MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company (USA) Inc. violated the Shipping Act when it failed to meet “minimum” requirements related to its detention and demurrage invoices for container shipments from Russia to Seattle, construction services company Doka said in a recent complaint to the Federal Maritime Commission. Doka said MSC charged it more than $260,000 in detention and demurrage charges for delays that the shipping line had caused, calling its practices “unfair” and “unreasonable.” The FMC should order MSC to pay Doka reparations and force the shipping company to waive the fees, Doka said.

The Transportation Department's Maritime Administration on Oct. 28 announced the awarding of $703 million in grants from the Port Infrastructure Development Program, for 41 projects for coastal seaports, Great Lakes ports and inland river ports. The American Association of Port Authorities said the bipartisan infrastructure package allowed more spending than ever happened in past years.

Mediterranean Shipping Co. is set to buy Italy's Rimorchiatori Mediterranei, MSC announced via an emailed statement Oct. 23, Bloomberg reported. Rimorchiatori is an international towage firm operating in Italy, Malta, Singapore, Malaysia, Norway, Greece and Colombia. MSC said it agreed to acquire the company via its unit SAS Shipping Agencies Services Sarl from Rimorchiatori Riuniti and a fund managed by DWS's Infrastructure Investment business, Bloomberg said. Terms weren't disclosed.

The Airforwarders Association and the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America say tax money is needed to underpin the air cargo industry, because of "substantial revenue shortfalls" at airports. "Because of the lagging financials, airports will be allocating the monies of the Infrastructure Act to passengers, security, and safety, leaving insufficient funds to sustain air cargo operations," the groups said Oct. 18.

The Federal Maritime Commission this week officially sent its proposed rule on demurrage and detention billing requirements to the Federal Register (see 2210070079). Public comments on the rule are due Dec. 13.

CORONADO, Calif. – The Federal Maritime Commission needs industry input into key provisions of its newly announced detention and demurrage proposed rule (see 2210070079), and in particular on a provision limiting charges only to parties that have a contractual relationship, said Lucille Marvin, FMC managing director, during a panel discussion Oct. 8 at the Western Cargo Conference.

CORONADO, Calif. -- The Federal Maritime Commission is “carefully monitoring capacity” as the potential rises for economic troubles on the horizon, with some predictions calling for a repeat of 2009, FMC Commissioner Rebecca Dye said in remarks at the Western Cargo Conference Oct. 7.

A new integrated rail complex about 130 miles inland from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will be built by BNSF Railway for $1.5 billion, the company announced Oct. 1. The Barstow International Gateway will include warehouses, a rail yard and an intermodal facility. Containers will be able to go from ships to rail and not be staged for their final destinations until Barstow.

The data says that cargo logistics are untangling, but that things are not back to pre-COVID patterns, Flexport officials shared during a webinar that asked if the cargo crisis is over.

The Department of Transportation is seeking public comments to assist it in identifying federal and nonfederal sites for the storage and transfer of cargo containers to help alleviate port congestion, the agency said in a notice this week. DOT also is accepting information on whether more storage space would help mitigate congestion, which entities would most benefit from more inland ports, how the government can create “the most effective strategy to implement congestion mitigation” and more. The comments will help DOT meet a provision under the Ocean Shipping Reform Act that requires the agency to study the “feasibility” of more inland ports to ease container congestion. Comments are due on or before Oct. 26, and information submitted after the deadline will be considered “to the extent practicable.”