Friday, April 22, 2022

Some Snippets of News of Interest to Those in the Logistics Sector

Changes to Links in the Supply Chain
Shipping News Feature

UK – The Marine Society has announced the launch of their latest bursary scheme, the Marine Society Green Skills Bursary, aimed at seafarers who are looking to obtain qualifications that will equip them to work in the offshore and renewable sector. The Marine Society believes that supporting skills transition training in this priority sector is vital as a growing number of seafarers are retraining to work in roles to support offshore wind farms.

Applicants can claim up to £750 towards training or qualifications for one of the Charity’s approved courses, which are regulated by the Global Wind Organisation (GWO) and the Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation (OPITO). The bursary has already received generous funding support from Trinity House. Maritime organisations who want to get involved should get in touch with the Marine Society

To find out more about the Marine Society Green Skills Bursary Fund and how to apply, please visit Green Skills Bursary or phone or email for information. For all enquiries, please contact Carla Rockson, Head of Seafarer Learning and Welfare at crockson@ms-sc.org or call 020 7654 7029.

US – VIETNAM – UWL, a ‘top twenty; US owned NVOCC and global logistics solutions provider, is opening two new strategically located offices: one in Long Beach, CA and one in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The company reports record-breaking container volume in 2021.

Long Beach is the second largest container port in North America based on total container volume and the Port of Ho Chi Minh City is the 26th largest container port in the world with exports to North America, seeing container volumes jumping 32% in 2021 over 2020 figures.

SWITZERLAND – WORLDWIDE – Freight forwarders organisation FIATA has revealed a plethora of initialisms and acronyms naming those high flying international outfits which will attend its Geneva HQ 2022 gathering on 17 – 22 May. They include: UNCITRAL, UNECE, UNCTAD, ITC, ICC, IATA, IRU, ICHCA, TIACA, the World Bank, DCSA, TT Club, Change Horizon and Global Shippers' Forum (GSF).

Topics for discussion range from safety and security to electronic documentation with a full line up of attendees and events to show on the FIATA website in the coming days. The event will be held at the International Conference Centre Geneva and is officially titled ‘Reconnect’.

JAPAN – The first demonstration voyage by a liquefied hydrogen carrier, Suiso Frontier proves an international supply chain of the fuel is possible according to its backers. These include Japanese and Australian government agencies, including the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and NEDO, and companies in both countries.

The ship, the world's first liquefied hydrogen carrier, departed Japan in December 2021 and arrived in Australia in January 2022. The ship was loaded with liquefied hydrogen produced from coal in Victoria, Australia, and returned to Japan in February 2022, unloading the cargo to a landside storage tank. The move prompted a celebratory ceremony in Kobe Jpan.

The HySTRA joint venture developed technologies to produce and transport large volumes of liquefied hydrogen, conducting demonstration tests between Japan and Australia to establish processes around the safe loading, offloading and storage of hydrogen. Insights from the demonstration voyage will also guide the development of international safety standards and codes for transporting liquefied hydrogen.

Photo: The recent celebration in Kobe of the HySTRA joint venture which comprises the Iwatani Corporation, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd., Shell Japan Ltd., Electric Power Development Co., Ltd.(J-POWER), Marubeni Corporation, ENEOS Corporation, and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. with support from NEDO, to explore the development of a large-scale marine transport supply chain.