Global logistics company DHL Group has entered into an initial three-year global freight forwarding agreement with the Ambatovy nickel and cobalt mine, in Madagascar.

Ambatovy is a joint venture (JV) operation of diversified Canadian resource company Sherritt International, Japanese trading giant Sumitomo Corporation and South Korean State-owned mining and natural resource investment company Korea Resources Corporation.

Ambatovy is a “large-tonnage”, long-life nickel and cobalt mining enterprise, which, at full capacity, will produce 60 000 t of refined nickel, 5 600 t of refined cobalt and 210 000 t of ammonium sulphate fertiliser a year.

DHL says this agreement will be managed by its industrial projects team, which handles very large break-bulk and complex project logistics. The agreement encompasses two contracts where DHL will provide onshore and offshore services.

For the onshore contract, DHL is responsible for providing import customs clearance for airfreight shipments of mining spare parts into Madagascar, with delivery to the Ambatovy mine site from Antananarivo to Moramanga and to the plant at Toamasina through daily shuttle services.

For offshore services, DHL will provide international air and ocean freight for importation of mining equipment to support Ambatovy’s nickel, cobalt and ammonium sulphate production, consolidated at key DHL hubs in the US, Europe and China.

DHL highlights that, through the use of its material management system (MMS), Ambatovy will have real-time visibility of its shipments during the move. An MMS is an integrated in-house information management system that enables the sharing of information and also controls business processes across various organisational borders.

Ambatovy supply chain management director Steven Cox stresses that it is “critically important” that the mine has direct access to its global suppliers to keep the operations up and running.