30 July 2006 issue

Headlines

CSI (Container security initiative)

On September 22, 2004, the European Union and the USA signed an agreement concerning container transport security to extend CSI's scope to all ports in the European community. This agreement puts a stop to individual requests from European ports to obtain the CSI certificate granted by the USA, a must for international trade. This measure was adopted by the USA after the attacks of September 11.

Source : Antenne, 21 July 2006

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Shanghai port expanding abroad

The port of Shanghai should soon acquire 40% of a container terminal in the port of Zeebrugge, which is at present fully owned by Maersk (Danish group A.P. MOELLERMAERSK). The public port operator, SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL PORTS GROUP, has recently declared its desire to expand abroad, via acquisitions in the USA, Europe and Asia in spite of possible political opposition.

Source : Antenne, 26 July 2006

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ISPS code in 2006

Since July 1 2004, the ISPS code (International port security programme) is mandatory worldwide. To be ISPS certified, a port must present a safety plan describing the measures and conditions of safety improvements. It must define the parts of the port to be protected and submit its plans before June 15 2007. ISPS certified ports have put in a lot of effort to have port installations comply to new safety procedures. Community policing is now common in terminals as well as controls at port gates. Each union member must ensure that the European regulation 725 which acknowledges the major ISPS’s guidelines is efficiently applied by port operators. In France the Direction Générale de la Mer et des Transports ensures that those requirements are met through audits. A badge showing the identity of the bearer must be worn. The number of video cameras and security agents patrolling the port has increased. In October 2005, under the auspices of the European commission in cooperation with the European agency for sea security a team was set up to inspect all the major European ports, the shipowners and the security organisations.

Source : Antenne, 21 July 2006

See all the details concerning ISPS.

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Abidjan port is ISPS certified

In a country listed at risk and in political and military turmoil since 2002, the autonomous port of Abidjan (PAA), where 90% of all trade in Ivory Coast takes place, has obtained the ISPS certification. "The ISPS certification has become a criterion for competition among ports. Those who don’t abide by the ISPS are excluded from international trade", said the general manager of the port of Abidjan. Colonel Jean Christophe Tibé Bi, General Manager of Maritime Affairs, is pleased to say, "There has been a boost in sea and port activities since the ISPS certification of the port of Abidjan". According to port authorities global cargo traffic increased by 5% in 2005.

Source : Antenne, 21 July 2006

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Dutch drivers win green incentive

Dutch hauliers have won the battle to receive direct subsidies for early take-up of environmentally-friendly Euro 5 vehicles. Currently only a handful of EU members offer incentives for cleaner trucks. The UK currently offers no incentives for early take-up of Euro 4 or Euro 5 trucks.

Source : IFW, 17 July 2006

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Spot checks put heat on dangerous truckers

International road transport operators flouting safety rules are the target of a UK project to root out dangerous trucks and evasion of drivers' hours legislation. Transport minister Stephen Ladyman last week launched the South East International Transport Pilot. The government funded one-year initiative - a joint effort between the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa) and the Highways Agency - aims to remove unsafe vehicles and drivers from the road. The pilot will include a series of round-the-clock checks over a fixed number of days. Vosa has already completed two checks since the project began in April. Drivers found to be exceeding driving hours have been forced to wait out their time at Vosa checkpoints. Defective trucks receive either immediate prohibition, meaning they must be fixed before continuing, or delayed prohibitions, which gives operators a time-frame in which to fix the vehicle. Vosa had indicated it will focus on ports with heavy international traffic such as Dover. The pilot aimed to increase checks five-fold at ports and double them inland.

Source : IFW 24 July 2006

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Holland set to phase in 48-hour week

The Dutch government has agreed to a five year transition period to the 48-hour week, which means drivers will be allowed to average 55 hours until then. The European Commission must still agree on the proposal.

Source : IFW 24 July 2006

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Increase of temperature sensitive air freight

Temperature sensitive air freight will grow 10% a year for the next five years, according to research conducted for Evirotainer among key logistics and healthcare players.

Source : IFW 17 July 2006

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Horses fly

Sixty show horses flew into Athens International airport to take part in the European championships for young riders. They were carried on two MNG A300-F flights.

Source : IFW 17 July 2006

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Rail regains a market share due to combined transport

Rail regained a share of the market thanks to combined transport. In 2005, at the same time as the International Railway Union announced a fall of 1.5% in rail freight in Europe, UIRR* freight activity rose by 5%. Essentially international transport increased by 10%, domestic transport decreased by 3%. This shows an increase of 9% in unaccompanied rail road transport with increases of 15% internationally and 2% nationally.

Source : Antenne, 26 July 2006

* UIRR : International Union of combined Road-Rail transport companies

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