{"id":72752,"date":"2023-08-14T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-14T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/logistics\/2023\/08\/14\/today-panama-canal-pushes-further-traffic-limits-amid-continued-drought-srilankan-airlines-eyes-gcc-buyers\/"},"modified":"2023-08-14T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-08-14T00:00:00","slug":"today-panama-canal-pushes-further-traffic-limits-amid-continued-drought-srilankan-airlines-eyes-gcc-buyers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/logistics\/2023\/08\/14\/today-panama-canal-pushes-further-traffic-limits-amid-continued-drought-srilankan-airlines-eyes-gcc-buyers\/","title":{"rendered":"TODAY: Panama Canal pushes further traffic limits amid continued drought + Srilankan Airlines eyes GCC buyers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, lovely people <\/strong>, and welcome to a busy start to the week with updates on everything from railways to ports \u2014 and a lot more movement coming from Oman than usual. <\/p>\n

THE BIG LOGISTICS STORY- A committee in <\/strong> Pakistan\u2019s <\/strong> c <\/strong> abinet <\/strong> has approved AD Ports <\/strong> Group\u2019s bid for a concession at Karachi\u2019s port <\/strong>, days after it had rejected the bid for being below expectations.<\/p>\n

HAPPENING TODAY- <\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a> BUT FIRST, SOME GOOD NEWS- Red Sea oil spill averted: <\/strong> It\u2019s a wrap on the UN-led salvage operation to remove over 1 mn barrels of crude oil from a rusting supertanker off Yemen at a cost of USD 140 mn, the UN said<\/a> on Friday. The FSO Safer was abandoned off Yemen\u2019s coast following the start of the country\u2019s civil war in 2015, and has been at risk of leaking, breaking apart, or exploding in what the UN said would have had \u201ccatastrophic environmental and humanitarian consequences.\u201d A UN salvage team has been unloading the oil from the container since late July<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2026or at least 98% averted: <\/strong> Less than 2% remains of the 1.1 mn barrels of oil that were on the tanker. Some USD 20 mn is required to complete the operation, the UN said.<\/p>\n

LESS GOOD NEWS- MORE FIRES: <\/strong>Fires broke out on a Panama-flagged tanker off the coast of Iran and at grain export facilities in France\u2019s Atlantic port of La Rochelle. Iran evacuated 22 crewmembers from aboard the gas tanker White Pearl, which was carrying 40k tons of liquified petroleum, after receiving a distress call from the ship. (TradeWinds<\/a> | Reuters<\/a>) Meanwhile, operations continued at La Rochelle, one of France\u2019s biggest grain terminals, without interruptions to loading as the fire was brought under control, Reuters<\/a> reports.The fire started on Thursday morning on a conveyor belt on top of the silos, with some 120 firefighters working to bring the blaze under control.<\/p>\n

<\/a> And <\/strong> Panama Canal limits traffic even further: <\/strong> The Panama Canal is limiting new reserved slots to 14 vessels per day (from 16 vessels previously) until 21 August to make room for unbooked ships and ease the bottleneck of ships waiting to transit without reservation, according to a Panama Canal Authority statement<\/a>. Booked transit through the canal\u2019s largest locks will remain unaltered, the statement adds. Some 161 vessels have been stuck near the canal as of last Thursday, an increase from the about 90 ships typically seen during rainy seasons, officials told Reuters.<\/p>\n

Background: <\/strong> Traffic at the Panama Canal has been seeing delays<\/a> of 15-19 days per vessel due to a drought that has affected water levels in the waterway. The canal\u2019s administrator is expecting<\/a> a USD 200 mn revenue decline to USD 4.9 bn in FY 2023-24 due to the canal\u2019s water-saving measures. The delays have been pushing shipowners to take alternative routes, like the Atlantic Basin, despite having to reduce rates and incur cancellation fees, according to Platts<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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<\/a> Steer clear of Iranian waters, Western-backed maritime forces warn: <\/strong>Ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz are being urged to stay far from Iranian waters to avoid seizures amid rising tensions with the US following the latter\u2019s recent deployment of 3k sailors and marines<\/a> to the area, the Associated Press<\/a> reported. The Bahrain-based US International Maritime Security Construct is \u201cnotifying regional mariners of appropriate precautions to minimize the risk of seizure based on current regional tensions, which we seek to de-escalate,\u201d US Navy Commander Timothy Hawkins is quoted as saying by the outlet. Another EU-led maritime organization has also warned of a potential attack on a merchant vessel taking place in the next 12 to 72 hours, the AP adds. <\/p>\n

MEANWHILE- <\/strong> Iran <\/strong> has warned that it is prepared to respond in kind if the US seizes any Iranian vessels <\/strong>, Fars News Agency<\/a> reports. <\/p>\n

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<\/a> Ukraine has introduced a \u201chumanitarian corridor\u201d for ships stuck in Black Sea <\/strong> ports <\/strong>, which will be used \u201cprimarily for civilian ships which have been in the Ukrainian ports of Chornomorsk, Odessa, and Pivdenny\u201d since the Russian invasion, Ukrainian Navy spokesperson Oleh Chalyk told Reuters<\/a>. The corridor will be \u201ctransparent,\u201d with cameras installed on ships to demonstrate that this is a humanitarian mission with no military purpose, Chalyk said. <\/p>\n

This corridor will be a major test of Ukraine\u2019s ability to reopen its sea lanes in the face of Russia\u2019s de-facto blockade <\/strong>, Reuters explains. Vessels whose owners officially confirm they are ready to sail will be able to pass through the routes, the Ukrainian Navy said, according to Reuters. However, the vessels could still face military threat from Russia, with shipping and ins. sources expressing concerns about safety.<\/p>\n

A Russian patrol vessel fired automatic weapons at a cargo ship in the Black Sea on Sunday <\/strong>, Reuters<\/a> reported. Russia is currently treating any ships approaching Ukrainian ports as potential military threats. Russia said its ship fired on the Palau-flagged Sukru Okan vessel after it failed to respond to a request for inspection, the outlet writes. While Russia says the vessel was on its way to Ukraine\u2019s Izmail port, Refinitiv shipping data picked up by the outlet indicates it was heading to the port of Sulina in Romania. <\/p>\n

Background: <\/strong> Some 60 commercial vessels have been trapped in Ukraine\u2019s ports since the Russian invasion, with their fates made even further unclear by Russia\u2019s abandonment<\/a> of the Black Sea grain pact. <\/p>\n

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WATCH THIS SPACE #1- Kuwait allocates KWD 2 mn for consultancy on rail link with <\/strong> KSA: <\/strong>Kuwait's Public Works Ministry has approved KWD 2 mn in the FY 2023-24 budget for a consultancy agreement on the Kuwait-Saudi Arabia railway, Al Rai<\/a> reports, citing ministry sources in the know. The agreement will cover logistical infrastructure and enhancing transport and logistics services.<\/p>\n

<\/a> WATCH THIS SPACE #2- Iraq\u2019s Transport Ministry plans to resume operations for its <\/strong> Kirkuk-Baghdad railway <\/strong>, according to a ministry statement<\/a>. Iraq\u2019s General Company for Railways General Manager Younes Khaled Jawad and Kirkuk Governor Rakan Saeed Al Jubouri met to discuss overcoming obstacles to resuming the service.<\/p>\n

<\/a> WATCH THIS SPACE #3- <\/strong>SriLankan Airlines<\/a><\/strong> is looking to GCC buyers as it eyes privatization <\/strong>, after the airline turned to the black for the first tie in 15 years, CEO Richard Nutall told The National<\/a>. Emirates \u2014 which had owned a 40% stake in the airline before it was bought out by Sri Lanka\u2019s government in 2008 \u2014 could be interested, Nutall suggested. The airline saw consistent losses following its nationalization but is now making returns for the first time in years. The government will \u201clook for expressions of interest in the coming months and they want to do that fast,\u201d Nutall said. Posing a potential threat to Gulf buyers, conglomerate Tata Enterprises is also a potential investor in the airline, Simple Flying<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n

MARKET WATCH- <\/strong><\/p>\n

The global freight forwarding market is set to shrink by 3.9% in <\/strong> 2023 on the back of challenging market conditions <\/strong>, Hellenic Shipping News<\/a> reports, citing data from a global freight forwarding 2023 report from Ti Insight. Air freight forwarding contracted by 7.3% in 2022, while sea freight forwarding shrank 1.5%, as freight rates began to normalize following the pandemic-induced boom. Supply now continues to exceed demand, reducing freight rates and hampering forwarders\u2019 returns Ti Insight says.<\/p>\n

Most Russian fuel export products are now trading above G7 price caps <\/strong> amid a <\/strong> global rally in oil prices <\/strong>, Reuters<\/a> reports, citing price tracking data by Argus Media. Russia\u2019s flagship Urals crude has been trading above its USD 60 cap for months, while diesel, gasoil, naphtha, and fuel oil loading in the Black Sea and Baltic regions have exceeded caps for their categories in recent weeks, Argus data showed. The Biden administration is expected to use \u201csoft\u201d tactics<\/a> to enforce the cap, as it is wary that harsher methods could destabilize energy markets. G7 countries introduced the cap, which bans Western firms from handling Russian cargoes priced above it, to curb Moscow\u2019s oil revenues after its invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n

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