Shreyas Shipping to become a leading logistics player

Shreyas Shipping & Logistics aims at becoming a leading logistics player in the Indian Subcontinent by providing a complete range of solutions to clients, emphasised Mr S. Ramakrishnan, Chairman and Managing Director of the company.

Interacting with the media here to announce the second quarter and half-yearly results of the company, he highlighted that Shreyas had registered a net profit of Rs 485.93 lakh for the quarter ended September 30 (July-September 2010), as against a net loss of Rs 677.06 lakh in Q2 of 2009-10.

Total revenue for the quarter under review increased to Rs 5,109.11 lakh from Rs 3,718.11 lakh over the corresponding period of 2009-10, a growth of 27.22 per cent.
Net profit for the half-year ended September 30 made a turnaround to Rs 648.79 lakh, while the net loss for H1 of 2009-10 was Rs 841.55 lakh. Revenue increased to Rs 9,450.62 lakh in H1 of 2010-11, from Rs 7,638.47 lakh in H1 of 2009-10, an increase of 19.17 per cent.
Mr Ramakrishnan described these results as a "turning point wherein the company is now poised for a massive expansion plan. The trade acknowledgement as the ‘Best Shipping Line of the Year—Coastal Operator’ (at Exim India’s recent MALA awards) demonstrates the confidence they have in our ability to deliver."

Elaborating on the plans, he said that Shreyas, which currently owned and operated four vessels, proposed to acquire 2 vessels (primarily containerships, but which can also be used for carrying other types of cargo) for its services.

Also present on the occasion were Mr S. Mahesh, Director, Mr V. Ramnarayan, Executive Director, and Mr Vinay Kshirsagar, Chief Financial Officer of Shreyas Shipping, along with other senior company officials.

Currently, Shreyas Relay Systems Ltd moves 6 lakh tonnes of cargo per annum through the multimodal logistics system. In order to have backward integration of its processes, the company now proposed to set up warehousing facilities of approximately 1 lakh square feet at strategic locations across the country in the initial stages and scale it up in the coming years as per need.

These facilities would be taken up on the long-term lease model. At present, the company operated around 8 trailers and proposed to introduce state-of-art technically advanced 100 new ones in due course.

Shreyas will also spread its wings to other facets of logistics like bulk logistics, cold storage, liquid logistics, etc. and provide end-to-end logistics solutions to its clientele.

Mr Ramakrishnan pointed out that Shreyas would benefit from the government’s increased focus on coastal shipping. He also saw immense opportunities with the impending commencement of the Vallarpadam international container transhipment terminal (ICTT).
On relaxing cabotage, Mr Ramnarayan stressed that shipping companies had five times more capacity than the feedering requirements along the coast.

The salient features of Shreyas were highlighted as its coastal operational strength, owned fleet of vessels and multiple types of containers, tie-up with rail operators, fixed vessel schedules, and the immense goodwill.

Its excellent relationship with customers (such as the major lines in feedering) and flexible vessels, capable of carrying even project cargo, were also listed as advantages.
Though Shreyas was currently focused on the West Coast, it was constantly evaluating long-term opportunities on the East Coast as well, Mr Ramakrishnan pointed out.
The company’s services connecting Pakistan were doing well, he underscored, which included cargo destined for Afghanistan. Increased movement of cotton to Pakistan was expected, he said.

Shreyas is part of the Transworld Group, which has hands-on experience in various areas of logistics. At appropriate levels, these group companies will add value to Shreyas, according to Exim News Service.

Source: Transportweekly