November/December 2010 Heroes all Hong Kong & China n South Korea n 2011 prospects n Reefer trades November/December 2010 CoNteNts AM CoveR stoRy 36 It is a byword of any self-respecting industry that its workforce is its most precious asset. In shipping such a proposition is axiomatic. As demonstrated in our cover story this month, over and above the tough jobs they perform in often difficult conditions, seafarers around the world are often called upon to perform tasks of great daring in order to save the lives of others who find themselves in distress in dangerous seas. We also pay tribute to those seafarers that during this holiday period find themselves not at home with family and friends but held captive by viscous unprincipled pirates with little hope of Heroes all getting home anytime soon. AM FeAtURes 14 Asia Eye Hong Kong confrontation in prospect 16 Hong Kong/China Wake up and see the shipping 24 Reefer trades 14 To box or not 27 South Korea Pulp stories 34 2011 prospects The future through a glass darkly 34 November/December 2010 asiamaritime 1 November/December 2010 AM RegUlAR ColUmNs CoNteNts 4 Comment Buddy can we earn a dime in exports? 6 Briefs Yards, Lines, Ports 9 Commodities Oil for the skin and everything in between 12 News line Seafarer shortage narrows 12 38 Operations Battling cross-ocean infection 40 IMO The year ahead 42 Green page Clean ship recycling initiative 40 43 Logistics Ticking bombs 44 Technical Keep the cargo flowing – cleanly 45 Ship’s store Lovely bubbly 46 Seascapes Careful of the human dimension 43 48 Brief encounters A solution for everything? 49 Launched Ships with a Latin flavour 50 Diary Captain Gregorio Oca in memoriam 52 52 Maritime’s back pages China’s gas breakthrough 2 asiamaritime November/December 2010 Committed to clean seas The maritime transportation industry has benefited from innovative MacGregor products for over 70 years. Cargotec’s latest engineering solutions include a range of MacGregor cargo and offshore load-handling systems that use environmentally-friendly electric drives which are both economical and competitive. Equipment includes cranes, hatch covers, RoRo cargo access systems and winches. Like so many Cargotec solutions: innovation built on experience. Cargotec improves the efficiency of cargo flows on land and at sea – wherever cargo is on the move. Cargotec’s daughter brands, Hiab, Kalmar and MacGregor are recognised leaders in cargo and load handling solutions around the world. www.cargotec.com www.macgregor-group.com Fulsome promises, empty boxes There’s noThing like a trade pact to offer that feel-good feel- China amounted to $229bn of the overall figure. It is perhaps a ing. The problem is that the arrival in Hong Kong of the US Depart- measure of the insularity of the US that Canada is the nation’s larg- ment of Commerce assistant secretary Suresh Kumar in November est trading partner. to sign an agreement aiming to increase American exports to the What was particularly galling about Mr Kumar’s address was territory within three years was nothing like a meaningful trade the inference that somehow shipping companies were playing a pact. part in his country’s less than impressive export performance. His A key driver behind the agreement is for US companies to use accusation that shipping companies need to look at areas such as Hong Kong in its traditional role as a gateway to China and other availability of containers in Asia and the US and improve logistics Asian markets. Nothing new there, except perhaps to the bulk of provision and update port infrastructure was perhaps the largest red US companies. herring that Mr Kumar managed to get past Hong Kong customs. Why? Essentially because the US has very little that China The fact is even the US’s much called for appreciation of the wants. What China does want (high-end technology, military hard- Rmb would not alter the current precarious trade balance while ware) the US doesn’t want to give. Let’s look at the figures Mr Ku- the US’s economy is tipped so focused on its domestic consumers mar was keen for us to know. of services. The US has to go back to basics with the introduction “US exports are 12% of GDP, well below that of nearly all our of education reform that could eventually nurture a work force ca- major economic competitors,” he said. By contrast Germany ex- pable of producing goods that a wealthier Asia might desire, if not ports more than 40% of its GDP, in Canada the figure is 30% and actually need.] in China 25%. “Less than 1% of America’s 30m companies export, and of Correction those companies that do export, 58% export to only one country,” In the last edition of AM (Maritime’s back pages) we mis- he said. takenly said the Tokyo Bay was owned by Orient Container Between January and August this year trade between the US Lines. In fact the owner was Overseas Containers Limited. and mainland China was up 26% to $285bn. But US imports from PUBLISHER ADVERTISInG PRInTInG DaysOnTheBay Co Ltd [email protected] Allion Printing Company 10/F Sze Hing Industrial Building EDITOR COVER 33-37 Lee Chung Street, Chai Wan, Mike Grinter a.f.p Hong Kong SAR [email protected] HOnG KOnG OFFICE THIS HAS BEEn A COntributors 8A Greenfield Court DAYSOnTHEBAY Michael Grey Discovery Bay PRODUCTIOn Sandra Speares Hong Kong K K Chadha Tel: + 852 2987 8870 Fax:+ 852 2987 7780 PRODUCTIOn EDITOR [email protected] Lokyin Chun [email protected] SUBSCRIPTIOn SALES [email protected] ILLUSTRATIOnS Harry Harrison 4 asiamaritime November/December 2010 210 x 297mm ambriefsamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamamam n Lines While concern continues in some quarters that boxship over- capacity could threaten the industry’s fortunes in 2011, a number Nowhere was the continuing resurgence of the liner sector bet- of Asian shipping lines are looking to boost their fleets with orders ter demonstrated than in AP-Moller Maersk’s forecast of full-year for delivery in 2012 and beyond. At the World (China) Shipping profits of $5bn, announced in November, after revealing an overall Summit in Guangzhou, South Korea’s Hanjin Shipping, and China nine-month profit of $4.2bn, compared to a loss of $706m for the Shipping both said they would shortly be in the market for new same period last year. vessels. Hanjin’s chief executive Kim Young Min said the company Maersk’s liner division contributed $2.2bn to the bottom line, would be seeking newbuild deals for mid-size vessels before the compared to a $1.6bn loss during the first nine months of 2009. end of the year. A combination of a 34% increase in freight rates, a 7% increase Singapore’s Pacific International Lines, best known for its fleet in volumes and lower unit costs all contribute to the spectacular of 130 containerships, is making a multi-million dollar diversion turnaround, Maersk said. into the heavylift sector. Driven by perceived demand for multi- Maersk said it expects box volumes to grow by around 6% next purpose vessels chiefly from Chinese developers seeking entrance year, with a likely tightening in the company’s capacity. Maersk to African projects, PIL took delivery of three second-hand 17,500 will start taking delivery of a series of vessels to be deployed on dwt multipurpose vessels from Germany’s Schoeller Holdings in African and Latin American trades until March 2011. October and November. Taiwan’s Yang Ming Marine also posted outstanding results PIL has ordered a further eight such vessels at sizes ranging for the first nine months, by converting a three quarters loss of from 24,000 dwt to 27,000 dwt from China Dalian Shipyard and T$10.7bn in 2009, into a T$10.4bn ($333m) profit by the end Taizhou Kouan Shipbuilding. All eight vessels will be delivered be- of September. Yang Ming has predicted a full-year net profit of tween 2011 and 2013. ] T$13bn. At the end of 2009 the company had lost T$15.8bn. Pacific Basin has compiled a bumper shopping list (see Yards) n Ports managed by QIC, together with a minority stake held by Tawreed Investments, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Invest- Mystery continues to surround the abrupt departure of James Math- ment Authority. er, the DP World terminal director and general manager at Syd- Hong Kong-listed Dalian Port is seeking a second listing in ney’s Port Botany. Mr Mather stepped down in early November. Shanghai. The port operator said in a note to the Hong Kong ex- DP World has denied that Mr Mather exited the top job because of change it was allocating for private share placement and public of- the chaos caused when the company introduced a new IT system. fering a total of 1.5bn shares – 34% of its share capital. At the time A shipowners’ group alleged that serious delays had been ex- of going to press the company said a final pricing of the shares perienced following the introduction of the new system but further would be made on November 24. charged that such delays had been taking place over a “long pe- Singapore’s PSA International has not been enjoying its day at riod.” The group said that its members had been sustaining massive the British seaside. As a 60% owner of a container terminal at the fuel bills as vessels had to significantly increase speeds to try to get UK east coast port and holiday spot Great Yarmouth, PSA Interna- back on schedule.