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Week 11, 2020 (Mar 7 - Mar 13)

Policy & Economy News

Low prices of crude seen as demand driver for India

Technology in sunrise sectors key to achieving 9-10 pc growth, says NITI Aayog CEO

Business News - The India Boom Factor

Spice export value up 3.5 times in last decade, says Minister

India's cargo volumes keep growing in February despite Coronavirus outbreak

Nashik exported 63,000 tons of grapes so far

Coronavirus not to impact cotton exports; shipments to be 42 lakh bales: CAI

Trade talks with US favour India: Piyush Goyal

Shipping News

Dubai's GP Global bags Hindalco order for biomass boiler

India's 12 operational National Waterways carry 72.31 MT cargo per year: Mansukh Mandaviya

Logistics News

CONCOR reduces its cost for export boxes from its ICDs across the country

Indian Railways zone operates its 1st double stack dwarf container train on these routes!

Maersk new Inland Container Depot in Madurai to aid trade from Tamil Nadu hinterlands

Indian Port News

NCLT approves APSEZ's Rs. 650 crore (Rs.6.5 billion) bid to acquire Dighi Port

NMPT board approves dedicated berth for Coast Guard

Revised marine tariffs at Kattupalli Port

Vessel Traffic Management System at Cochin Port being upgraded

Policy & Economy News

Low prices of crude seen as demand driver for India
Exim News Service - New Delhi, March 12 Top
Panic in the financial markets today, owing to a massive fall in the crude oil prices, does not affect India's macro picture; on the contrary, low fuel prices would help the country, says ASSOCHAM Secretary-General, Mr Deepak Sood.

"India being a large importer of crude oil, fall in prices would be a positive for the Indian economy, although there is global sentimental downside. Going forward, low prices of crude can be a demand driver for India, from the automobile industry to consumption as inflation would be tamed. Lower inflation would also help further cuts in the interest rates," he said.

Global crude prices had plunged by close to 30 per cent in a single day recently, near $ 30 a barrel.

Mr Sood added, "In the short term, there is no denying the fact that certain industries like hospitality and aviation may get impacted (due to the Coronavirus). The big global jerk being witnessed would be more of a plus than minus for India, as it is being largely driven by capitulation of the crude market."

He further said, "In the given global scenario, India needs a push from the domestic consumption which would be given an impetus from lower prices, including those of raw material. Rural demand is also expected to get a push following the Rabi harvest next month."

"India's overall import bill would be dropping sizeably and help the country's current account position, giving more elbow room to the government," the ASSOCHAM Secretary-General concluded.

Technology in sunrise sectors key to achieving 9-10 pc growth, says NITI Aayog CEO
Exim News Service - New Delhi, March 10 Top
Technology in sunrise sectors will have to be the key for the country to achieve 9-10 per cent growth, said Mr Amitabh Kant, NITI Aayog CEO, while delivering the 41st Vikram Sarabhai Memorial Lecture. And, therefore, India must use machine learning, artificial intelligence to make this massive growth process.

Electric mobility will be the newer area of growth, especially with the cost of battery falling radically. No other country in the world has the size and scale of India as far as data is concerned. Nowhere in the world, there is public data of this size and scale to find solutions to the challenges, added Mr Kant, as per a report.

Business News - The India Boom Factor

Spice export value up 3.5 times in last decade, says Minister
Exim News Service - New Delhi, March 8 Top
Spice exports from India have skyrocketed 3.5 fold in value in the last decade. In FY10, the value of spice exports was Rs 5,560 crore (Rs. 55.6 billion), which shot up to Rs 19,505 crore (Rs.195.05 billion) in FY19, said Mr Narendra Singh Tomar, Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.

The country exported 5 lakh tonnes of spices in FY10, which rose to 11 lakh tonnes in the last fiscal. Some of the major export items were pepper, cardamom, ginger, coriander, chilli and turmeric, said a report.

India's cargo volumes keep growing in February despite Coronavirus outbreak
India Seatrade News - March 13 Top
Cargo handled by Indian ports rose for the third straight month in February on the back of higher liquid cargo, iron ore volumes and a favourable base. Ports across the country handled 572.3 lakh tonnes of cargo last month, a rise of 4 percent over the year-ago period, according to a Goldman Sachs report.

Liquid cargo, which contributes nearly 37 percent to total volumes, grew 4 percent year-on-year after declining in the previous month. Iron ore volumes, which have risen for the last 10 consecutive months, grew 60 percent year-on-year, partly aided by a favourable base.

According to Goldman Sachs, the coronavirus' impact on shipping is expected from March, potentially affecting the volume numbers of Adani Port and Special Economic Zone Ltd., Container Corporation of India Ltd. and Gujarat Pipapav Port Ltd. The brokerage has a 'buy' rating on Adani Ports and 'neutral' on the other two stocks.

Container and coal volumes-which together constitute 43 percent of India total cargo volumes-continued to grow, albeit at a slower rate. Container volumes grew 1.4 percent while coal volumes grew 0.4 percent compared to last year.

Fertiliser volumes continued to grow for the ninth consecutive month. The growth rate in February, however, was the slowest in the last five months. Fertiliser volumes grew 4.7 percent year-on-year while other cargo volumes declined 10.9 percent.

Nashik exported 63,000 tons of grapes so far
India Seatrade News - March 12 Top
Grape exports from India's Nashik district seem to have gathered momentum; officials are announcing that nearly 63,000 tons of the fruit have been sent out in 4,705 containers so far.

There is still a 17% dip in export numbers. Last year, during the corresponding period, exporters had sent out 75,000 tons. Farmers said the dip was the result of unseasonal rains that had devastated the region's vineyards in 2019.

Out of the 63,000 tons exported so far, 55,000 tons were sent out to European countries - 36,000 tons to the Netherlands; 6,700 tons to the United Kingdom; 6,500 tons to Germany; 1,200 tons to Denmark. The rest of the grape export was to countries such as Finland, Slovenia, Spain, Ireland, Norway, etc.

Nearly 8,000 tons of grapes has been exported to non-European countries such as Russia, the UAE etc.

The grape export season will continue through the end of April. The grape export is expected to touch nearly 110,000 tons this season. Last year, the number was 144,000 tons.

The district also recorded a 26% drop in the registration of vineyards meant for export during the grape season 2019-20 (December to April). According to government rules, grape farmers have to register their vineyards if they wish to export their produce. As per the state agricultural department, so far, around 28,500 farmers in the district have registered their vineyards for export - that's across a total of 18,000 hectare. Last year, 38,400 grape farmers had registered their vineyards, across 24,575 hectares.

Coronavirus not to impact cotton exports; shipments to be 42 lakh bales: CAI
India Seatrade News - March 12 Top
The coronavirus outbreak will not have much impact on exports of cotton, Cotton Association of India (CAI) said on Friday projecting the overall shipments of the commodity for this season at 42 lakh bales.

The cotton season begins from October.

"The outbreak of coronavirus will not have much impact on exports as last year we did not ship much. We shipped only 8 lakh bales to China last year and this year we have already shipped 6 lakh bales till February end.

"The pick-up in demand from other markets like Bangladesh will keep the exports at the same level as last year. We are estimating exports for this season to be at 42 lakh bales," CAI president Atul Ganatra told PTI here.

Till February-end, exports to Bangladesh were at 14 lakh bales, Vietnam and Indonesia 5 lakh bales and to other markets 2.50 lakh bales, he added.

"As we have six more months this season we are confident that we will easily achieve our target," he added.

Meanwhile, CAI has projected 354.50 lakh bales (170 kg each) in its February estimates for the cotton season beginning October.

Estimating 354.50 lakh bales in February, CAI said the total cotton supply estimated by CAI during October 2019 to February 2020 is 298.43 lakh bales.

This consists of the arrivals of 254.43 lakh bales up to February 29, 2020, imports of 12 lakh bales and the opening stock estimated by CAI at 32 lakh bales at the beginning of the season, CAI said in a statement here.

Further, the association has estimated cotton consumption during October 2019 to February 2020 at 133 lakh bales, while the export shipment is estimated at 27.50 lakh bales till February.

CAI has estimated exports for the season at 42 lakh bales, the same level as estimated in the previous year.

Stock at the end of February 2020 is estimated at 137.93 lakh bales including 40 lakh bales with textile mills and remaining 97.93 lakh bales with CCI and others (MNCs, traders, ginners among others).

CAI has estimated total cotton supply till end of the cotton season, that is up to September 30, at 411.50 lakh bales.

Total cotton supply consists of the opening stock of 32 lakh bales at the beginning of the cotton season estimated at 354.50 lakh bales and imports estimated by the CAI at 25 lakh bales, which are lower by 7 lakh bales compared to the previous year"s estimate of 32 lakh bales.

Domestic consumption estimated for the entire crop year, that is up to September 30, 2020 is 331 lakh bales. The carryover stock estimated at the end of the season is 38.50 lakh bales.

Trade talks with US favour India: Piyush Goyal
Daily Shipping Times - New Delhi, March 12 Top
The Commerce and Industry Minister Shri Piyush Goyal recently said that India's trade negotiations with the US would open more opportunities for exports. "Negotiations with the US are to India's advantage because we have a trade surplus (with the US) it opens up more opportunity for our exports in a big way," he said.

He opined that Indo-US talks would be a big win for the Country, when Indian people can benefit from trade and pointed out the areas that New Delhi is focusing on: innovation, research and development, and better technologies. The Minister also stated that India should look at a larger engagement with the US, which has huge imports and a huge potential for many of Indian products like textiles, gem and jewellery, chemicals, medicine, and pharmaceuticals.

He also made passing remarks on the impact of Coronavirus on the economy as India is quite insulated and the country's interdependency is lesser than other parts of the world.

Shipping News

Dubai's GP Global bags Hindalco order for biomass boiler
India Seatrade News - March 11 Top
UAE-headquartered GP Global is set to provide non-conventional energy solutions to Indian industries. The oil and gas trading firm is setting up a biomass boiler for metals major Hindalco Ltd, even as it is in talks with pharmaceuticals and ceramics players, among others, to provide similar solutions.

GP Global (formerly Gulf Petrochem Group) is exploring non-conventional energy sectors to strengthen its position in the Indian market, said a top company official.

"India is a market which is close to the heart of GP Global. Biomass is one of the strategic decisions by the group to further its presence in India. So, to grab this opportunity at this point of time, we decided to start our biomass journey from India," Prerit Goel, Director at GP Global, told.

"Currently, we are partnering with Hindalco to set up a 33 tonnes per hour biomass boiler for their facility. This will generate power using biomass briquettes. It will be utilised as a captive power plant and will cater to 30 per cent of Hindalco's power needs," he added. The project will involve a capex of ₹25-35 crore (Rs.250-350 million). The energy generated can be used for small and big thermal installations, replacing coal and furnace oil, and LPG.

"As we started operating with Hindalco, there have been inquiries from other players - from pharmaceuticals and tile making sectors, among others. So the demand for this vertical is growing," said Goel.

The company is focussed on completing the Hindalco project in six-eight months. "We are building the boiler on a build-own-operate basis with a contract for 10 years. We will install the boiler, which is in the final stage of the order. It takes usually 1-1.5 years to complete the project for such high-pressure high-power steam boilers. We will take up the next project after the successful commissioning of this project," he added.

The biomass boilers designed by GP Global can take any raw material including rice husk, bagasse and other agricultural waste. "We are also excited to explore municipal solid waste - waste to energy projects - besides exploring supply logistics for natural gas players including in the city gas distribution space. We will be bidding for tenders," Goel said.

India's 12 operational National Waterways carry 72.31 MT cargo per year: Mansukh Mandaviya
India Seatrade News - March 9 Top
Minister of State for Shipping, Mansukh Mandaviya informed Lok Sabha on Thursday that the 12 operational national waterways in the country now carry 72.31 metric tonnes of cargo every year and the government has spent 526.80 crore (5.2 billion) for the development of NWs across the country in 2019-20.

"To promote inland water transport in the country as an economical, environment friendly supplementary mode of transport to rail and road, 111 inland waterways (including 5 National Waterways declared earlier) were declared as 'National Waterways' under the National Waterways Act, 2016," says the release.

List of projects initiated on NWs by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI):

1. 12 National Waterways

a. National Waterway (NW)-1 (Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system from Allahabad to Haldia) in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand & West Bengal;

b. NW-2 (River Brahmaputra from Dhubri to Sadiya) in Assam;

c. NW-3 (West Coast Canal from Kottapuram to Kollam along with Udyogmandal and Champakara Canals) in Kerala, have already been developed with fairway navigational aids, jetties and terminals with mechanized equipment handling facilities for loading and unloading of cargo. These NWs are operational and vessels are plying on them.

d. In addition, NW-10 (river Amba), NW-68 (river Mandovi), NW-73 (river Narmada), NW-83 (Rajpuri Creek), NW-85 (Revadanda Creek - Kundalika River System), NW-91 (Shastri river-Jaigad creek system), NW- 97 (Sunderbans Waterways), NW-100 (river Tapi) and NW-111 (river Zuari) are also operational.

At present, a cargo volume of 72.31 million tonnes per annum is being transported on the above operational NWs.

2. Jal Marg Vikas Project

Government has taken up implementation of the Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) at an estimated cost of Rs 5369.18 crore (Rs.53.6 billion) for capacity augmentation of navigation on National Waterway-1 (NW-1) on the Haldia - Varanasi stretch of Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly River System with the technical and financial assistance of the World Bank. The features of the project are development of infrastructure like construction of multimodal terminals at Varanasi, Sahibganj & Haldia, Ro-Ro terminals, navigational lock at Farakka, channel marking systems, integrated vessel repair & maintenance facilities, automated information techniques of Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) and River Information System (RIS), day and night navigation aids, slipways, bunkering facilities, river training and river conservancy works. Projects worth Rs 1800 crore (Rs.18 billion) (approx.) have commenced on the ground in a time period of three years after statutory clearances.

3. Vijayawada - Muktyala

Fairway development works in Vijayawada - Muktyala stretch of river Krishna in Andhra Pradesh (Part of NW-4) under Phase-I has been completed. Fabrication of four floating pontoons and land acquisition for fixed terminals (4 nos.) at Ibrahimpatnam, Harischandrapuram, Muktyala and Madipadu have been taken up.

4. New 106 National Waterways

Feasibility studies have been completed for 106 new NWs and based on the outcome of feasibility studies and Detailed Project Reports (DPRs), 20 new NWs have been found technically feasible for the development of shipping and navigation in addition to 5 existing NWs by the IWAI.

Logistics News

CONCOR reduces its cost for export boxes from its ICDs across the country
India Seatrade News - March 12 Top
Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) has reduced the rail freight on promotional ground for the month of March 2020 w.e.f. 7th March, to promote more exports volume through rail instead of Road movement.

This 13-26 % reduction in the rail freight will save cost of logistics and will directly benefit financially to exporters of ICD Khodiyar.

Further, CONCOR management has decided to withdraw ASURD (Additional Surcharge) of Rs. 2000/-Per TEU w.e.f. 1st April 2020, being levied on empty container not coming back to ICD Khodiyar, keeping in view the cost of logistics to the Customers. CONCOR introduced this charge to maintain the balance both way rail transport between Ports and ICDs in India. Imbalance in one-way rail movement had been affecting the other way movement from Ports to ICDs with shortage of containers for rail movement. This was in the interest to promote more rail movement out of ICD Khodiyar.

Madhukar Roat, CGM/CONCOR has cited that CONCOR, being state run Logistics Support provider, has been proactively working in the interest of trade community abinitio. Being PSU under Ministry of Railway, CONCOR has to promote Rail mode of transport which is also economical and viable in terms of cost. He appreciated the trade and industry for patronizing CONCOR and Rail transport through ICD Khodiyar since its inception in Ahmedabad.

Indian Railways zone operates its 1st double stack dwarf container train on these routes!
India Seatrade News - March 13 Top
Big milestone for Piyush Goyal-led Indian Railways! The Western Railway zone of the national transporter recently operated its first double stack dwarf container train between Jamnagar and Sanjaan near the city of Mumbai. The national transporter started the double stack dwarf container or the DSDC as a new delivery model in order to attract new traffic on the network and also to increase the loadability. According to Western Railway, Mumbai, Ludhiana, Secunderabad as well as Ahmedabad are already on the DSDC routes. However, the recent double stack dwarf container van carried between Jamnagar and Sanjaan is the first such freight operation for the Western Railway zone.

A detailed study to open Chennai, Delhi, Jaipur, Varanasi, Ahmedabad, Pune and Bengaluru routes are already in progress, which are being taken up by the Central Railways, Northern Railways, South Western Railways and few other railway zones. It is expected that the proposals for opening the routes will be submitted by the railway zones to the Railway Board very soon.

On July 8, 2018, the very first DSDC was operated by a private container train operator from the Reliance Rail Terminal, Kanalus which reached Kribhco Infrastructure Limited, Pali on July 9, 2018.

The Indian Railways network transports around one billion tonnes of goods each year, which is a huge volume to be transported on the operational routes. The freight traffic handled by the Indian Railways network has increased significantly over the past few years. According to a PIB release, the freight traffic has increased by more than 15 folds from nearly 73.02 million tonnes between the years 1950-51 to almost 1106.15 million tonnes in the year 2016-2017.

Moreover, recently, the cost of transporting goods and freight volume in the South Central Railways (SCR) zone significantly decreased with the Indian Railways longest electrified tunnel, which opened in the new broad gauge line between Obulavaripalli and Krishnapatnam. The South Central zone is saving almost Rs 7.5 lakh per coal rake, since the commercial operations on the route for freight transport began in the year 2019.

Maersk new Inland Container Depot in Madurai to aid trade from Tamil Nadu hinterlands
India Seatrade News - March 12 Top
Maersk, a global integrator of container logistics, is taking concrete steps towards bringing down the cost of logistics with simple yet effective measures. With the announcement of Inland Container Depot (ICD) Madurai as a new acceptance point, Maersk is getting closer to its customers in the hinterland of Tamil Nadu in the southern part of India. An infrastructure spread over a total area of about 70 acres, the state-of-art ICD is one of the largest in the country and will serve as a major infrastructural hub for South India. Equipped with a warehouse to support faster cargo clearance, the ICD will help reduce the overall logistics costs by up to 30%, while also providing operational transparency to customers.

Until recently, importers shipped their cargo to Tuticorin Port where it was cleared by Customs, destuffed and kept at a warehouse. As per the customer requirements, the cargo was then being moved by trucks from Tuticorin to its final delivery point in and around Madurai. Exporters too had to pick up empty containers from Tuticorin and bring them all the way to their factories. With ICD Madurai as a new acceptance point, Maersk will help move the cargo directly to Madurai, speed up the clearance process and manage de-stuffing and storage at the warehouse at Madurai. The new ICD also provides customers with a choice of taking the container and delivering it at the final delivery point, and return containers back in Madurai. With operations at the new ICD, Maersk has managed to cut down significantly on the transport time to and from Tuticorin Port and effectively brought down the cost of logistics for its customers by up to 30% for the inland logistics leg of transport.

Steve Felder, Managing Director - Maersk South Asia, said "As the global integrator of container logistics, our aim is to simplify trade processes for our customers by facilitating end-to-end logistics, reducing the transit time & cost to make logistics more accessible and efficient for everyone. Our operations at ICD Madurai are aimed at reducing logistics costs for our customers by cutting the cargo transport journey by up to 150 km. We are also tapping into the hinterlands' potential by opening up new trade possibilities and enabling ease of doing business for the trading community in the region."

The key infrastructure offerings at ICD Madurai include 24*7 operations, ample storage including bonded warehousing facilities, faster claim rate of duty drawback & GST refund, and capability to handle air cargo connecting Chennai & Bangalore. Customers are expected to benefit from faster clearance of their cargo in Madurai as compared to Tuticorin. They will also have the advantage of same day clearance and gate-in at the terminal.

Indian Port News

NCLT approves APSEZ's Rs. 650 crore (Rs.6.5 billion) bid to acquire Dighi Port
Daily Shipping Times - Ahmedabad, March 11 Top
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved Adani Ports And Special Economic Zone's (APSEZ) Rs. 650-crore (Rs.6.5 billion) bid for the debt-ridden Dighi Port in Maharashtra.

APSEZ said in BSE filing that the resolution plan of Dighi Port has been approved by NCLT. APSEZ is India's biggest private port operator led by Gautam Adani while creditors, a consortium of 16 members led by Bank of India claims due worth Rs. 3098 crore (Rs.30.9 billion) from the 1,600-acre seaport.

The port is located at a distance of 42 nautical miles (NM) from Mumbai by Sea and 170 km's South of Mumbai by Road. The North Bank of the port is connected to National Highway 17 via State Highway (SH) 92, and 96 and the South Bank is connected to National Highway 17 via SH 97 and 98. Upgradation of the existing State Highway from 2 lanes to 4 lanes is in progress. The nearest Konkan Railway Rail Head Indapur is 47 km from the Port.

NMPT board approves dedicated berth for Coast Guard
Exim News Service - Mangaluru, March 12 Top
The NMPT board, which met in Mangaluru recently under the Chairmanship of Mr A.V. Ramana, has accorded in-principle approval for a 30-year lease of Berth No. 1 at New Mangalore Port as a dedicated facility for the Indian Coast Guard to dock its offshore patrol vessels. Mr S.B. Venkatesh, Commander of the Coast Guard in Karnataka, said this step by the port would go a long way in enhancing the surveillance capability of the Coast Guard in Karnataka, as per a report.

Revised marine tariffs at Kattupalli Port
Exim News Service - Chennai, March 8 Top
Marine Infrastructure Developer Pvt. Ltd (MIDPL) has announced revisions to the following charges for ships calling MIDPL and/or handled at L&T Shipyard and MFF at Kattupalli Port in Chennai:

* Berth Hire Tariff and Mooring/Unmooring Charges

* Pilotage Tariff for MIDPL vessels

* Pilotage Tariff for LTSB/MFF/ECC

The new tariffs will be effective from April 1, 2020, said a communique.

Vessel Traffic Management System at Cochin Port being upgraded
Exim News Service - Mumbai, March 10 Top
The technology group Wartsila will upgrade its Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) installed in Cochin Port. The system was originally delivered in 2008, and by adding the latest technology, significant additional benefits can be gained. The order with Wartsila was placed in February 2020 by Cochin Port Trust (CoPT).

The upgraded Wartsila VTMS will enable seamless coverage of the port's radar and automatic identification system (AIS) for traffic monitoring and control, thereby raising the existing safety and efficiency levels. The Navi-Harbour VTS software also provides an interactive and user-friendly interface for the system's operator. Wartsila and CoPT have also signed a 5-year Comprehensive Annual Maintenance Contract (CAMC) for the upgraded system and a 6-year CAMC for the existing equipment.

"Ports all around the world are getting busier and a VTMS is essential for ensuring that the port's operations are safe and efficient. The existing system at Cochin Port is completing 11 years of continuous use, during which time the number of vessels visiting the port has increased by more than 35 per cent. The Wartsila VTMS has helped the port to integrate the traffic from major projects, such as the Single Point Mooring (SPM), the International Container Transhipment Terminal (ICTT) and the LNG terminal, into the existing shipping channels. Because of the continuing growth in shipping traffic, it was necessary to upgrade the VTMS to make it fully technically-compliant, and to cope with future requirements," says Capt. Joseph Alapat, Deputy Conservator (DC), CoPT.

The upgrading project is scheduled for completion by the end of July 2020, said a release.

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