Further China–Laos rail service inaugurated 
A freight train loaded with fruit and rubber from Southeast Asia was ceremonially dispatched from Kunming (Yunnan province, China) on Sunday, 8 October. It will arrive in Shanghai after a journey of around 82 hours. It links the China-Laos Railway and the Shanghai-Kunming... more
From Total Energies to KPI Ocean Connect
Global marine energy solutions provider KPI OceanConnect solutions provider has appointed Melvin Lum as commercial director for its global accounts team in Singapore. He will replace Thomas Lee, who was recently promoted to head of Apac in a management restructure within KPI... more
A stopover in the north? 
Another staging post for transhipments on the Northeast Passage? Russia has been propagating the Northern Sea Route for a long time. Some carriers, including CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd, have decided against. Russia is nevertheless pushing ahead with it by expanding regional hubs in... more
Step by step to greener heavy load transports
The government of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) has approved a policy for heavy road and railfreight transport that will reduce the sector’s carbon footprint. The first step will see a two-year trial to give extra-mass zero-emissions heavy vehicles, which weigh... more
A freight train as fast as a high-speed passenger train
Russian Railways (RZD) and Russian Post have started a trial to test an express container train service to the port of Novorossiysk. The first train left Vorsino, south of Moscow, on 1 October, and arrived in Novorossiysk on the Black Sea coast a day later. The express train... more
MOL joins Tokyo Bay ESG project
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has joined the ‘Tokyo Bay ESG Priority Project’ for 2023 with its ‘Wind Hunter Project’, a zero-emissions vessel initiative incorporating wind power and hydrogen. This project is in line with the Tokyo metropolitan government’s vision of a... more
Thai’s ties to a champion cargo system
Thai Airways has renewed its contract with Champ’s Traxon Cargohub, strengthening a partnership that support its operational growth. Thai Airways thus benefits from being part of the largest air cargo community, with digital access to more than 4,000 forwarders and stakeholders... more
Indian Railways handles more raw materials
In the two quarters from April to September 2023 Indian Railways (IR) transported 758.2 million t freight, or 21.5 million t more compared to the same period last year, as the state-own railway enterprise announced recently. In September alone the freight volume amounted... more
New Istanbul hub for Varamar
Varamar has responded to increasing demand from the Caspian Sea region and the Middle East by opening a branch in Istanbul (Turkey). Emre Öncü, the new managing director of Varamar Istanbul, will head the office. This expansion of its global presence augments Varamar’s... more
Car trains to link Germany and Turkey
BLG Logistics recently launched a pilot project in which each train comprises 19 car transport wagons and can transport 190 to 228 cars. The rail service connects the BLG Auto Terminal in Kelheim, Germany, with the Köseköy logistics centre near Istanbul. Taking five to six... more