AI-generated
India-Russia trade, which has been active despite the US sanctions on Moscow, now faces new supply chain hurdles, according to industry sources.
The biggest barrier is that the eight Indian airports, including Mumbai’s two, managed by Adani Group have temporarily suspended handling Russia-related shipments.
The stoppage has already left some 150 tonnes of Indian exports for Russia – primarily pharmaceuticals, machinery, and spare parts – stranded over the past week.
While there is no official word from Adani, industry watchers are viewing the abrupt cargo ban as an extended fallout of the sanctions, as it occurred a few weeks after US-based asset management group BlackRock agreed to funnel some $1bn in equity to Adani Airport Holdings.
“Air freight to Russia through Adani airports is now at a standstill,” one forwarder told The Loadstar. “We are unaware of the exact reason.”
Non-Adani Delhi Airport continues to handle Russia flights, including those by Russia’s national carrier, Aeroflot, but these normally carry sizeable Russia-bound cargo transhipped via Mumbai, sources said.
A Volga-Dnepr charter was reportedly rerouted to Delhi after being denied access to Navi Mumbai, while its other cargo there has been held for two weeks, according to one report.
And India-Russia trade disruption is not limited to air freight: container carriers have also stopped accepting bookings from India to Russia’s Novorossiysk port, a major hub in the Black Sea, over fears of escalating drone attacks on vessels, as well as other growing security risks in the region, sources told The Loadstar.
MSC and CMA CGM have been among the top mainline carriers on India-Russia trades, with a slew of NVO-back regional operators, including Corten Shipping. According to sources, carriers are now limiting their services to St Petersburg.
The disruption and export congestion is an added blow for Mumbai air freight stakeholders as the hub switch from the old Mumbai airport to Navi Mumbai (NMI) continues to generate controversy.
Citing a lack of infrastructure readiness and anticipated operational bottlenecks, more freighter operators are backing off with their transition plans.
Malta-based Challenge Group has joined Lufthansa Cargo in pausing operations out of India’s main commercial hub, saying: “Following an assessment of the current operating conditions at NMI, we have determined that the present operational setup does not yet enable us to deliver our cargo services with the level of reliability and certainty we require.
“Our teams are actively evaluating alternative options to maintain strong connectivity between India and our international network.”
Challenge was operating twice-weekly flights out of Mumbai, to Liege, Tel Aviv, the US, and South America, according to available data.
As the Mumbai disruption escalated, IATA stepped in, raising questions about the “forceful” approach by Adani Group in implementing the hub transition. IATA said it had created a great deal of confusion among airlines, and the process should have been left to market forces.
The association told India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation that, while airlines remained fully supportive of the dual airport system, better preparedness was critical to the transition.
Mumbai is India’s second-busiest air cargo hub, so disruption, even at a limited scale, has the potential to hamper export/import trade flows just as the country’s manufacturing prospects brighten.
Vineet Malhotra, co-founder and director at Mumbai’s Kale Logistics Solutions, said: “The priority now is to ensure that this transition is co-ordinated, data-driven, and seamless for all stakeholders.”