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Bangladesh backs Mongla expansion as workers protest DP World deal

Bangladesh has signed a $336m loan agreement with China to expand and modernise Mongla port, as workers at the country's main container gateway of Chittagong threaten an indefinite hunger strike over a deal handing a major terminal to DP World. Signed in Dhaka on Sunday, the loan will fund the construction of two container jetties, as well as a cargo and delivery yard, at Mongla, alongside the purchase of modern port equipment, with expectations of an increase in annual capacity of 394,000 teu. Dhaka-based garment exporter Rafayet Ullah said construction of the Padma Bridge would make Mongla a genuine alternative to Chittagong, telling The Loadstar: "The increased number of jetties and modern equipment means the port will be able to facilitate significant volumes." The China-backed expansion comes as authorities in Bangladesh face opposition from port workers over a decision to award DP World a 15-year concession to operate Chittagong's largest container terminal, the New-mooring Container Terminal (NCT). Signed on 8 October, extending the concession, the agreement has seen workers and members of left-wing political parties stage mass "symbolic" hunger strikes outside the port as they demanded the deal's cancellation. And now they plan more drastic action. Humayun Kabir, coordinator of the Port Protection Sangram Parishad, said that, with government authorities refusing to discuss the deal, workers were "giving the government another bout of time. If the deal is not cancelled, we will go on a 'fast unto death' on 19 October". Mr Kabir cited other countries, including Djibouti, where port agreements involving DP World had been cancelled, calling for the same outcome in Bangladesh, while colleague Ibrahim Khokon said they had not been adequately informed about the deal before it was signed.

GFS ship sinks after missile attack, second ship sustains damage

Missiles struck two container ships in Global Feeder Shipping's (GFS) fleet in the Strait of Hormuz in the last 24 hours, with one vessel subsequently sinking after catching fire. Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) said that the 2008-built 2,824 teu GFS Pride was damaged and caught fire before sinking. All of its 21 crewmen were evacuated, with no injuries reported. The other ship, 2015-built 4,350 teu GFS Giselle, sustained hull damage but remained operational and proceeded under its own power to a safe anchorage. All 22 crew members were safe, and no injuries were reported. Both ships are Singapore-flagged but had no Singaporeans among their crew. SeaSearcher's AIS data shows that GFS Pride was approximately one nautical mile east of Ras Makhbuq, Oman, when it was hit. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said an unnamed container ship carrying more than 2,500 containers had struck a mine while transiting what it described as an "unauthorised and dangerous" route through the strait. The sinking of GFS Pride is the second vessel loss since the US-Israel-Iran war began on 28 February, according to data from the International Maritime Organization, the United Nations' shipping agency. The earlier incident involved a bulk carrier, Cape Dao, which sank in the Gulf of Oman yesterday, after being hit by two torpedoes on 23 September. One Indian seafarer was killed and two others were injured. Both GFS Pride and GFS Giselle were originally owned by Dubai-based Simatech Shipping, before the latter's liner operations were acquired by GFS in October 2018. Abu Dhabi-based AD Ports owns 81% of GFS. GFS' website states that GFS Pride served a Khor Fakkan-Fujairah-Karachi service, and was supposed to have arrived in Khor Fakkan on Friday. GFS Giselle is deployed on a Fujairah-Khor Fakkan-India (Nhava Sheva) service and was due to have arrived in Khor Fakkan, also on Friday. MPA said it was in contact with the vessels' management company and was closely monitoring developments. The authority expressed concern over continued attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, including the latest incidents involving the two Singapore-registered ships. It described the attacks as unprovoked and unjustifiable, saying they violated international law. MPA added that all actions affecting international shipping must comply with international law, particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and must not jeopardise the safety of vessels or seafarers.

Gemini relaunch likely to add to congestion pressure at Khor Fakkan

Gemini may be relaunching connections between the Far East and Middle East this weekend, to restore direct ocean links, but after replacing Jebel Ali calls, Khor Fakkan appears to be showing signs of buckling under the pressure. As reported by The Loadstar yesterday, the relaunched service, marketed as AGX by Hapag-Lloyd and FM1 by Maersk, is set to operate under a revised rotation that sees Khor Fakkan replace Jebel Ali, because of the US-Iran war, but warning signs of congestion have appeared at the Emirati gateway. A Kuehne+Nagel update that Khor Fakkan and Fujairah "taking on a lot of the volumes shifted to ports outside the Strait of Hormuz in recent months" had led to congestion across the UAE's corridors, with the two ports now the "main pressure points in the region". It added: "Through Fujairah and Khor Fakkan, transit times vary by destination, while final-mile delivery and corridor connectivity remain under the control of UAE government-affiliated logistics providers. "However, as congestion in Jeddah decreases, we expect cargo flows to redistribute towards alternative gateways, including Jeddah, Aqaba, and Salalah. Looking ahead, we expect Khor Fakkan and Fujairah to remain under significant pressure in the coming weeks." This was also recognised by Maersk, which said in its latest operational update: "Vessel congestion and limited berth availability at Khor Fakkan, together with high yard utilisation, road congestion and extended truck waiting times, are delaying cargo clearance." Meanwhile, Expeditors has somewhat downplayed the extent of the problem, noting that "UAE gateways remain largely unaffected and outside the Strait risk area", but nonetheless added that Khor Fakkan and Fujairah were "showing signs of congestion". With Gemini's relaunched service scheduled for 17 October, on its Qingdao-Ningbo-Tanjung Pelepas-Khor Fakkan-Singapore-Qingdao rotation, the congestion issues have raised questions as to how beneficial the additional capacity will prove for shippers. Maersk said that it would be relocating some boxes to an inland container depot at Sajja, which it hoped would help ease pressure on the port, while it is planning for the possible redirection of some shipments to Jebel Ali. Even so, cargo arriving at ports still needs to reach its final destination, and hauliers and logistics operators have been crying out for support to provide additional hinterland connectivity, with trucking the most obvious solution. However accessing that capacity has become a key hurdle, with forwarders telling The Loadstar that, since the outset of the war, this capacity was being "hoovered up" by "forwarders with the biggest pockets, rather than shipments with the most need".