July 2013 brought a mix of casualty news, shipbuilding deliveries and policy talks. This summary rewrites the reports that the archived blog reposted during the month. It relies on the archive and has not been checked against the original sources.
The end of MOL Comfort
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines reported that the forward section of the containership MOL Comfort sank in the Indian Ocean at 19:00 UTC on 10 July. The burned-out wreck went down in about 3,000 metres of water. The company said it had told the Bahamas flag state, Indian authorities and other parties, and that its salvage team would stay on site to watch for any oil leakage or floating containers. The vessel had broken in two during bad weather the previous month, as covered in the June roundup.
North European container ports
A Drewry-based analysis argued that competition among North European container terminals was set to sharpen. With little growth expected and large amounts of new capacity coming, transhipment looked like the first target.
- Eurogate’s new deepwater terminal at Wilhelmshaven planned to receive the 15,000 TEU Eugen Maersk for an unscheduled call to connect with two feeder ships.
- At Rotterdam, two new Maasvlakte II terminals were due to open towards the end of the following year, adding nearly five million TEU of capacity.
- The P3 Alliance, due to begin in the second quarter of 2014, was expected to concentrate transhipment in fewer ports.
- In the Baltic, Gdansk had handled around 20,000 TEU in 2002 but was on track to pass one million in 2013, with an estimated 60 percent of it transhipment. Maersk’s 18,000 TEU Triple E ships were due to start calling there in August, and the terminal hoped to grow towards four million TEU.
- Klaipeda in Lithuania was expected to feature more once a new deepwater facility opened.
Security and policy
The heads of the International Civil Aviation Organization, the International Maritime Organization and the World Customs Organization met at the IMO in London on 8 July to discuss supply chain security. They noted that a major disruption at a key transport node could ripple through global supply chains, agreed on the need for joint technical assistance, especially for developing countries, and decided to meet again as a trilateral group.
Gas infrastructure
The European Investment Bank agreed to lend EUR 87 million to Klaipedos Nafta for a new LNG import facility in Klaipeda. The project includes a leased floating storage and regasification vessel, an offshore jetty and an 18 km pipeline to the national gas grid, and was planned for completion by the end of 2014. Officials presented it as a way to diversify Lithuania’s energy supply and bring competition to its gas market.
Shipbuilding and offshore
- Tankers. Four contracts between COSCO (Zhoushan) Shipyard and a European owner for 111,000 dwt tankers became effective, with a total value above USD 180 million and deliveries starting in the first half of 2015. The owner also held an option for up to two more.
- Containerships. Daewoo Mangalia Heavy Industries handed over the CSAV Toconao on 28 June 2013, the first of four 8,600 TEU vessels for Zodiac Maritime. At about 299.9 metres in length it was described as the largest ship built in the Black Sea and Mediterranean region.
- PSV project. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding held a kick-off meeting for its first platform supply vessel project, marking its entry into offshore auxiliary vessels.
- Rig options. Prospector Offshore Drilling agreed with DSIC Offshore to extend expiry dates on construction options that were due to lapse on 30 June 2013.
Arctic routes and port calls
An article in a US naval journal argued against the popular idea that a shrinking Arctic ice cap will lead to a rush of shipping on shorter routes, pointing to the point of lowest ice extent in September 2012. Elsewhere, the world’s largest ship at the time, Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller, the first Triple-E containership, called at Vostochny Seaport in Russia on 6 July 2013 for bunkering and cargo handling, guided through Nakhodka Bay by the local vessel traffic service. A weekly shipbroker bulletin reported ordering focused on dry bulk carriers, with extra orders for containerships, large LNG carriers and small tankers, including a first option declared by Oldendorff for an additional large Newcastlemax.
Mooring technology
The mooring equipment maker Cavotec was reported to have launched what it described as the first automated mooring system for ships, aimed at making berthing faster and safer. Technology of this kind shifts some routine dockside tasks away from crew, though trained deck officers remain responsible for safe operations.
Diversifying the yard order book
The Romanian yard behind the CSAV Toconao said it had signed with a Greek owner for two 9,100 TEU ships due in summer 2015. It had also won an order for two 6,500-unit car and truck carriers and, in April, for four 112,000 dwt product carriers. The yard described this spread as a response to swings in the global shipbuilding market, with backing from its Korean majority shareholder. The charterer of the Toconao series is a long-term customer, and the ship’s name refers to a small town in Chile’s Atacama desert.
Why it matters for crewing
New ships and offshore units, from large containerships to PSVs and drillships, create demand for qualified officers and ratings. Recruitment and training are explained in the crew management overview, and further news is in the blog hub.