Today's Supply Chain Pulse
50Hertz and Elia launch €752 million offshore HV cable logistics tender
German TSO 50Hertz and Belgian TSO Elia have issued a joint €752 million procurement for offshore high‑voltage cable repair logistics and jointing services. The framework spans multi‑year call‑off contracts from November 2027 to October 2035 and is divided into six lots, including three repair‑logistics lots worth €110 million each.
Also developing:
By the numbers: GIA acquires 30% stake in De Beers' Tracr blockchain platform
TrueCommerce Appoints Sean Flynn as CRO to Drive AI‑powered Supply‑chain Growth
TrueCommerce announced the appointment of Sean Flynn as chief revenue officer, tasking him with scaling its AI‑focused supply‑chain and omnichannel platform. Flynn, who joins from Avalara after senior roles at IBM Sterling Commerce, will lead global revenue and partner strategy as the company pushes its real‑time connectivity roadmap.
Firestorm Labs Secures $82 Million to Deploy Containerized Drone Factories
Defense startup Firestorm Labs closed an $82 million Series B round led by Washington Harbour Partners, bringing total funding to $153 million. The money will fund its xCell platform – a shipping‑container‑sized 3‑D‑printing factory that can produce combat drones in under 24 hours for...
ONE Expects 11% Decline in FY26 Net Profit Due to War in Middle East
Ocean Network Express (ONE) reported FY25 net profit of $338 million on $16.6 billion revenue and warned that FY26 profit will fall 11% to $300 million. The decline is attributed to the ongoing war in the Middle East, which the carrier expects to...
Oil Prices Spike as US‑Iran Conflict Deepens, Raising Stakes for Emerging Markets
Brent crude surged to $126.41 a barrel and U.S. WTI to $108 as the United States escalated its blockade of Iran, prompting a $25 bn Pentagon cost estimate for the war. The price shock is straining emerging‑market importers and reshaping global...
Port Houston Gets $48M Grant for Bayport Terminal Expansion
Port Houston received a $48 million federal grant from the Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program to fund a new container yard and an east exit gate at the Bayport Container Terminal. The port will match the grant with roughly...
Iran War Pushing India Back to Coal, Off Gas
The escalating US‑Iran conflict has tightened global LNG supplies, forcing India to lean on coal to meet its summer peak power demand. Traditionally, Indian utilities boost gas‑fired generation during April‑June, supported by government subsidies that cap retail electricity rates. With...
TIME Names 10 Most Influential Supply Chain Companies of 2026
TIME’s annual TIME100 Companies list identified the ten most influential supply‑chain firms of 2026, highlighting how AI, tariffs and automation are reshaping the industry. Notable deals include Corning’s $6 billion fiber‑optic contract with Meta and Emirates Global Aluminum’s $4 billion new plant...
Ukraine's TLK-150 Sea Drone Eyed to Clear Mines in Strait of Hormuz
Toloka’s TLK-150 underwater drone, proven in the Black Sea, is being considered for use in the Strait of Hormuz where Iranian mines have halted 20% of world energy shipments. Experts say the U.S. lacks comparable tools, while Ukraine’s four‑year demining...
Carmakers Bank on $2.3B in Future Tariff Refunds
Automakers are booking anticipated tariff refunds after a February Supreme Court decision invalidated portions of the Trump administration’s import duties. Ford, GM, Mercedes‑Benz and Stellantis collectively recorded about $2.3 billion in expected reimbursements, lifting first‑quarter earnings but not yet cash flow....
Kion Group Posts Q1 Profit and Record Order Intake, Signaling Strong B2B Demand
Kion Group AG turned a €46.9M loss into a €92.2M net profit in Q1 2026, while order intake rose 10% to €2.985B. The German material‑handling leader reaffirmed its full‑year outlook, underscoring resilient B2B demand for logistics equipment.
From Concept to Track: PJM’s End-to-End Rail Vehicle Development and Certification as Well as Leading Digital Rail Freight Solutions
PJM Group has broadened its ISO/IEC 17025‑accredited laboratory to include pantograph testing, making it Austria's sole provider in that area, and launched EMC Rail Services as a seventh testing discipline. The company also unveiled INFRATRACK, a dedicated test track built on...
GM to Invest in ICE Manufacturing
General Motors announced an $830 million infusion into three North‑American facilities to expand internal‑combustion‑engine (ICE) production. The Romulus plant will receive $300 million to boost 10‑speed transmission capacity, Toledo gets a combined $80 million for light‑duty truck transmissions, and Saginaw will add $150 million...
Intermodal Offers a Pricing Edge Amid Fuel Pressures: Uber Freight
Uber Freight reports a five‑month tightening in the U.S. trucking market, with truckload spot rates climbing 27% for dry vans and 30% for reefers year‑over‑year. Contract rates are also up 5‑6% and tender rejections have risen roughly 10%, signaling constrained...
Emerging CO2 Trade Gets Real with First Bimco Time Charterparty
Bimco has issued CO2TIME 2026, the industry’s first time‑charterparty specifically drafted for liquefied CO₂ (LCO₂) transport. The new form responds to the accelerating rollout of carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) projects that require reliable maritime logistics. By codifying freight terms,...
Shin‑Etsu's Naphtha Shortage Signals Chip Supply Risk
“Japan’s largest chemical company, Shin-Etsu Chemical, has withheld its full-year forecast,citing supply constraints on naphtha-derived products due to the war. Shin-Etsu, which also makes silicon wafers for semiconductors, says it’s difficult to “reasonably predict” performance for the fiscal year. Its...
Supply Chain Disruptions Cost Companies $16 Million a Year, Study Finds
A Coupa and Incisiv survey of 133 senior procurement leaders reveals that supply‑chain disruptions cost companies an average of $16 million annually. Every respondent reported at least one major disruption in the past 24 months, leading to expedited freight, production shutdowns,...
Coco Robotics Appoints Ralf Wenzel to Board of Directors
Urban delivery startup Coco Robotics announced that Ralf Wenzel, the founder of Foodpanda and former CEO of JOKR, has joined its Board of Directors. Wenzel brings two decades of experience scaling last‑mile logistics across more than 40 countries and a...
Tanker Market Finds Delicate Balance as Oil Prices Surge to Multi-Year Highs
Oil prices surged to a multi‑year high of $126 per barrel before easing below $115, driven by President Donald Trump’s warning of a prolonged Iranian port blockade. The price spike has kept tanker charter rates elevated, even as the market...
Siemens, Diageo, Oxbo and Others Open US Facilities in April
April saw a surge of U.S. manufacturing openings as six companies launched major facilities across the South and Northeast. Diageo invested $415 million in a 360,000‑sq‑ft plant in Montgomery, Alabama, while Siemens Mobility opened a $220 million rail‑manufacturing hub in Lexington, North...
Maersk Raises Intermodal Fuel Fees in Australia and New Zealand Amid Energy Cost Surge
A.P. Moller‑Maersk announced a hike in its Intermodal Fuel Fee for Australia and New Zealand, effective 1 May 2026. The surcharge climbs 27% in New Zealand and 18% across all Australian states. Maersk attributes the increase to ongoing volatility in global energy markets, especially disruptions...
Siemens and the Industrial Backbone of Digital Supply Chains
Siemens demonstrates that a true digital supply chain rests on an integrated industrial layer that connects engineering, automation, manufacturing execution, and operational data. The company’s approach shows that dashboards and planning software are only as effective as the quality and...
Talking Headways Podcast: The Logistics of Package Delivery
In a recent Talking Headways episode, ASU professor Benjamin Fong dissected the logistics behind e‑commerce giants like Amazon, highlighting the complexities of last‑mile delivery and the growing reliance on third‑party delivery service providers (DSPs). He examined state‑level legislation such as...
Air Cargo Carriers Add Fuel Surcharges Driven by Iran War
Air cargo carriers are rolling out new fuel surcharges as the Iran‑related conflict drives jet‑fuel prices to near‑double historic levels. Spot U.S. Gulf Coast kerosene hit $4.03 per gallon on April 27, prompting carriers such as United, Air Canada, Cathay, ANA...
All‑in‑One Tool Cuts Product Development From Weeks to Days
Cursor for code. Lovable for apps. @Genpire_ai for products you can actually hold. One workflow handles the whole cycle, from idea to design to tech pack to manufacturer match. A DTC founder using it said they cut their development time from...
Express Firm SF Selects Changi as Its First Overseas Hub
Chinese logistics giant SF Group announced that Changi Airport will serve as its first overseas hub, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding with Changi Airport Group. The partnership targets the rapidly expanding air‑cargo market across Southeast Asia, South Asia and...
Samsung and SK Hynix Warn AI-Driven Memory Shortages Could Last Until 2027 and Beyond, as HBM Demand Explodes — Customers...
Samsung and SK Hynix warned that AI‑driven memory shortages, especially for high‑bandwidth memory (HBM), could persist through 2027 and beyond. Customers are already reserving supply years in advance, reflecting record‑low fulfillment rates. The shortage is spilling into the broader DRAM...
Averitt Plans $200 Million Logistics Campus In Charlotte Area
Averitt is investing over $200 million to build a 100‑acre logistics campus near Charlotte Douglas International Airport, slated for completion in 2028. The development will consolidate trucking, warehousing, and fulfillment services into a single site featuring a two‑story office, a large...
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern Submit Revised Plan for Transcontinental Rail Merger
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have filed an amended merger application with the Surface Transportation Board, presenting new traffic modelling that incorporates data from all six Class I railroads. The plan envisions a coast‑to‑coast single‑line network that could save shippers roughly...
UPS Ramping up Ground Saver Deliveries Handled by USPS
UPS announced it will increase the daily handoff of parcels to the U.S. Postal Service from about 977,000 in Q1 to roughly 1.5 million in Q2, under the revived Ground Saver agreement. The volume represents about 44 % of UPS’s economy‑shipping business...
JuliaHub Raises $65M Series B and Launches Dyad 3.0, Bringing Agentic AI to Industrial Digital Twins
JuliaHub announced a $65 million Series B round led by Dorilton Capital and the launch of Dyad 3.0, its agentic AI platform for industrial digital twins. Dyad 3.0 claims to shrink hardware design and testing cycles from months to minutes by coupling autonomous AI...
First Wholesaler Achieves End-to-End Supplier-DC-Store Traceability Using ReposiTrak’s Cutting-Edge Technology
ReposiTrak announced that a leading Southern wholesale grocery cooperative has become the first wholesaler to achieve full supplier‑to‑store traceability using its Touchless Traceability solution. The system captures FDA‑required key data elements electronically from suppliers at shipment and from receivers at...
Ministers Agree to Address Steel Tariff Threat
The UK government will slash steel import quotas by 60% and raise the tariff on imported steel to 50% starting 1 July, a move that could double material costs for construction firms. After industry backlash, the Construction Leadership Council and the...
Iranian Ports Could Be Blockaded for ‘Months,’ Says Trump
President Donald Trump warned that the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports could continue for months, as oil prices surged above $126 per barrel. The White House told oil executives the blockade would persist if needed, while U.S. Central Command readied...
Pakistan Opens Corridors, Linking Iran to Russia, China
🚨PAKISTAN DOUBLE CROSSING TRUMP🚨 Pakistan has now opened six corridors to Iran to bypass the US blockade. Over 3,000 containers are already traversing these routes. Iran can now connect directly by land to Russia & China and the US cannot stop them. MASTERMIND?...
USC Launches Smart Manufacturing Program on Peggy Smedley Show
@ThorstenWuest shares about the smart #manufacturing program at the University of South Carolina. Learn more on The Peggy Smedley Show. https://t.co/yzTt3d1mY3 #IoT #sustainability #AI #digitaltransformation #PeggySmedley #podcast
NVIDIA Phases Out Several Jetson Modules Due to High LPDDR4 RAM Prices and Tight Supplies
NVIDIA is accelerating the end‑of‑life of several Jetson modules that use LPDDR4 memory, including the TX2 NX, TX2i, AGX Xavier, and Xavier NX families. The move follows tightening global DRAM supplies and rising LPDDR4 prices, prompting a non‑cancelable, non‑returnable (NCNR) order policy effective...
U.S. Can Blockade, Yet Fails to Restore Trade Confidence
I have no doubt the U.S. military can execute an effective blockade. What it has not shown is an ability to restore commercial confidence once a major waterway is disrupted, which we have seen in the Red Sea and is...
Create Your Own FreightGuard Report to Expose Bad Brokers
Hey truckers/carriers do you want your own version of FreightGuard reports so you can call out bad brokers?
Swiss 200-Train Framework Contract Signed After Legal Challenge Dropped
Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) signed a framework contract with Siemens Mobility on April 30 to supply up to 200 six‑car Desiro double‑deck EMUs, valued at roughly US$2.2 billion. The firm order includes 95 units for Zürich S‑Bahn service from 2031, 21...
EU-Mercosur Deal Takes Effect; Origin Rules Summarized
As the EU- Mercosur provisionally enters into force tomorrow, I'm about to draft a short summary of origin provisions for EU teaders. Stay tuned.
Japan Confident of Crude Oil Supply Through Year‑end
Japanese top officials say that "even conservatively, we expect to ensure supply [of crude oil] through the end of the year."
OOCL Orders 12 LNG Dual-Fuel Container Ships to Advance Green Fleet Strategy
OOCL has placed an order for twelve 13,600‑TEU container vessels equipped with LNG dual‑fuel engines, the first such ships in its fleet. The contracts were signed with Hudong‑Zhonghua Shipbuilding on 29 April 2026. The newbuilds aim to meet tightening emissions regulations, expand...
Israel Rejects Ukraine Stolen Grain After EU Sanctions Warning
Israel’s Grain Importers Association refused entry to the Russian‑flagged vessel Panormitis, which was transporting about 6,000 tonnes of wheat valued at $7 million from occupied Ukrainian fields. The move came after the European Union warned Israeli companies that participation in the...
Scout Motors Ramps up $2B SC Plant with 700 Robots
Scout Motors advances $ 2B South Carolina plant with 700 robots, Supplier Park buildout. The plant will produce the Scout Traveler SUV and the Scout Terra pickup truck. Lucky for us, Scout shares a surprising amount of details: https://t.co/gT5Yp6tLal
US Sees Limited Economic Impact From Hormuz Blockade
pardon the flippancy, but from a US macroeconomic perspective, i do think the Strait of Hormuz blockade’s impact is limited. more importantly, i believe this is how POTUS is thinking about it. always great catching up with the Politico Morning Money team...
Nearshoring Is Creating New Infrastructure Bottlenecks
Nearshoring is reshaping supply chains by moving production closer to U.S. demand, but the shift is exposing new regional constraints. Manufacturing capacity can be added faster than the supporting roads, rail, ports, and utility networks, creating localized bottlenecks. Border crossings,...
Ontario Strikes Back With 10-Year Forest Roadmap to Reduce US Dependence
Ontario unveiled a 10‑year Roadmap to Protecting its Forest Sector, a defend‑adapt‑grow plan designed to safeguard roughly $15.5 billion USD in annual revenue and 154,000 jobs from soaring U.S. duties that have pushed export penetration to 45.16%. The strategy targets three...
Turkish Cargo Partners with Air China Cargo on China-Turkey Flights
Turkish Cargo announced a partnership with Air China Cargo to operate scheduled freighter services between Chengdu and Istanbul, launching three weekly flights. The collaboration taps Air China’s fleet of Boeing 777, 747‑400F and A330‑200 P2F aircraft, complementing Turkish Cargo’s own...
Argentina Balances LNG Export Ambitions With Ongoing Import Demand
Camuzzi Gas Inversora has signed a memorandum of understanding with global energy trader Vitol to develop the LNG del Plata project at the Port of La Plata. The facility is slated to begin commercial operations in 2028 and will be fed primarily by...
Untitled
Parsec Automation has launched a Connected Worker solution that runs natively on its TrakSYS manufacturing execution system (MES). The offering embeds real‑time, context‑driven workflows directly into the operational platform, allowing tasks to be generated and adapted based on live production...