as the collective bargaining agreement circus rolls into town, writes Carly Fields.
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NewsQuestioning port funding attractiveness
COMMENT: One of the most sobering presentations at this year’s Marine Money conference, always held in the hottest days of June, was given by container shipping man Ron Widdows, writes Barry Parker.
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NewsUneven growth dampens spirits
COMMENT: The European Commission has predicted low inflation will remain a threat to euro-area expansion for at least the next two years as it trimmed its economic-growth forecast and warned of the impact of tensions with Russia - but this is tempered by uneven performance among the members, writes Ben ...
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NewsUncertain growth calls for flexible planning
COMMENT: Port planning and development is required to ensure future throughput volumes can be accommodated, on that much we can all agree, writes Peter de Langen.
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NewsCargo is still king
COMMENT: Across the Hudson from downtown New York, the big news in May was the arrival of three huge cranes from ZPMC at the Port Newark Container Terminal, writes Barry Parker.
