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German and Dutch ports braced for strike action

Seaports in Germany and the Netherlands are braced for industrial action this week, with German dockers set to strike from later today (2 September) and their Dutch colleagues joining in on the action on Friday. German trade union ver.di has issued a strike call, its members having yesterday rejected the latest pay offer from the Central Association of German Seaport Operators (ZDS) in what it described as an "escalating" dispute . Contacted by The Loadstar this afternoon, ver.di said it was once again calling on workers at ports in Lower Saxony, Bremen and Hamburg to take part in a warning strike from the Wednesday evening night shift (2 September) to the end of the Friday evening night shift on 4 September. The union staged similar action on 18 August. "The feedback is clear: the offer is not enough," commented one of ver.di's lead negotiators, Sylvi Krisch. In a statement earlier today, Christian Warnke, a ver.di union spokesperson who works at the Port of Hamburg's Burchardkai said: "More than 6,000 employees took part in the feedback round, which lasted just under a week. A large majority voted against accepting the employers' offer. This means that negotiations must continue. We are still waiting for a new date for negotiations. But there has been radio silence from the employers. Anyone who does not want to come to the negotiating table must feel the pressure from the streets. That is why we are now going on strike." In a message issued to customers this afternoon, Kuehne + Nagel (K+N) said that "according to current information, the strike is due to begin today, 02 September, with the start of the late shift at approximately 2200 local time, and it is expected to continue for 48 hours". During this period, container terminals are expected to suspend operational activities. Container deliveries and pick-ups will not be possible while the strike is in effect, it warned. "The disruption may result in delays, cancellations and handling interruptions at port terminals. These developments come at a time when German ports and transport capacities are already heavily utilised, while terminal utilisation remains high," K+N added Meanwhile, tri-modal transport operator Contargo is warning customers of potential disruption to freight traffic and intermodal services on 4 September due to strike action at seaports in the Netherlands, notably Rotterdam. The industrial action is understood to form part of wider union opposition to plans by the Dutch government to reduce social welfare spending. "A strike has been announced in the Dutch seaports for 4 September. Based on the information currently available, we expect terminal operations in Rotterdam to be severely restricted or completely suspended between approximately 1030 and 2000 local time," Contargo said. In addition, a nationwide 24-hour stoppage has been called in the rail sector for 9 September 2026.

First flight for IAI's Airbus A330-300P2F

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has completed the maiden flight of its converted Airbus A330-300 passenger-to-freighter (P2F) aircraft. The flight was conducted as part of the certification campaign for the A330-300BDSF programme and marks a significant milestone toward entry into service. In May, IAI said it had completed primary structural work on its A330-300 conversion prototype and expected certification by the end of the year. The flight follows the completion of the aircraft's primary structural phase and extensive ground testing activities performed by IAI's Aviation Group. During the flight, the aircraft and its systems were evaluated under multiple operational conditions as part of the ongoing certification process. Guy Bar Lev, IAI president and chief executive, said: "This milestone reflects IAI's continued investment in advanced aviation technologies and industrial and engineering capabilities, while strengthening our position in the global air cargo market. "The A330-300BDSF program further expands our broad conversion portfolio and reinforces IAI's ability to provide long-term, flexible and reliable solutions to customers worldwide." Designed for regional and medium-haul cargo operations, the A330-300BDSF has capacity for up to 30 containers and payload capability of up to 61 tons. The aircraft features an electrical cargo loading system and optimized cargo flow, while the forward positioning of the main deck cargo door enables faster loading and unloading operations, improving operational efficiency and reducing turnaround times, said IAI. Yaacov Berkovitz, executive vice president and general manager of IAI's Aviation Group, said: "The successful completion of the first flight marks another important step in expanding IAI's widebody conversion capabilities and advancing the A330-300BDSF program toward certification and commercial service. "Leveraging decades of engineering expertise and operational experience, we are delivering a highly capable and competitive solution designed to address the evolving needs of the global cargo market. IAI approach is designed around the customer's requirement for quick entry into service, supporting accelerated operational readiness and earlier revenue realization." IAI was the first company worldwide to achieve an STC for the conversion of a Boeing 777-300ER passenger aircraft into freighter configuration and currently performs advanced conversions for the 777-300ERSF, Boeing 767-200, 767-300, Boeing 737-700 and 737-800 platforms.

Car-carrier owners pivot towards China as vehicle export boom continues

Amid China's vehicle export boom, car-carrier owners in the west are prioritising their vessels to transport Chinese new-energy vehicles, and commissioning more newbuildings to target this market. Wallenius Wilhelmsen CEO Lasse Kristoffersen said, during the company's H1 26 earnings call, the company was focused on the surge in Chinese vehicle exports and saw it as a major source of demand for its car-carrier fleet. He said: "We were expecting China to export some 10m cars this year, if they got the capacity. We still believe that is the best guess, but in June - and increasing in July - they passed one million car exports per month, meaning that the current run rate indicates more than 12m cars ex-China this year. "Remember, before Covid China's annual vehicle exports were 1m or fewer." He continued: "China continues to grow. [Chinese cars] used to be a cheap product. Now it is a preferred product." And China's boom contrasted with the falling market share of European and US car-makers, added Mr Kristoffersen. Wallenius Wilhelmsen estimates that, in terms of ro-ro capacity, there is a shortage of 2m-4m ceu. Mr Kristoffersen said: "What we feared a couple of years ago was that there was a big orderbook going back to 2024. Despite a massive growth in the fleet, all of it has been consumed and there're hardly any vessels available for charter over the next few years. "We've actively renegotiated some of our contracts to reflect the current market and cost." Many Chinese customers appear to want longer car-carrier charter contracts and prefer to move vehicles on these vessels, but capacity remains tight. This has stimulated a renewed round of newbuilding orders for pure car and truck carriers (PCTCs). On Wednesday, UK-based tonnage provider Ray Car Carriers commissioned ten LNG dual-fuelled 8,200 ceu ships from Guangzhou Shipyard International, its first order in China. The Abraham Ungar-controlled company is paying $100m per ship, with delivery between 2029 and 2031. There are, reportedly, options for four more vessels. And last week, Hoegh Autoliners returned to China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu) after a four-year hiatus, for six 9,100 ceu PCTCs for delivery between 2029 and 2031. CEO Andreas Enger said in its H1 earnings call last month Hoegh's PCTCs were 'sold out' for this year, with a strong backlog going into 2027, adding: "Charter rates are climbing and newbuild orderbooks are fully absorbed by the Chinese growth." He estimated that because of insufficient PCTCs, as many as 1.5m cars have been moved in containers this year so far. Meanwhile, also commissioning PCTCs last week was SFL, which ordered four at 7,000 ceu for delivery in 2029, two of which have already been chartered by an Asian car-maker for five years, adding $150m to SFL's firm charter backlog.