Imedghassen sails

 The Algerain ship Imedghassen finally sailed this evening after being under repair since it arrived  January 9, 2021: http://shipfax.blogspot.com/2021/01/new-for-melfi-imedghassen.html

Initially Imedghassen tied up at Pier 34, but on February 24 it was moved by tugs to Pier 9C where it has remained until today. 

Imedghassen at the far north end of Pier 9C yesterday.

(Those red and white smoke stacks are not! part of the ship)

 The ship came to Halifax to take up a charter with Melfi Marine, which runs a container and general cargo service from Italy, Spain and Portugal to Cuba, calling in Halifax westbound. However due to a defect in its air compressor system, which prevented stopping and reversing the main engine, the ship was unable to take up the charter. X-press Irazu took its place, joining Macao Strait. The Melfi ships usually call in Halifax twice a month. However the next call will not be until April 30 as Macao Strait will bypass on its next voyage

With assistance from Atlantic Willow, the Imedghassen underway from Pier 9C bound for Ceuta, Spain shortly after 1800 hrs ADT this evening.

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Imedghassen move

 The broken down ship Imedghassen has been occupying the space at Pier 34 since its arrival here on January 9. That berth is seldom used for cargo work these days, and is usually reserved for ships under repair, and the CSL bulker Baie St.Paul is due here tomorrow, and has been assigned to the pier.

Therefore Imedghassen moved this afternoon, with assistance of the tug Atlantic Willow, to Pier 9C. The ship's name does not appear on future schedules for Melfi Lines, so apparently it will not be going to work for the Cuba run. With container carrying ships in short supply and shipping rates at an all time high, the owners must be eager to get the ship back to work. For whatever reason however, the ship is still stuck in Halifax.

Longshore workers attend to the mooring lines at Pier 9C .

The Arabic script on the ship's bow reminds me that Algerian ships in particular are rare callers here. The last one I can recall is the cargo ship Biban which spent the Christmas to New Year period in Halifax in 1979-1980.

I told the story of the Biban in a Tugfax post in 2015.

To summarize, the ship Biban, built in 1977 by Marine Industries Ltd in Sorel, QC*,  and owned buy the Algerian state shipping company, had a main engine breakdown in Duluth, Minnesota in June 1979. It was towed down through the Great Lakes to Montreal in July, where it languished until December when the legendary French tug Abeille 30 came to fetch it. The tow line parted in the Gulf of St.Lawrence, causing some damage to the ship, which resulted in tug and tow coming to Halifax where the ship was drydocked for hull repair.

Biban in  Halifax - another distressed Algerian.

With the ship out of drydock December 31, 1979 the tug lost no time in rigging the tow again, and they sailed January 1, 1980. The ship's engine was repaired in Europe and it returned to service until early 2003 when it was broken up in India.

 The Abeille 30 has the Biban in tow again, heading for Europe on New Year's Day 1980.

To my recollection Biban was the first, last and until recently the only Algerian ship to call in Halifax.

*The now vanished Marine Industries Ltd (MIL) shipyard in Sorel-Tracy, QC was a major Canadian shipbuilder, with upwards of 400 ships to its credit, including numerous naval craft. In the mid 1970s they built a series of cargo ships for Polish, French and Greek owners, plus two for Algeria: Biban and sister Babor.

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Running on all cylinders

 The Port was bustling today. There were arrivals and departures of "repeat customers" at the container terminals, and Autoport and there were several ships in for repairs.

Autoport welcomed back Siem Confucius the pioneering LNG fueled auto carrier. This time I was able to catch the ship before it tied up.

I gave the ship's particulars when it called here the first time June 26, 2020

PSA Halifax greeted CMA CGM A.Lincoln another of the 14k TEU class ships that are the backbone of the Columbus service. The ship made an unusual Western Channel passage inbound and gave an interesting broadside view to boat watchers at Point Pleasant Park.

I also covered this ship's particulars when it called here April 14, 2020

Among the ships in port for repairs, Singelgracht was able to sail today. After arriving here January 23, 2021 in tow from a few miles offshore, it haD been tied up at Pier 9C.

As the ship sails outbound it passes Siem Commander (red hull in background) the tug that was mobilized to tow the snip into port in a matter of a few hours.

Not visible from forward, is the added exhaust gas scrubber, installed to allow the ship to continue to use heavy fuel and meet environmental regulations.

Perhaps it is a coincidence, but a sister ship, the Snoekgracht had an engine failure January 30 in the English Channel off Dover. It was able to anchor and self repair in a few hours.

Another ship that has been in port for some time is Imedghassen, an Algerian flag vessel that was to sail for Melfi Lines, but has remained tied up at Pier 34 since January 9, 2021.

I saw a crane landing some material on the ship several days ago, so some sort of repair was underway. The ship may now be waiting for its turn to come again in the rotation if its charter has not been voided.

At Pier 27 the unfortunate Giulia I remains tied up since its arrival January 31. The ship encountered severe weather January 30 and was struck by a  heavy wave resulting in the death of one crew member and injuries to three others.  

Bound from Norfolk, VA for Tunisia the ship was 320 nautical miles SE of Halifax when it was overcome by a near hurricane. In view of prevailing conditions it made for Halifax, the nearest safe port. The 25,303 gt, 39,2020 dwt bulker was built in 2014 by the Yangfan Group in Zhoushan, and carries four cranes and grabs.

Due to its position at Pier 27 it is difficult to see if there is damage to the ship or cargo, but in view of the circumstances, the crew must be traumatized at the very least. Depending on the severity of the injuries to the three seafarers, the ship may also be below safe manning levels. Acquiring replacements for some or all of the crew will certainly be difficult under current travel restrictions. It has been reported that the crew may have been aboard the ship for more than a year.

With the recent loss of six Yarmouth area fishermen, Nova Scotians do not need to be reminded of the dangers of seafaring. Nevertheless it is still a chilling fact that seafarers risk their lives every day to carry cargo for those of us who enjoy comparative safety on shore.

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New for Melfi, the Imedghassen

 Melfi Lines, the trading name for the Melfi Marine Corp is a long time user of the port of Halifax. Its regular trade from Europe to Cuba, and onward connections to Caribbean and South American ports, now consists of a twelve day rotation with five days transit from the PSA Halifax terminal to the home port of Mariel. Over the years, the company has used a variety of chartered vessels, some short term and others quite long term. Today's arrival, on its first trip for Melfi Lines, is fairly typical of the ships the line uses, which is to say, multi-purpose, fitted to carry containers, and generals, and equipped with cranes for cargo handling.

    

The smart looking ship was built in 2012 by Daesun Shipbuilding + Engineering Co, Pusan as Majority and has carried the names 2013: Dignity C, 2017: Sofrana Surville, 2019: Majority and taking up its present name in 2019. It measures 9998 gt, 12,754 dwt with a capacity of 1048 TEU and carrying two 40 tonne cranes.

The ship is owned and operated by Global Maritime Algerie SpA, and flies the Algerian flag. Its name also refers to a temple-mausolueum dating perhaps to 200 BC and considered to be one of the country's major heritage sites. 

The ship arrived with some sort of technical deficiency and was escorted from the pilot station by the tug Spitfire III. It then tied up at pier 34, a berth usually used for repairs or layups. Its scheduled departure date was January 8, but that has now been extended.

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