The Logistics Sector on the Southern Shores of the Western ... - cetmo

<strong>The</strong> <strong>Logistics</strong> <strong>Sector</strong>on the Southern Shores of the Western Mediterranean October 2010Services Offered• <strong>The</strong> three major global shipping groups (Maersk, MSC and CMA CGM) control theprovision of ocean-going transport for general and container cargo between Asia and theAmericas and normally use feeder ships that call at shipping hubs in the Mediterranean(Gioia Tauro and Malta). <strong>The</strong>re are also direct services with Europe, particularly thoseprovided by Italian shipping companies (Grimaldi, Tarros).• In terms of the provision of port services, in Libya there are just two ports with containerterminals (Tripoli and Alkhoms), although Benghazi also has a wharf for containers.Misurata port and the eight ports managed by the SPC provide services for general cargoand the handling of bulk cargo. Of the three major commercial ports (Tripoli, Benghaziand Misurata), only the latter has sufficient space for warehousing and logistics activities.Intermodal Transport• Owing to the lack of a railway network and the scarcity of Ro-Ro services, in practicethere is currently no provision of intermodal transport with the exception of containerstransported by road in Tripoli and Misurata ports. A certain amount of cartelization hasappeared, in which very high prices are applied in comparison with the rest of the roadtransportmarket.<strong>Logistics</strong> ServicesMarket Structure• In Libya the term “logistics” does not include the services like those offered by 3PLoperators; according to the interviewees, the market is not ready to offer services of thiskind. In professional terms, “logistics” refers to the practice of coordinating transportoperations, but major clients are increasingly requesting the coordination of internationaltransport chains for ex-works operations. This was not the case ten years ago, whenforwarding agents had little credibility from the clients’ viewpoint.<strong>The</strong>refore, one cannot truthfully speak of a public logistics-services market with 3PL-typeoperators.Regulation and Government Control• <strong>The</strong>re is no regulation of logistics operators or of logistics-services contracts.Business Structure• <strong>The</strong> major forwarding agents and the shipping agents connected to the major shippinglines offer the widest range of services. Foreign companies that offer logistics servicessuch as express parcel delivery include FedEx and UPS Libya.Service Provision• A significant limiting factor for the extension of logistics services to include cargo is thelack of recognition of forwarding agents, who at present do not have access to customswarehouses.In terms of storage, 90% of operators prefer to have their own warehouses, which is whythere is no significant provision of third-party warehousing services.CETMO 51