News

The "Happy Penguin", en route from Stenungsund to Teesport, suffered problems with its exhaust valve in position 56 21 00.6 N, 002 30 36.6 E, on Feb 19, 2019. The defect was rectified by the crew, and the vessel arrived at Teesport on Feb 20 at 2.30 p.m.

In the evening of Feb 18, 2019, the Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu received a request for assistance from MCC Korea reporting a missing crewmember from the "Oryong No. 721", located 483 statute miles west of Jarvis Island, 1,680 miles southwest of Honolulu. The 25-year-old Indonesian crewman was last seen smoking on the fantail at 4:45 a.m. in a black shirt and neon green running pants. He was confirmed missing an hour later. JRCC watchstanders issued a SafetyNet broadcast alerting vessels in the area to the situation and, working through AMVER, identified other ships to assist in the search. They also provided search plans to the Oryong crew based on available information. Due to distance and limited aviation support a Coast Guard HC-130 would have only one hour of on-scene search time per 7–8 hours of transit severely limiting its value. The case was on going.

Chairwoman of the Executive Board of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), Angela Titzrath, comments on the company’s preliminary unaudited fig-ures for the 2018 financial year: “HHLA has performed very successfully over the past financial year, despite the deterioration of the market environment in the second half. The challenging targets we set for ourselves one year ago have been achieved and partially exceeded. These results confirm our strategy of strengthening the creative power and future viability of HHLA. We will continue to follow this path going forward. HHLA aims to be the gateway to the future.” According to preliminary unaudited figures, Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) increased its Group revenue by 3 percent to € 1.29 billion in the 2018 financial year (previous year: € 1.25 billion). The Group’s operating result (EBIT) of € 204 million (previous year: € 173 million) represents an increase of 18 percent. The listed Port Logistics subgroup generated revenue of € 1.26 billion (previous year: € 1.22 billion) and an operating result (EBIT) of € 188 million (previous year: € 157 million, that include one-off expenses of approximately € 25 million for organisational restructuring and for the harmoni-sation of the existing pension schemes).

The Meridian Ports and Services Limited (MPS) on February 1, 2019, received the second batch of gantry cranes ordered for the Tema Port Expansion project. The delivery follows the purchase agreement signed in August 2017 between Shanghai Shenhua Heavy Industry Co. (ZPMC) and MPS led by Mr Kweku Ofori Asiamah, Minister of Transport, for the total of 27 gantry cranes; seven Ship-To-Shore gantry cranes (STS) on the water front and 20 electric Rubber Tyre Gantry cranes (eRTG) in the yard. The STS cranes are Super Post Panamax with 65 meter outreach capable of handling containers on board vessels up to 23 rows and 10 on deck while the eRTGs are capable of stacking containers seven wide and one over five high in the container yards.

The "Hai Xing Shun" was intercepted by Maritime Safety Center patrol boats in the afternoon of Feb 19, 2019, in the deep water channel of the Yangtze estuary after a chase. Authorities were alerted by spotting the cargo ship entering the deep-water channel with its AIS being turned off, and not reacting to requests to identify itself. The ship was intercepted, seized and moored at the Hegsha West Anchorage. During the chase reckless maneuvering of the vessel threatened the navigational safety.

Beached at Chittagong 19.02.19

The Freeport of Riga says it held a ceremony at the beginning of the year to commission two piers, ZO-1 and ZO-2, after the redevelopment, which took almost two years. The project included extension of both piers. ZO-1 received two newly built mooring posts and new lighting. For the extension of the ZO-2 pier, a new underwater sheet pile was built and dredging to 12 m depth mark was done. For the needs of the new extended pier, soil excavation was performed in the area of 3,710 m2 and about 7,746 m2 of the water area were dredged. Storm sewer with local water treatment units and output to the water area was built.

In cooperation with Svitzer, Sohar Port and Freezone, recently signed a charter agreement for five new tugboat vessels to replace the existing tugboat fleet and provide 24/7 operational support for vessel movements in and around the rapidly expanding port. The marine service agreement was signed at the annual business reception on January 23, between Dr Mohammed Nasser Ali Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Board at Sohar Port and Freezone, and Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, CEO of Svitzer.

Coast Guard Sector Honolulu investigators received reports of two injuries aboard the "Pride of America" on Feb 16, 2019. A crew member sustained a hand injury while cleaning equipment aboard the vessel, and a passenger sustained minor inquires in a fall on a stairwell. Both people received treatment aboard the ship which was underway from Honolulu to Hilo.

Beached at Chittagong 19.02.19

Skids, jacks, booms and a big helping of smart thinking from some of the best minds in the crane upgrades business – that’s been the recipe for success at MSC Terminal Valencia. When the terminal was planning an ambitious project to upgrade all eight of its ship-to-shore (STS) cranes ready for handling today’s new generation of super-sized vessels, there was only one partner who could deliver the goods.

A new marine terminal will be built in the Poti, due to which the port will be able to receive 2.5 million tons more cargo per year. This was announced on February 4 by the Prime Minister of Georgia, Mamuka Bakhtadze, during the signing of the relevant agreement. The relevant agreement was signed between the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the Georgian-American transport company PACE Group in Tbilisi.