Maersk and CMA CGM - all change

Since 2010 Maersk and CMA CGM have called in Halifax on their jointly operated weekly North Atlantic service, named CAE (Canada Atlantic Express) and St-Laurent I respectively. The normal route is:

Westbound: Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Montreal, Halifax, and 

Eastbound: Montreal, Halifax, Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, Antwerp.

However Halifax seems to be an optional port, perhaps depending on weather, ice or cargo offering. Ships sometimes sail directly from Montreal for Bremerhaven. By my unofficial count this has happened 11 times in the 22 weeks so far in 2022. The most frequent misses were in January, February, March, when ice likely delayed progress on the St.Lawrence, and Halifax was skipped to maintain a weekly schedule. In addition to the skipped calls, what was once a dependable Saturday call has also slipped to Tuesday in the last month.

For most of those years the service has been operated by the 2890 TEU veterans Maersk Palermo, Maersk Patras and Maersk Penang and the 3108 TEU EMKea (a CMA CGM charter), but that is about to change. 

Starting tomorrow, Wednesday, June 1, the CMA CGM Montreal (2553 TEU) will arrive in Halifax from Montreal for the first time. In the coming weeks Vayenga Maersk and Vistula Maersk (both 3600 TEU) will be taking up their slots. A fourth ship - yet to be named may be added or the much newer EM Kea may continue for a time. The older "P" class ships are nearing the dreaded 5th special survey and may be short listed for the scrap yard - or resale in a hot tonnage market.

I will provide more detail on the new ships when they arrive, and when I learn the fate of the others.

But to look back on the familiar ships that we will likely see no more:

Maersk Palermo is scheduled to sail from Montreal on June 2, but does not show up as a Halifax caller. It was here last on Tuesday, April 26:

 Maersk Palermo April 26, 2022.

All three "P" ships were built by Kvaerner Warnow Werft, Warnemunde in 1998. This one was orginally P+O Nelloyd Auckland and operated as Lykes Pioneer from 2000 to 2002. It then reverted to P+O Nedlloyd Auckland and was renamed Maersk Palermo in 2006 when Maersk acquired P+O Nelloyd.

Even when somewhat scruffy after a hard winter's work, the Maersk blue still looked good in bright sunshine.

 Maersk Palermo October 4, 2016.

Maersk Patras was built as P+O Nedlloyd Marseille and was renamed in 2006. Its last call in Halifax was on March 19. On its December 22, 2021 visit it was certainly showing signs of wear and tear.

When fresh from refit it looked good even in low light:

 Maersk Patras December 22, 2021.

Maersk Penang was orginally the P+O Nedlloyd Jakarta until 2006. It was last calls in Halifax were on Saturday, April 2, 2022 and Tuesday, May 3, 2022:

Maersk Penang, April 2, 2022

Maersk Penang May 3, 2022

Odd man out in the current rotation is CMA CGM's contribution, EM Kea. Built in 2007 by Stocznia Sczecinska Nowa, in Poland, it is a 35,874 gt, 41,850 dwt ship with a capacity of 3108 TEU. Built as Cap Norte it was renamed Cape Egmont in 2012 and became EM Kea in 2015, the same year it joined this rotation. Its last call in Halifax was on Tuesday, May 10. It is due in Montreal again on June 6.

EM Kea, June 7, 2019

As with most Polish ships, it is much more stylish than its businesslike German counterparts.

EM Kea June 23, 2018.

 My favourite view of the EM Kea was not taken in Halifax, but on someone's million dollar front lawn August 15, 2018. (I am sure no clues are needed as to location.)

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A previous member of the rotation was the Maersk Pembroke, the former P+O Nedlloyd Sydney Also built in 1998 by the same yard to the same dimensions as the other three "P" ships, it was sold for scrap in 2017 after an engine room fire in the Celtic Sea.

Maersk Pembroke January 26, 2015

Maersk Pembroke January 26, 2015

There have been a few short term substitutes on this service over the years, but noting them would make this post unbearably long.

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New Face for MSC

 Despite having purchased scores of ships in recent months, the Mediterranean Shipping Company still has ships under charter (with non-MSC names). One such ship, named America, arrived today May 31 on the company's Indus 2 service from North India.

The large Cyprus based ship chartering company Danaos Corp, with a fleet of 71 ships at latest count, manages the America for Oceansprize Navigation Ltd. The ship was built in 2004 as CSCL America by Samsung, Koje, and is registered at 90,645 gt, 107,749 dwt with a capacity of 8468 TEU including 700 reefers. 

The ship was renamed MSC Baltic from 2007 to 2009 then CSCL America again until 2018 when it became simply, America.

Also Noted:

While the America was inbound, another ship was noted at anchor offshore. MOL Charisma is due tomorrow, June 1, on THE Alliance's EC5 service. It will be docking at PSA Atlantic Hub Pier 42, rather than the usual PSA Fairview Cove. Now under common management, the two terminals are relocating services to rationalize operations.

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Sedna Desgagnés - back

 Another in the "back again" category is the Canadian owned Sedna Desgagnés which has returned from overseas trading under the Barbados flag. 

 

It is an annual pattern towards the end of each year, when the ship is reflagged to Barbados under a bareboat charter arrangement with BBC Chartering. When spring arrives, the ship returns to Canadian flag in preparation for northern supply work.

The ship is well equipped for that work, as it carries a pair of 180 tonne cranes, that can lift lighterage barges and tugs which are used to ferry cargo in to remote ports.

The ship was one of a series built for the German shipowner, Beluga, as the "F" class Beluga Festivity. However Beluga failed in the same year of 2009, and the ship was acquired by Transport Desgagnés, and renamed for a goddess in Inuit mythology. Builder Qingshan, Wuhan constructed the 9611 gt, 12,612 dwt multi-purpose / heavy lifter which also has a container capacity of 665 TEU.

The Sedna Desgagnés arrived this morning May 31 and tied up at Pier 25-26. Its last port was Norfolk, VA, but had recently called in Freeport, Bahamas, and Houston TX. Prior to that it had been in Brazil, France and England.

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MSC Poh Lin - back again

 The MSC Poh Lin put in another appearance in Halifax today, May 30, this time on MSC's new Turkey-Greece service.

The ship appeared well loaded, with containers stacked five high. On its previous visits in 2019 and 2020 the ship was on St.Lawrence routes, and was either lighter loaded, only four boxes high (2019) or stopped here to reduce draft by unloading some cargo (2020).

The ship was built by Hyundai Samho in 2004 and measures 54,774 gt, 66,786 dwt, with a capacity of 4862 TEU.

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Big and Bigger

 The Port of Halifax is accustomed to big ships. As noted here recently, the Seawall (Pier 20-22) was designed to accommodate the world's largest passenger liners when it was built in the first decades of the last century. I am sure no one then envisaged the end of the passenger liner era (thanks to jet aircraft) a half century later, nor the advent of the cruise industry. Now however that Seawall welcomes cruise ship of all sizes from moderate to monster, and the Cruise segment is one of the Port's major lines of business.  

Today, May 30, the Seawall handled two moderate sized cruise ships with ease. One was the familiar Zaandam, which is in port almost weekly as it conducts seven and ten day cruises from New England to the Maritimes, Quebec and Newfoundland. Built in 2000, it carries 1432 passengers with 615 crew. It tied up at Pier 20.

Arriving at Pier 22 it was Island Princess.

Dating from 2003 when it was delivered by Chantier de l'Atlantique, the 92,822 gt ship has a capacity of 2214 passengers and 900 crew. It is a member of the Coral class of Panamax ships.

Big ships calling in Halifax are not all passenger ships. Among the biggest are bulk carriers, such as today's arrival Berge Atlas.

It is a 90,197 gt, 180,180 dwt ship built in 2008 by Imabari Zosen in Saijo, Japan. Originally named BW Atlas it was built for the BW Group, the Singapore based successors to the large Norwegian Sigval Bergeson fleet. It was acquired and renamed in 2010 by Berge Bulk Maritime Pte Ltd, also of Singapore. ("Berge" was the first name of founder Sigval Bergeson's father.)

The ship anchored for Canadian Food Inspection Agency LDA moth examination, and once cleared headed for Sept-Iles. QC for another load of 130,000 tonnes of iron ore. The ship was also in Sept-Iles in April, and carried ore to Port Talbot, Wales and Amsterdam. Why it should require another examination is not known, since the moth is native to Asia. 

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Canadian Coast Guard Ship Molly Kool (corrected)

 The Bedford Institute jetty in Dartmouth was the berth for the CCGS CaptainMolly Kool when it arrived from a standby mission last evening May 29. This is  a rare visit for the St.John's based former Swedish icebreaking/supplier Vidar Viking. It was here for the first time last year May 14, 2021

Acquired with two sister ships in 2018, the 9,000 18,000 hp vessel was refitted by Chantier Davie Canada Inc in Lévis, Quebec to be a Polar Class 4 medium "interim" icebreaker and commissioned in 2019. As with all CCG vessels it is multi-tasked for Search and Rescue work. 

 It was such a case that brought the ship to Halifax this time. The northern shrimp trawler Mersey Phoenix was holed below the water line by ice last week 90 miles off Nain, Labrador. There was ingress of water, but it was under control. Owners Mersey Seafoods directed the ship back to its base in Country Harbour, NS. CCGS Captain Molly Kool was assigned to accompany the trawler as a precaution, and so came on to Halifax. Since it was near the end of the month, it may also be doing a crew change here.

CCGS Molly Kool is based in St.John's and sister ship CCGS Jean Goodwill ex Balder Viking is based here at the Dartmouth base (and is also in port at this time.) The third vessel CCGS Vincent Massey ex Tor VIking and Tor Viking II is still at Chantier Davie and will likely emerge later this year. The conversions for CCG duty are being done in stages to allow the ships to enter service as soon as possible, with non-essentail work to be carried out in phases. The three vessels will serve until new pupose built icebreakers a can be delivered.

The factory trawler Mersey Phoenix was also in Halifax, just over a year ago, and was covered by a Shipfax post April 7, 2021

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Treasure

 

 The photo I posted yesterday of the arrival of the autocarrier Treasure did not do the ship much justice in view of the fog and rain. Today (May 29) however, conditions were pretty much ideal when it sailed for New York, which certainly justified another shot.

The well worn ship was built in 1999 and is now owned by the Blue Arrow Navigation Ltd and managed by ASM Maritime BV  It is operating on Wallenius-Wilhelmsen's SVC1 transatlantic service, likely as a short term charter.

The 58,684 gt, 21,199 dwt vessel was built by Hashihama Zosen, Tadotsu and has a capacity of 5718 to 6100 CEU depending on the source. It is still of a useful size, but must be showing more than just outward signs of age.

It was initially named HUAL Treasure. The well known Norwegian shipowner Leif Höegh formed a joint venture with Ugland Rederi in 1970 called Höegh Ugland Auto Liners (HUAL) but in 2000, not long after this ship was delivered, Höegh bought out Ugland's 50%, but did not rename the company until 2005 when it  became simply Höegh Autoliners. The next year the ship was renamed Höegh Treasure in recognition of the change in company name. 

Höegh acquired 12 autocarriers from A.P. Møller-Maersk in 2008 and, A.P. Møller Maersk became a 39% shareholder in 2008-2009. The company now operates 33 ships and is styled Höegh Autoliners ASA and is listed on the Oslo stock exchange.

The Hoegh Treasure was sold out of the fleet in 2014 and efficiently renamed with a swipe of paint. It seems to have been operating in the Mediterranean until picking up the Wallenius-Wilhelmsen route in Zeebrugge May 11-13, then the usual ports of Southampton May 13-16 and Bremerhaven May 18-19.

The grey hull with upward slant at the stern was once a familiar sight in Halifax, but Höegh Autoliners no longer call here regularly. 

In the "pre-autoliner" days, Leif Höegh operated a fleet of handsome general cargo ships in a Europe/ North America / Asia and return service. Their light grey hulls were quite unique, and immediately recognizeable.

 Höegh Elite was built in 1964 by Chantier Dunkerque, Bordeaux, and was sold in 1979. It lasted until 1985 under a string of far east owners.

The company made the transition into containers by awkward conversions. Many of its regular ports had no container facilities, and so the ships still carried general cargo, including heavy lifts.

Höegh Clipper  was built in 1979 by Kawasaki, Kobe, was sold in 1997, and lasted until 2009.

Some of their early autocarriers were also conversions, from large passenger cargo ships, such as Royal Mail Lines' 1959 Harland and Wolff built Amazon which became HUAL Akarita. By building garage decks in the holds and on deck, then moving the bridge forward they "suddenly" had an autocarrier.

Mercifully purpose built ships followed soon after.

The Höegh parent company eventually shifted away from general cargo, and into bulk carriers, before concentrating on auto carriers. They now also operate gas tankers.

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Two for MSC and one each for the rest

 It was a busy day in Halifax today, Saturday, May 28, but rain and fog obscured some of the activity and made in downright unpleasant to be out. 

An early morning arrival was another 15,000TEU class ship, CMA CGM Mexico, from Colombo on Ocean Alliance service run by CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen and OOCL. It was a pre-dawn arrival and a midnight departure, so the only view was a poor shot from the Young Avenue bridge. The ship stretches out of sight, but its bridge structure is framed by the last crane on the right.

Built by Hyundai Samho in 2019, it comes in at 149,314 gt, 157,076 dwt and most sources indicate a capacity of 15,128 TEU.

Despite its size there was still room at the southend terminal (PSA Atlantic Hub) for another ship at Pier 42, and that was the afternoon arival MSC Angela eastbound on the CANEX 2 service from Montreal to Italy and Spain.

The ship dates from 2008 when it was built by Zhejiang (Yangfan) Shipbuilding Co, Ningbo. It is a 41,225 gt, 50,568 dwt vessel with a capacity of 4254 TEU, including 550 reefers. Due to draft restrictions on the St.Lawrence River, the ship is lightly loaded, but it will top up in Halifax before resuming its voyage.

MSC was also present at the other end of the harbour at Fairview Cove where MSC Mandy arrived westbound on the Canex 1 service from Italy (via Malta and Portugal).

It was performing the reverse operation to its fleet mate, that is to say it was off-loading some containers to reduce draft before sailing on to Montreal.

MSC Mandy is a true old-timer, built in 1993 by Bremer Vulkan, Vegesack. It is a ship of 37,701 gt, 46,852 dwt with a modest container capacity of 2650 TEU, including 100 reefers. It sailed as Bremen Senator until 2003, then as SCI Vaibhav until 2004.

When it sailed late this afternoon, there were some large gaps in its deck load, which was no more than four tiers high.

There was also activity at Autoport, but short of a visit to that side of the harbour, the ship was barely visible. Treasure is another "classic" dating from 1999, when it was delivered by Hashihama Zosen, Tadotsu. A 58,684 gt, 21,199 dwt PCTC it is rated at up to 6100 CEU (some sources say 5718). Initially named HUAL Treasure until 2006, it then became Hoegh Treasure and in 2014, took its present name.

Looming through the rain and fog, the ship still betrays it previous ownership by the paint scheme. However it is now owned by Blue Arrow Navigation Ltd of Haifa and managed by ASM Maritime BV of the Netherlands. It is en route from Bremerhaven for Wallenius Wilhelmsen and will sail for US ports .

Arriving from New York and occupying an anchorage, the cement carrier NACC Providence is in port for CFIA invasive species examination. Once it has been determined to be free of LDA moth, it will likely sail for Port Daniel, QC to load for McInnes Cement.

The 12,047 gt, 20,200 swt ship dates from 2006 when construction was completed by Labroy Shipbuilding and Engineering Pte Ltd in Singapore. The ship was laid down at Nahindah Mutiara Shipbuilding at Batam, Indonesia in 2005 and launched a year later, but it is unclear how much work was done there. Labroy completed the project in less than six months.It was named Glory Atlantic until February of this year.

NACC Providence is operated by Nova Algoma Cement Carriers, a joint venture between Algoma Central Corp of St.Catharines, ON and Nova, from Luxembourg. The ship is registered in Panama, and as its name implies will deliver cement to McInnes customers in the US northeast.

Meanwhile, despite the gloom and rain, Halifax Shipyard was in a festive mood for a double naming ceremony. 

The future HMCS Max Bernays, the third Artctic Offshore Patrol Vessel, was dressed all over and various banners and bunting were on display at Pier 6 -7 in the Shipyard. A special marquee tent was also erected to keep dignitaries fresh and dry. A naval trials crew has been busy on the ship starting in January when its captain was named. So far it has been known as AOPS 3, but will now be known as Max Bernays. (The HMCS designation will not be used until it is handed over to the RCN  and commissioned.) I believe the ship will soon be sailing to its west coast base in Esquimalt before it is actually commissioned. Post acceptance trials will be held en route or after arrival in Esquimalt.

Margaret Brooke (AOPS 2), at its Pier in HMC Dockyard was similarly decked out  and will also be named officially. The ship has been in RCN hands since July 2021 and has conducted post-acceptance ice trials and warm weather trials. The badging / naming / trialing and finally commissioning is a long and complex process, particularly with the sophisticated systems in use on naval vessels. I understand the ship will be commissioned in October, on the anniversary of the loss of the Newfoundland ferry Caribou in 1942.

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More newbies

Two more first time callers arrived in Halifax today, May 27. First in was the container ship TRF Partici for ZIM's ZCA Mediterranean / North America service.

Built in 2010 by Shanghai Chengxi Shipyard it is a 35,998 gt, 41,974 dwt ship with a capacity of 3,534 TEU including 500 reefers. It carried the name Partici until 2017. As part of the Seaborn fleet it is apparently on a spot charter to ZIM, covering for other ships as it does not appear again in published schedules. ZIM uses nine ships on the ZCA service which starts in Turkey and calls in nine European ports and four North American ports: Halifax, New York, Savannah, and Norfolk. TRF Partici was previously assigned to the ZCT Turkey service (which does not call in Halifax) in 2021.

Another multi-purpose, heavy lift ship arrived for Pier 9C. BBC Destiny sails for the large BBC Chartering fleet, operated by the German company Briese Schiffahrts. It is owned by the one ship company Drago J. Shipping GmbH, part of the Jungerhans group.

The ship was launched in 2006 as the Drago J. by the Viana do Castelo Shipyard in Spain. It is a 7223 gt, 8004 (or 8034) dwt vessel. It is fitted with a pair of 250 tonne capacity cranes, that can work in combination to lift 500 tonnes. 

It was delivered as Industrial Destiny then renamed in 2013: BBC Queensland, 2014: Drago J., 2016: Industrial Destiny, and 2019: BBC Destiny.

The ship arrived from Belfast, Northern Ireland with an Airbus component, which it will unload at Pier 9C. Most of these components arrive on ACL ships as RoRo cargo. Bombardier assembles Airbus aircraft and has facilities in Montreal, and Downsview, ON. Some components are built by the former Short Brothers factory in Belfast, and shipped via ACL's Liverpool port call. This particular unit may have some special characteristics that prevent the usual routing.

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Three first timers and a regular

 This morning, May 26, three ships arrived in Halifax for the first time, and two others returned for the "umpteenth" time.

The first of the regulars was the Canadian flag Nolhan Ava returning from its weekly trip to Argentia and St-Pierre.

The ship carries containers and RoRo.
 

The next repeater was the cruise ship Zaandam, on its regular call. On its way inbound it maintained the main (eastern) channel while the first newcomer MSC Joanna slowed and took the western, deepwater, channel. Because the western channel is slightly longer, due to a dog leg, the Zaandam was able to overtake and proceed ahead to its berth.

MSC Joanna was well ahead initially, but Zaandam took a shorter, faster route.

 

The Zaandam passed east of George's Island, and turned north of the island to come alongside Pier 22 starboard side to.

 

 Due to its size and channel dog leg, the MSC Joanna had two tugs in attendance from well out.

 MSC Joanna was built by Samsung Shipbuilding and Heavy Industry Co Ltd, Koje, South Korea, in 2006. It is a 108,930 gt, 117,333 dwt ship with a capacity of 9178 TEU including 700 reefers. It is serving MSC's Indus 2 service from North India. MSC was using 8200 TEU ships on the run, but recent callers have been larger.

Next along was the general cargo ship Pacific Dawn. Registered in the Netherlands, it was built in 2010 in Poland by the intriguingly named Partner Shipyard, in a town called Police. It is a multi-purpose type of 2981 gt, 3750 dwt, equipped with two 120 tonne capacity cranes, that can work in combination for a 240 tonne lift.

The ship is en route from Laem Chebang, Thailand to Oshawa, ON, and called in Halifax for Canadian Food Inspection Agency examination. Having been found to carry no Lymantria dispars asiatica moth larvae, the ship was cleared to sail futher into Canadian waters. It is worth noting that crated deck cargo is rare on such long journeys. The ship must have avoided bad weather successfully.

 Next along was another multi-purpose type, also built in Poland. BBC Gdansk is a larger ship of 6155 gt, 7786 dwt, also fitted with a pair of 120 tonne cranes that can work in combination. It was delivered by Polnacna Shipyard in Gdansk in 2009.

Its cargo, which consists of several lots, is all below deck, and will be off loaded at Pier 9C. Its last ports were Bremen May 1-6, Antwerp May 8-11, and Gijon, Spain, May 14. Some of the cargo may be destined for Halifax Shipyard from what I hear.

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Return of the Ferbec and the Algo grain ship

 A regular "spring" event in the port of Halifax is the return of ships that have been flagged out for overseas work during the winter, or have arrived from the Great Lakes after the winter shutdown. Today there are ships in port for both reasons.

Ferbec

At noon time it was the Canada Steamship Lines bulk carrier Ferbec flying the Barbados flag. I have related the story of the ship, and a previous vessel of the same name, in some detail here  . Since arriving in Canada in 2017 the ship has avoided winter conditions by reflagging and trading in foreign waters, with an international crew. Each spring it returns, usually to Halifax, to be reflagged and "re-crewed" with a Canadian crew, before resuming its usual trade. During the past winter it worked for a time in Columbia and Brazil, but in late March it went to Tuzla, Turkey for refit. (At 20 years of age, there was likely a major survey and along list of renewals.) That long list of work may explain why the ship is nearly two months later than usual arriving back in Canada.

 Aside from the splendid new paint job, there was also a noticeable diference. The ship's four cargo cranes (and grab buckets) have been removed and the Supramax size ship is now a gearless bulk carrier.

The ship is dedicated to operate between Havre-St-Pierre and Sorel-Tracy, QC carrying ilmenite ore for Rio Tinto Fer et Titaine (Rio Tinto Iron and Titanium) and does not require the cranes to load or unload. A high capacity crane at Tracy is used for unloading, and the ship's cranes were actually in the way, and had to be swung out each time the ship arrived in port.

In a few days the crew will have the port of registry repainted to Sorel, the flag changed to the maple leaf, and the ship will be on its way.

The ship's name (pronounced Fair-Beck) is an amalgam of Fer (Iron) and Bec (Québec) and derives from the first owners of the operation, Québec Fer et Titaine, also known as QIT. It is now known as RTFT and the company has a website on the operation. Use this link: RTFT

 

Algoma Mariner

Another sure sign of spring is the arrival of the first grain cargo from the Lakehead. Algoma Mariner arrived late last night May 24 and began unloading its cargo at Pier 26.

The ship sailed from Thunder Bay May 17and made its way down through the St.Lawrence Seaway May 21. A familiar sight in Halifax since it was built in China in 2011, the ship usually picks up a load of gypsum as backhaul after unloading its grain.

The ship's arrival is a little later than usual, but the local grain needs are also met by rail, as there are often rail cars at the P+H flour mill. 

This foggy May 23 view shows several former Canadian government grain cars (now owned by CN Rail) lined up on P+H's siding.

Postscript 

The ship can unload at a rate of over 5,000 tonnes per hour, but the port's grain handling machinery probably can't convey the grain that quiickly. Even so, eight hours of unloading does show a significant change in the ship's draft.

 

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Siem Aristotle on LNG

 The Greek philosopher Aristotle (384-322 BCE) [yes I had to look it up] known as the "father of logic" [that I knew] might have appreciated the irony of a "Super-Eco" class of autocarrier. There does seem something slightly off about finding more efficient and less polluting ways to deliver cars. Instead of building them near where people live, you can ship them half way round the world in Eco friendly ships, to compete with local gas guzzlers. (As the driver of a gas guzzler myself - I hope not to sound too self-righteous here.)

Volkswagen sells its many brands of cars and trucks world wide, while at the same time establishing corporate carbon reduction goals - that is before the vehicles are handed over to owners. In chartering new Pure Car and Truck Carriers from Siem Car Carriers, VW's engine manufacturing arm MAN developed a dual fuel engine that can power the ships solely with LNG for an entire round trip from Europe to North America. It can also burn regular fuel if necessary. In LNG mode it shows substantial reductions in emissions and will help VW reach its 30% carbon reduction goal by 2025. I doubt they will be around to assist in reaching carbon neutral by 2050, but perhaps new systems will be available by then.

 Siem Aristotle is the second (Siem Confucious was first) of Siem's Super-Ecos, and was delivered by Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry in 2020. It first called here in August 2021. The 72,090 gt, 19,090 VLPCTC (Very Large Pure Car and Truck Carrier) has a capacity of 7500 CEU, which works out to about 4800 vehicles of Volkswagen's normal mix. The ship has a 200 tonne capacity stern ramp, 45.1m long x14.94m wide and a 20 tonne capacity starboard side ramp 25m long x 7.7m wide.

 The ship's normal loading port is Emden, Germany, where it can be refueled with LNG. The ship has also refueled in Jacksonville, FL, its last US port before its terminus in Veracruz, Mexico. On leaving Halifax today the ship gave its destination as Baltimore. It also calls in Davisville, RI.

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Linda Hope - No Bugs

 The Capesize bulk carrier Linda Hope made a brief call in Halifax today, May 23, and was soon on its way again. The ship apparently received clearance from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) once it was found to be free of Lymantria dispar asiatica (LDA) an invasive species of moth that could infest Canadian coniferous forests.

The impressively proportioned ship occupied much of number one anchorage. It was built by Koyo Dockyard Co Ltd in 2011 to the "Imabari 181" design of 92,758 gt, 181,458 dwt, with hull dimensions of 291.98m x 45m x 24.7m. It is too large for the Panama Canal and Suez Canal (if loaded) so must sail round the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn - hence the term "Capesize".

The ship is obviously in ballast, and represents quite a climb for pilots and inspectors wishing to come aboard. Its immense open bridge wings are well supported with two stanchions each.

The ship is operated by Toyo Sangyo (also known as TOSCO) of Imabari City, Japan, a company with fifty bulk carriers in the coal, ore and wood chip trades. It is interesting to follow this ship as it made its way around the world. Itaqui, Brazil, March 26-April 1; Ponta Madeira, Brazil April 1-3; Isdemir, Turkey April 26- May 3; Gibraltar West anchorage May 11.

On sailing from Halifax the ship gave Port Cartier, QC as its destination. That is a major iron loading port on the north shore of the St.Lawrence River, 60km from Sept-Iles, operated by Arcelor Mittal Mines of Canada (formerly Québec-Cartier Mining Company). The iron ore comes by rail from the company's mine in Fermont, QC and is pelletized in Port Cartier.The port also has grain storage and shipping facilities operated by Les Silos Port-Cartier, a division of Louis Dreyfus Commodities Canada Ltd.

Once it loads at Port-Cartier the ship is likely to head for Europe again, but Asia is also a possibility.

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USCG Morro Bay

 The United States Coast Guard's Bay class icebreaking tug Morro Bay WTGB-106 arrived this morning May 23 and tied up at the Tall Ships Quay. 

There was very thick fog in the harbour, but as usual the camera (wiith a little photo editing) sees better than the human eye.

The glassy looking water made for excellent reflections, as there was not a breath of wind.

This is not the vessel's first call in Halifax. It was here in September 2015 and June 2013.

 USCGC Morro Bay was built in 1980 by Tacoma Shipbuilding, and commissioned in 1981. Although named for a bay in California, it was stationed in northeastern US ports until 2014 when it was transferred to Cleveland, OH. It exited the Great Lakes through the St.Lawrence Seaway on May 16 and is likely bound for the USCG's maintenance base at Curtis Bay in Baltimore. However the almost perfect condition of its hull paint would suggest it is not due for a refit any time soon.

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