We have already seen some parts of South America facing droughts and poor rainfall. The Panama Canal has seen a drop in its navigable water depth, which has resulted in a reduction of the permissible draft of ships passing through the canal. For some ships, a reduction up to 40 percent of carrying capacity has been mandated.
The first six months of 2023 have been a relatively steady period for our group of companies. One leading businessman expressed it well by saying that in some areas there have been headwinds and in some, tailwinds. This mixed bag of uncertainties will remain for some time. Such periods provide both challenges and opportunities; we will need to be alert and proactive at all times. Amidst these challenging times, we have had some noteworthy achievements.
Mumbai International Cruise Terminal
The MV Empress, MV Insignia, and MV Amadea - three cruise ships with a combined passenger capacity of over 2,500 berthed at the Mumbai harbour on 1st May 2023. It was an honour for us to represent them at the Mumbai port, through our parent company, J. M. Baxi & Co.
Kandla Container Terminal
- On 29th May 2023, a sudden gust of heavy wind and rain hit Kandla and damaged a few areas within the terminal. A quay crane derailed but operation resumed within 3 hours. Resources were mobilised to carry out the repair works on an immediate basis.
- Two new EXIM services, WARM and JKS started calling our Kandla terminal.
- With the development of the WARM service, Kandla has started getting cargo volume, destined for Jeddah.
Delhi Inland Container Terminal
- Achieved the highest-ever throughput of 17,410 TEU in May 2023.
- Achieved the highest solar generation 1,19,313 KWH in May 2023 which reduced Co2 amounting to 94.26 mt.
- Solar electricity generation increased to 88.35% and 88.40% in April 2023 and May 2023 respectively, and only 12 percent of state electricity is used
Visakha Container Terminal
- Highest throughput achieved in May 2023: 61,468 TEU.
- The highest number of vessels handled in a month May 2023: 49 vessels.
- The highest EXIM laden handled in May 2023: 42,065 TEU.
- New services commenced for SOL feeders (Route: Kolkata - Vizag – Colombo).
- CII best safety practices award received in the month of April 2023.
- Record handling of 4,023 TEU (EXIM Laden) in the month of May 2023 at the terminal’s container freight station.
Aryacom
- Secured orders for providing locking solutions to Hitachi Omron Terminal Solutions (HOTS). The solution created for managing an OTC (One Time Code) for added security for ATMs has taken a big leap in Nationalised and Co-op banks.
- Aryacom’s trunking solutions team was awarded an order from Telangana Police (Traffic Division) to upgrade their existing APCO System.
J M Baxi Heavy
RUF Vizag shipment of 6 modules in 2 barges doing Mumbai - Hazira - Katupalli - Vizag - Katupalli - Vizag - Mumbai. The challenge was to deliver the equipments in 2 voyages within 45 days, with the barge having to return back before the monsoon, which was successfully completed within 40 days.
A 75 m long piece of equipment was transported in Dahej via a village, where a full village bypass was required. This included the shutdown of 220 KVA powerline that went through a 20 days approval process.
On 18th June, the west coast of India had to face Cyclone Biparjoy. Fortunately, due to the untiring efforts of the Gujarat Authorities and the disaster management cell, not a single human life was lost. The landfall was in Gujarat, and all the ports in Gujarat were closed for more than two days. Our teams at Kandla and Bedi were on high alert, and we faced this fury of nature with no major damage or losses.
We now enter the monsoon phase of the annual seasonal pattern of India, and this has major implications for ensuring trade growth and pattern. Crops like sugar, rice, corn, cotton etc. form a substantive part of our export basket. The coming weeks will also be an indicator of how some of the headlines mentioned earlier will pan out. Till the next issue, we do expect a few developments to unfold, with Indian ports perhaps getting larger container ships calling due to their increased availability. With the efforts of a 'China Plus' strategy for manufacturers, we should also begin to see greater volume growth.
Signing off till then.