Kvaerner reshuffles operations ANGLO-NORWGIAN shipbuilding and construction group Kvaer-ner has announced a reorganisation which it claims will improve its competitiveness, after seeing half-year net profit erode by more than two-thirds.
Two killed in Indonesian riots A protestor shouts at Indonesian soldiers during riots in the city of Lhokseumawe on Tuesday. Troop withdrawals are being postponed from the northern province of Aceh after two days of rioting in which two people were killed.
Trafalgar House move hangs over Kvaerner DISAPPOINTING interim results for Kvaerner have left analysts downbeat about the group's long-term prospects. The stock market has reacted with a degree of scepticism as well.
Shortsea boost for Taiwanese container lines INTRA-Asian traders were the only sector among the Taiwanese shipping lines to shine among the recently unveiled half year results.
Port of Durban pilots new security project SOUTH Africa's national department of finance has initiated a pilot study into the port of Durban which will effectively tighten both security and the movement of goods and people through border controls at the airports and harbours.
Tax breaks attract ships to Jordan JORDAN is attracting flagged out vessels and foreign shipping companies to the country by offering tax breaks according to the Jordanian Ministry of Transport.
Closure threat to Le Havre yard French shipyard Ateliers et Chantiers du Havre has been told by the French government to find a new shipbuilder investor or face closure.
Offshore oil and gas output set 'to soar' Global offshore oil and gas production will soar in the next few years but the current low oil price and impact of the Asian economic crisis will see outlay proportionally reduced and could see some major projects put on hold, according to a new report published this week.
MDD losses halved this year, claims chairman LOSSES at Malta Drydocks have been halved in the past year, and cut by 60 per cent during Prof Noel Zarb Adami's tenure as chairman, he claimed this week.
Hong Kong increases HSBC stake HONG Kong's government has become the largest shareholder in HSBC Holdings, which includes the UK's Midland Bank, following further purchases today.
Spanish yards set up joint venture THREE privately owned Spanish shipyards have set up Midyards3, a joint venture with responsibility for marketing, design, engineering and R&D.
Buquebus seeks to expand in Spain THREE months after initiating a fast ferry route between Barcelona and Majorca, Buquebus has disclosed it is considering an expansion of its operations in Spain.
Chaos reigns as Mahatir sacks deputy MALAYSIAN markets were thrown into confusion today on the news that prime minister Mahatir Mohamad had sacked his deputy and finance minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Tanker outlook is positive, says TK head THE outlook for the tanker market over the next five years is positive, Teekay Shipping's president and ceo Bjorn Moller said this morning.
Australia's cattle trade suffers further blow AUSTRALIA'S live cattle export business, already hit by the Asian crisis, has been dealt a further blow with the withdrawal of Malaysian interests from the industry.
Gordon loses Subic fight THE Philippine Supreme Court has rejected the petition from ousted SBMA chairman Richard Gordon to review and reverse a ruling that invalidated his claim to the post.
Call to change India's cabotage law WATERMAN Steamship has called for changes to India's cabotage laws to enable it to feed cargo from ports along the Indian coast for transhipment into main line vessels.
Kawasaki plans Panama terminal KAWASAKI Group wants to build a terminal near Colon Free Zone in Panama to handle non-containerised cargo moving to northern South America and the Caribbean.
B&N takes over two bulkers B&N Nordsjöfrakt, the Swedish bulk and roro shipping group, has purchased two ice strengthened bulk carriers from its Norwegian subsidiary.
Davie shipyard under threat of closure DAVIE Industries, the Canadian shipyard, is under threat of closure following the move by its owner, Montreal-based Dominion Bridge Corp, to seek bankruptcy protection.
Pertamina could save $80m, investigators claim EFFORTS to abolish corruption within Indonesia's state owned oil company, Pertamina, could save more than $80m a year, it was claimed yesterday.
Hamburg-Süd forecasts lower profits GERMAN conglomerate Oetker said its shipping subsidiary Hamburg-S'd is expected to report a fall in profits on unchanged turnover in 1998.
Kværner posts 'highly unsatisfactory' interims KVÆRNER'S 'highly unsatisfactory' interim results has prompted a restructure of some of the group's business divisions.
"Il y a peu de risques que la crise boursière affecte le marché européen du poids lourd" Même si la crise sur les marchés boursiers américain et européen, et celle en Asie, en Amérique latine et en Russie sont inquiétants, cela ne devrait pas avoir un impact très important sur le marché européen du camion. Celui-ci est influencé par une dynamique favorable. C'est ce que nous a déclaré dans une interview exclusive Leif Östling, président du constructeur suédois de poids-lourds Scania. Autres points forts de cet entretien: l'évolution de la demande sur le marché du transport ne l'oblige pas à proposer également des véhicules légers et mi-lourds; et une acquisition pour pénétrer le marché américain n'est pas à l'étude... ni exclue.
ShortLines et HGK soulignent le manque de capacité du réseau ferroviaire néerlandais Jusqu'à ce que la ligne de la Betuwe sera opérationnelle en 2005, le réseau ferroviaire néerlandais sera confronté à un manque croissant de capacité entre la zone portuaire de Rotterdam et l'Allemagne. C'est ce qu'a déclaré le directeur de Railned Paul Ranke (le gestionnaire de l'infrastructure ferroviaire) lors de l'inauguration officielle du Born-Shuttle de l'entreprise ferroviaire rotterdamoise ShortLines et de Hafen und Güterverkehr Koln (HGK) sur le Rail Terminal Born.
Paccar va probablement utiliser des cabines DAF aux Etats-Unis Les possibilités de synergies entre les divisions européennes (DAF/Foden/Leyland Trucks) et américaines (Kenworth et Peterbilt) du groupe Paccar sont plus importantes que prévu. Ainsi, la cabine des DAF 95XF sera plus que probablement montée sur des véhicules Paccar aux Etats-Unis, au Mexique, au Canada et ou/en Australie. Ces cabines seront fabriquées à Westerlo et l'envoi des premières unités pour les essais et les homologations dépendra surtout des possibilités de cette usine au niveau de la capacité (voir ailleurs dans nos pages). C'est ce que nous a déclaré Martien de Louw, administrateur de DAF responsable du développement des produits, à l'occasion de l'IAA à Hanovre.
Unilog: train direct Muizen- Manchester Dès le 28 septembre prochain, l'opérateur ferroviaire de transport combiné Unilog passe la vitesse supérieure et lance un train direct entre Manchester et son terminal malinois Dry Port Muizen. Selon Tony Davis, commercial manager, la masse critique a été atteinte pour constituer un train complet.
ARTC rates 'lack incentives' Freight train operators on the east-west corridor have greeted the Australian Rail Track Corporation's new rate structure for intestate track access with some dissension, arguing that the revamped rating structure lacks the necessary incentives for rail operators to grow their business. As seen in DCN on Tuesday, the ARTC has released its first set of access rates for the Victorian and South Australian sections of the interstate network. Under the proposal, all existing operators -- except one -- would receive a small cut in overall "real term" access rates. The ARTC also proposes to introduce a small surcharge for operators who operate longer trains to cover the cost of building crossing loops.
QR tilts in EDI's direction The Queensland Labor government yesterday announced that Queensland Rail has signed an agreement to build a high-speed tilt train between Brisbane and Cairns. Transport Minister Steve Bredhauer, who promised during the recent state election campaign to extend the proposed Brisbane to Rockhampton tilt train on to Cairns, said the project would cost $122 million. Mr Bredhauer announced that Evans Deakin subsidiary Walkers Limited would build two 10-car diesel tilt trains for the service. The construction of these tourist trains, capable of travelling at speeds of up to 160km/h, is expected to cut travel time between Brisbane and Cairns by at least 25 per cent to around 20 hours.
AMSA bans part-loaded bulker The Australian Maritime Safety Authority has banned further loading of the Cape-size bulker Kiho at Dampier pending assurances from the vessel's classification society, NK, that the ship is seaworthy. The order follows AMSA's second detention of the St Vincent & Grenadines-flagged vessel in just over a month, and comes after extensive consultation between authority officers and NK at the weekend over the structural deficiencies which resulted in the Kiho's detention on 26 August. AMSA's general manager Ship and Personnel Safety, Patrick Quirk, told DCN it was unacceptable that a ship which was detained in Australia at the end of July should again be detained five weeks later with only some of her structural defects rectified.
WA, NSW access yet to be finalised Australian Rail Track Corporation's new chief executive David Marchant signalled this week that the ARTC was still some time away from signing final agreements with access providers in NSW and Western Australia. The Adelaide-based ARTC, which has been promoted by the federal government as a one-stop-shop for operators seeking access to the interstate network, owns and manages sections of commonwealth-owned interstate rail track in Victoria and South Australia. While the ARTC now controls interstate operations from Albury through to Kalgoorlie and Alice Springs, it is yet to bed down agreements which will allow it to sell access to operators over other parts of the standard gauge network in NSW and WA on behalf of track owners in these states.
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