The American Association of Port Authorities sees no threat from Chinese cranes in US ports
AAPA clarified the record on recent reports that cranes sourced from China at ports pose a national security threat. There have been no known security breaches as the result of any cranes at U.S. ports, despite alarmist media reports. Further, modern cranes are very fast and sophisticated but even they can’t track the origin, destination, or nature of the cargo, according to AAPA’s release. China has subsidized crane manufacturing in a way that makes their cranes half the cost. To correct this imbalance, the U.S. should build out its reshoring tools to bolster the manufacturing of critical equipment. Seaports partner with government authorities to assess security vulnerabilities from every threat vector. Recent reports – citing sources that have worked directly with the industry – have at times conflated the approved equipment at ports with other Chinese technology that has consciously been rejected in the U.S. because of potential misuse. AAPA has dedicated ‘trip wires’ for anything that could threaten port operations, including a Technical Committee on Security and Safety. The Committee has reported, “[it] take[s] very seriously the concerns raised about Chinese-made cranes operating at U.S. ports. In partnership with Federal, state, and local law enforcement, ports have taken steps to detect and mitigate potential risks posed by these cranes. To the best of the committee’s knowledge, no kinetic or cyber incidents involving these cranes have been reported at U.S. ports.” AAPA will soon introduce the Crane Reshoring and National Enforcement of Supply Chain Security (CRANES) Act of 2023 to jump-start American production of port equipment. The legislation will be unveiled at the industry’s Legislative Summit: Strong Ports, Strong America later this month. 19:00 Amplify Energy reaches $96.5 mln settlement with the shipping companies related to the containerships’ anchor strikes of Amplify’s pipeline 18:27 Finnish stevedore strike ends after deal between transport workers, port operators 18:07 USDOT announces more than $12 mln in funding for the U.S. Marine Highway Program 17:52 NSR cargo traffic may reach 90 million tonnes by 2024 and 216 million tonnes by 2030 17:31 IINO conducts marine biofuel trial in Singapore 17:10 Hapag-Lloyd revenues up to USD 36.4 billion in 2022 16:47 Subsea7 to acquire shares in Seaway7 16:47 Volumes of cargo carried by regular coastal voyages on NSR to rise 2.3 times to 20 thousand tonnes in 2023 16:25 Svitzer solidifies Brazilian market presence with entry into Port of Salvador 16:09 MABUX: Bunker Weekly Outlook, Week 09, 2023 15:30 Bunker sales at Vladivostok port in 2M’2023 fell by 32% YoY 14:59 Shareholders of Global Ports approved redomicilation of the Company from Cyprus to Russia 14:34 ABB and Pace CCS partner to drive carbon capture and storage growth 14:17 RF Government approves plan for construction of TOAZ facility for handling of ammonia and fertilizers in Taman 14:03 KSOE wins US$765 mln order for 3 LNG carriers 13:43 Keppel O&M to deliver Guyana’s third FPSO 13:22 Wartsila to supply the main propulsion machinery for two new 110-metre long amphibious transport vessels 13:02 World’s first hydrogen powder plant to be set up in the port of Amsterdam 12:42 SCZONE and HEPA sign a cooperation protocol to exchange experiences and develop ports information systems 12:22 Schedule reliability dips slightly M/M in January 2023 11:56 Belarus plans to purchase Bronka complex in Port of St. Petersburg in 2023 11:52 Platts to exclude Russian oil from Asia fuel oil, bunker assessments – Ship & Bunker 11:33 RF Ministry of Agriculture not to revise grain export quota this season 11:24 MOL unveils marine debris collection ship and demonstrates coastal debris collection device on the coast of Bali, Indonesia 11:02 HMM becomes best-performing carrier for carbon emission between Far East and U.S. West Coast 10:45 Maersk advances warehouse fulfillment speed with new software and scanning technology 10:27 Volga Shipping Company opens navigation in the South of Russia 10:25 Wilhelmshaven LNG terminal starts regular operations 09:41 Hiroshima Port welcomes its first LNG-fueled PCTC 09:20 Construction of the Rasht-Astara railway is one of the key projects of North–South ITC – Andrei Belousov
