INTERVIEW: Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Sees India as Shipping Hub

New Delhi, Nov. 4 (Jiji Press)–India can become a hub for international shipping, serving as a base for exports to Africa and the Middle East, Yutaka Ikeda, managing director of Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd.’s Indian arm, said in a recent interview. India will grow in geographical importance, as it is located at the center of the Indian Ocean and the country’s key Nhava Sheva and Mundra ports have been expanded, Ikeda said. The remarks came as the Indian government is ramping up the country’s shipbuilding industry as it seeks to create jobs and lower reliance on foreign ships amid a rise in ocean shipping. Petroleum products and automobiles make up a large share of Indian exports. Mitsui O.S.K. employs Indian crews and owns ships of Indian registry for clients in the South Asian country. This is an advantage for working with a local state-owned energy company, Ikeda said. India’s vehicle exports have increased by an average of 10 pct per year since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. About 250,000 units are shipped to Africa, the second-largest export destination after the Middle East. Mitsui O.S.K. handles over half of the shipments to Africa. Prior to the pandemic, many Indian-made cars were exported to Europe and the Americas. India has “dramatically changed its role to that of a supply base for the Middle East and Africa in the past three to four years,” Ikeda said, adding that the number of ships calling at Indian ports has increased significantly. “Many overseas Indian companies appear in various aspects” of the shipping industry around the Indian Ocean, Ikeda said, emphasizing the significant presence of Indians in the region. Mitsui O.S.K. has signed a memorandum of understanding with Suzuki Motor Corp. and TradeWaltz Inc., a trade information linkage system operator, to cooperate in resolving challenges related to transporting automobiles between India and Africa. The pact was signed in August to coincide with the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD 9, in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. Under the agreement, the three companies will consider measures such as digitizing documents required for transportation. “It’s a concrete first step to contribute to strengthening supply chains and improving connectivity in the huge economic bloc from India to Africa,” Ikeda said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]