Going into 2025, infrastructure changes and sustainable logistics will continue to be booming.
This includes docks, ports, ships, rail, and trucks, to name a few. In this boom, project freight forwarders will bite off a substantial piece of the pie. The Project Cargo Journal predicted that irregular oversized cargo could reach nearly $276 billion by 2030. Breakbulk Europe delegates also reported a strong demand for project carriers. This demand is projected to push up rates throughout 2024 and into the next year. The potential cause? Energy consumption, energy transitions, and clean air goals.
Yes, the oil and gas sectors still have a robust demand, but renewable energy investments are increasing. The expected project cargo influx is benefiting from the investment increase and the extensive renewable energy and industrial projects coming down the pipeline. A recent Drewry report named the “Multipurpose Shipping Forecaster” noticed the projected surge in project cargo demand by 2028 and combined these two sectors when it noted that the world’s growing energy consumption needs to be met by both renewable and conventional energy projects. The report further noted that this duality will potentially exert pressure on project carrier fleets and the multipurpose vessel (MPV) market.
The trend of greener shipping
One of the sustainable trends being seen is the goal to reduce the carbon footprint of logistics by adapting green practices. This involves ships and trucks, but also warehousing, packaging materials, and more streamlined ports.
One prime example of this is California with the state’s Port of Los Angeles upgrades and the Clean Air Act with regulations on freight transportation air pollution. The Clear Air Act lists 4 keys areas of focus: Advanced Clean Fleet Rules, In-Use Locomotive Rules, Sustainable Freight Action planes, and CATI, California’s Clean Air Technology Initiative. The theme seen across these key areas include improving air quality by the removal of non-zero emission drayage trucks from the state, use of zero-emission equipment where possible, evaluating and accelerating the creation of low/zero-emission technologies, and a more integrated freight transportation system. The Port of Los Angeles upgrades are a step in this direction.
What is happening at the Port of Los Angeles with the latest state project?
The Pier 300 terminal at the Port of Los Angeles is said to be receiving $52 million for its on-dock rail capacity and other improvements. Construction of the five loading and unloading tracks in the intermodal yard is already planned to start in 2025, according to a port release. This project aligns with California’s clean air goals with fewer transfers of cargo, creating fluid and cleaner operation practices. It also looks ahead to expected future volume growth in not only U.S.-bound containerized imports, but heavy cargo as well.
Amongst the increased heavy cargo coming into the Port of Los Angeles are transformers. In particular, transformers speared to create the renewable energy needed for the infrastructure changes required to stay in line with regulations from the Clean Air Act mentioned above. The terminal changes could allow the transformers to potentially load and move faster so that deadlines can be met, as well as hopefully help customers avoid being hit with late demurrage fees for delays due to waiting weeks to be loaded based on limited rail car space or shortages.
MTS Logistics: Your Project Logistics Partner
As infrastructure expands and demand for renewable energy projects rises, MTS Logistics is positioned to benefit from the increased need for specialized freight forwarding, particularly for heavy cargo like transformers. These transformers can weigh from 100 to 400 tons. With our expertise in managing the complexity of these moves, MTS Logistics is ready to meet growing demand, ensuring that these projects are completed on-time and within budget for the upcoming critical infrastructure upgrades in states like California and across the U.S.
