Amazon India Partners with IWAI to Pioneer Inland Waterways for Package Shipment

• ByStartupStory     |    November 23, 2023

Amazon India and the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to pioneer the shipment of customer packages through inland waterways. This industry-first move aims to leverage containerized cargo movement and establish a network for cargo shipment via inland waterways, as outlined in a blog post by Amazon India on November 22.

As part of this strategic partnership, Amazon India and IWAI will collaborate to explore the integration of inland waterways into Amazon’s supply chain. The ecommerce giant is set to launch a pilot run on the Patna to Kolkata waterway, along the National Waterway 1, with the backing of IWAI and its carriers. India boasts 111 notified national inland waterways, covering approximately 20,275.5 km and facilitating the transport of nearly 55 million tonnes of cargo annually, according to government statistics.

Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, commended the collaboration, stating, “This MoU with Amazon India marks a significant step towards harnessing the potential of India’s inland water transport.” He emphasized the government’s focus on enhancing cargo movement through river systems as a more sustainable and economical mode of transport.

The initiative comes nearly a year after Amazon launched its air cargo network, Amazon Air, in India, utilizing the complete cargo capacity of a Boeing 737-800 aircraft for expedited deliveries. Abhinav Singh, VP of Operations at Amazon India, expressed enthusiasm about the waterways initiative, calling it a transformative offering that opens up new possibilities for all ecommerce companies to leverage India’s extensive inland waterways.

Singh highlighted Amazon’s commitment to its global mission of transforming logistics and its intent to tap into India’s rivers, canals, and other water bodies to enhance logistics and transportation efficiency for the Indian ecommerce industry. With this move, Amazon India solidifies its logistics network across land, air, and inland waterways. The company has also been actively working to expand its export capacity from India, with reports indicating a target of $20 billion in exports from the country by 2025.

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