Sina returns from mystery tour, a sense of scale, and other arrivals

The Melfi Line Sina returned from its overnight mystery trip to sea [see yesterday's post]. After tying up at pier 41 it loaded its cargo and sailed this evening.

 

The ship will win no awards for beauty, being completely free of any shear to its hull, and with a superstructure perched out over the stern and offset funnel. It is nonetheless typical of a whole breed of ships now seen all over the world. It also appears to be in quite rugged condition - unusual for Mefli ships, and for German ships too.

It is sometimes hard to appreciate the actual size of ships because they do not always appear close to other objects of known size. I find car carriers to be the most difficult, especially in Halifax, where it is hard to see them. Today Harmony Leader sailed, conveniently keeping company with the pilot boat and a couple of spectators.

 A spectator at the end of the Halterm breakwater (at left) and the pilot boat give some sense of scale to the ship.

As Chebucto Pilot keeps pace, a crewman with a line green safety jacket looks over the rail from above.

The ship was built by Hyundai Mipo in Ulsan in 2011 and measures 58,767 grt, 20,434 dwt. It is operated by Ray Car Carriers of the Isle of Man, under the Bahamas flag for a NYK Line.


Three more arrivals passed before my lenses today:

Sir William Alexander showing the wear and tear of a hard winter, returned to port with a buoy on deck. Now free of icebreaking activities, the ship can resume its usual routine.

The bulker Ruddy arrived to take a cargo of grain. The ship is a member of the Canadian Forest Navigation fleet based in Montreal, but consisting of chartered ships, usually under Cyprus registry.

Ruddy was built in 2009 by Shandong Weihai Shipyard in Weihai, China, and is a ship of 19,814 grt, 30,930 dwt. As with most CANFORNAV ships it is suited for the St.Lawrence Seaway.
CANFORNAV's website gives general arrangement plans of the different ships in its fleet - well worth a look. http://www.canfornav.com/en/welcome.aspx

 The tanker Cenito put in another appearance.The Italian flag tanker operates for L.G.R di Navigazione of Naples.

Cenito washes down its anchor chain to reduce the risk of sparks as it approaches Ives Knoll.

It has been here before - in May 2014, November-December 2014 and January 2015. Also Chinese built, by Guangzhou International, 29,313 grt, 53,116 dwt, it is a high ice class tanker. After anchoring breifly, it moved to Imperial Oil on departure of the Irving Oil tanker Acadian.

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More Sunday by the numbers

HMCS Toronto made an ice-clad arrival - which I missed-  and tied up at HMC Dockyard Jetty Charlie 3 about 1000, to be met by dependents and other well wishers. After six months in the Mediterranean, the ship berthed first in St.John's NL last week and came on to Halifax. It must have been making speed to have accumulated so much ice.

Nestled in between Sackville and Preserver, Toronto is shedding some of its frozen spray as the temperature rises.

It was not until later in the afternoon that Cenito finally moved back to Imperial Oil #3. By that time Algoma Dartmouth had moved on the pier 9, where it will take Algonova alongside for bunkers this evening.

 Cenito at anchor yesterday morning in Bedfrod Bains, with a few lingering traces of sea smoke.

Meanwhile Sarah Desgagnés arrived at pier 26 just at dusk. A rare caller in Halifax, the ship usually works abroad under Barbados flag during the winter, but this year appears to be headed for layup.

Atlantic Larch assists Sarah Desgagnés to turn and back in to pier 26 to layup. She shows no frozen spray, indicating an arrival from the south.

Built in 2007 by the Gisan shipyard in Tuzla, Turkey as Besiktas Greenland it was registered in Quebec May 2, 2008. It spent the winter of 2008-2009 trading between the UK and Europe. Over the winter of 2010-2011 it spent nine months in Antwerp when its charterer went into bankruptcy. It was freed in March 2011 and returned in Canada in May. It usually operates on the St.Lawrence and the Great Lakes in the shipping season, but does go farther afield.. It is the second Desgagnés tanker to layup in Halifax this winter - Maria Desgagnés is at pier 33.

In somewhat more clement conditions Sarah Desgagnés makes her way upbound in the Welland Canal in May. Nevertheless she soon met thick ice at Port Colborne as the Lakes had record ice cover in the winter 2013-2014, and it was still clogging the locks well into May.

Sunday Morning by the numbers

Some sea smoke lingers in the harbour at sunrise.

There was activity in the harbour early this morning. Last night's departure of the tanker Algonova freed up berth #3 at Imperial Oil, High Fidelity sailed from berth #4, Algoma Dartmouth returned from its latest fill-up trip to Point Tupper and tied up at pier 36, and Cenito prepared to get under way from anchorage #8 in Bedford Basin to move to Imperial Oil #3.

Chebucto Pilot outbound meets Algoma Dartmouth in bound.

High Fidelity riding high outbound.

Cenito at anchor in Bedford Basin on a -12C morning.

Algoma Dartmouth picked up some freezing spray on its trip down the coast.

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Tanker change

After a week at anchor in Bedford Basin the tanker Cenito was finally able to move to Imperial Oil this afternoon. See also http://shipfax.blogspot.ca/2014/12/tankers-and-names.html

 Cenito makes its way in the Narrows with the tethered escort tug Atlantic Fir tucked in under its stern. The full width bridge will provide a comfortable space for the pilot in today's sub-freezing temperatures. The A. Murray MacKay bridge is in the background.

Atlantic Fir is filling in for Atlantic Oak as the designated escort tug in Halifax. Atlantic Oak is at Shelburne Marine Shipyard for its 5 year survey.

Meanwhile at Imperial Oil another Italian tanker, Mare di Venezia completed unloading and was ready to sail. As soon as it cleared the berth, Cenito came right in to take its place.

The tugs Atlantic Larch and Atlantic Willow are alongside Mare di Venizia at Imperial Oil dock 4 ready to pull the ship clear. The George's Island landing stage is in the foreground. Note the extra long headlines extending to the dock 5 dolphin.

 

 

Mare di Venezia arrived December 4, and also spent some time at anchor in Bedford Basin until going alongside December 5. Built in 2008 in Tongyoung, South Korea, it measures 29,683 grt and 51,371 dwt and is owned by Gesarma of Ravenna, Italy. Its open bridge wings would certainly present some challenges in this weather.

 

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Tankers - and names

Two more product tankera re in port today. The first arrived last night and anchored in Bedford Basin. Cenito is clearly emblazoned as a Super Ice class ship, and if that were not enough its full width bridge and penguin logo would certainly give a good hint that it is intended for icy locations.

Owned by LGR di Navigazione of Naples, and flying the Italian flag, the 29,313 grt, 53,115 dwt tanker was built in 2009 by Guangzhou International in Guangzhou, China.The substantial additional investment required to build an ice class tanker, means that it must see regular winter service in the Baltic, on the St.Lawrence River or perhaps even the northeast passage.The ship was last here for nearly a week in May, see http://shipfax.blogspot.ca/2014/05/unusual-tankers-in-basin.html


The second arrived last night too, but went directly to number four dock at Imperial Oil.

My recent comments about inappropriate ship naming have really been exemplified with this one. FPMC 21 is a typical product tanker, and is owned by the Formosa Plastic Marine Corp of  Taipei, Taiwan. Its name typifies the corporate approach to ships that we are seeing more and more. To its owner, it is merely another tool or machine and does not warrant the dignity of a proper name. It will be thrown away when it is used up and no one will shed a tear, because a bigger and better one will take its place. In 20 years or so there will be a FPMC 21b or FPMC 41 sailing these seas.

A standard handysize tanker of 29,734 grt, 50,995 dwt, FPMC 21 was built in 2009 by STX Shipbuilding Co of Jinhae, South Korea. It flies the Liberian flag.

It's too bad that an ancient tradition of treating ships as something special and even wonderful, and giving them a name of significance is fading fast.


FPMC has achieved new heights of wierdness with its ship naming - have a look at their website, particularly the fleet list:   http://www.fpmc.com.tw/

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Unusual tankers in the Basin

On paper they seem to be just two more of the typical handy size 50,000 dwt South Korean-built chemical/product tankers that have proliferated in Halifax since Imperial Oil stopped refining in Dartmouth. However on closer inspection they are a little different.

NCC Rabigh was indeed built in 2007 by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in Ulsan, 29,573 gt, 45,951 dwt. What makes it slightly different is that is owned by National Chemical Carriers of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. One of 24 ships in the NCC fleet, it is also part of Bahri, the National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia. By coincidence, Bahri Tabuk, a Saudi ConRo was also in port today. The tanker arrived early this morning from New York and anchored in the Basin awaiting at turn at Imperial Oil.
 See more on NCC and Bahri at http://www.bahri.sa/home

One might think that an Italian flag tanker would be best suited to moderate climes, by Cenito is an ice 1A1 vessel, deemed to be "Super Ice" by its owners, L.G.R. di Navigazione, Naples. Built by Guangzhou International Shipyard in China, the ship measures 29,313 grt, 53,116 dwt. It features a full width bridge and larger accommodation. It is managed through Denmark in the Hafnia pool with other similar tankers.
The penguin profile on the bridge front is a common motif for ships that boast of high ice class.
For more on L.G.R see their web site: http://www.lgrdinavigazione.com/

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