The British are coming (and going) and shipyard news

 It was a minor British invasion of Halifax this morning (October 5) as P+0's Aurora and Cunard's Queen Mary 2 (both actually part of Carnival PLC) tied up at adjacent berths. What with gloomy overcast conditions and early evening darkness I was only able to get underway photos of only the Aurora.

 There was a stiff breeze at 1700 hrs as Aurora was getting away and the tug Atlantic Beaver was called in to assist. Once Aurora was off the dock it let go the tug and sailed north and east of George's Island outbound for Sydney.

Built in 2000 by Jos. L.Meyer, Papenburg, the 76,152 gt ship has a capacity of 1,950 passengers (all berths) and 850 crew. It is also one of the better looking cruise ships despite the stylized Union flag graphics.

The ship is on an extended re-positioning voyage, sailing from Southampton September 18 and calling in Quebec City September 27-29 (extended stay due to Hurricane Fiona), Saguenay / Port Alfred September 30, and CornerBrook October 2. The brief last of smoke on departure was offered in lieu of a whistle salute.

Queen Mary 2, as befits the last great transatlantic liner, tied up at Pier 21-22, (with its bow extending part way across the end of Pier 23).

Constructed by Chantiers Atlantique St-Nazaire and delivered in  December 2003, the 149,215 gt ship has a capacity of 2,695 passengers and 1,253 crew and staff. 

Queen Mary 2 sailed from Le Havre September 16 and arrived in New York September 23, skirting Fiona. It then sailed to Quebec City, stopping over from September 29 to October 1 and Sept-Iles, QC October 3-4. It is now due in New York October 7.

On the more mundane commercial level, it was another first time caller for the Mediterranean Shipping Company. MSC Odessa arrived on the Turkey-Greece service via Spain and Portugal.

The ship was built in 2010 by Hyundai, Samho as Rio Chicago and carried that name until 2014. It then became Schubert. Earlier this year it was renamed again. Its new name pays tribute to the Ukranain port that has been under siege during the invasion by Russia.

The 41,331 gt, 51,687 dwt ship has a capacity of 4255 TEU.

Other News

The rumours have been spreading for some time, but it was made official today that Groupe Océan has acquired the Verreault shipyard in Méchins, QC. Océan, well known for its tugs, marine construction activity and dredging, also owns the Industrie Océan shipyard in Ile-aux-Coudres, QC (currently building tugs for the RCN) and a major ship repair unit (including a floating drydock) in Quebec City. The Verreault yard consists of a huge 800 ft x 184 ft (243.84 x 56.08m) graving dock and ship repair, fabrication and construction facilities on the north coast of the Gaspé peninsula. 

Verreault can accommodate the largest Great Lakes ships and regularly services Marine Atlantic ferries and Canadian Coast Guard vessels. The previously family owned yard will now be part of a large corporation with access to a huge pool of capital through Quebec government investment funds.

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Late news from the Dredging Scene

Late News from the Dredging Scene


As Bay Ferry Man has reported the last two Verreault hopper boats, I.V. No.9 and I.V.No.10 departed Meteghan for Quebec.
I.V. No. 11 and I.V. No.14 were sitting forlornly in Quebec City over the May long weekend, along with the two former DPW dredges, D-7 and D-8.

1. I.V.No.14 and I.V.No.11 at Québec, May 20, with Groupe Océan tugs in the background.

2. The twin dredges D-7 and D-8 sit nearby.

What plans Océan may have for the fleet remains in question. They have certainly been able to corner most of the market with their existing fleet, so it is likely at least some of the former Verreault plant will go to scrap.

Meanwhile Océan’s new dredge is rapidly taking shape at the Industrie Océan shipyard in Ile-aux-Coudres.

 3. Océan Traverse Nord on the launchway at Ile-aux-Coudres May 19. The bow mounted ejector nozzle is prominent. It can be connected to a pipeline or used to "rainbow" the dredge spoil.

4. The split hull construction is visible in this stern shot. The house is offset and fitted on rollers to remain level even as the hulls open. They are hinged at deck level. The funnels casings are canted outboard so they do not touch when the hull opens. The ship is propelled by azimuthing thrusters, similar to a tug.

To be named Océan Traverse Nord, it is a trailing suction hopper dredge, self -propelled and of the split hull type. In other words, its hull is divided lengthwise and is hinged so that the two halves will open to dump its cargo. If conditions dictate however, it can pump out over the bow, either through a pipeline or by “rainbowing” - that is discharging in a giant stream. The new ship is to be in service in August, and will take up a multi-year contract to dredge the St.Lawrence River channel at the eastern end of Ile d’Orléans, in an area called the North Traverse. It is the main shipping channel and is subject to annual silting due to spring run off.

The one remaining member of the former Verreault fleet not to be included in the auction sale to Océan was the trailing suction hopper dredge (TSHD) Port Méchins. According to reports it was denied renewal of its inspection certificate several years ago and could no longer operate in Canadian waters. However in 2009 it was sent to Mexico to work on dredging the Rio Coatzacoalcos at Minatitlan for Erosion Control SA CV. Following that work it was laid up and was reported to be in Veracuruz at the time of Verreault’s bankruptcy.

5. Port Méchins in Quebec in 2001. The port trailing suction pipe is stowed alongside. The ship has bottom doors to discharge dredge spoil.

It was built by Lobnitz in Renfrew Scotland in 1949 for The British Tanker Co Ltd (later BP Tanker Co Ltd.) as Haffar. The name is associated with Iran, but means “excavated” or “dug out” in Arabic. I believe the dredge was used or was to be used in Iran by the parent Anglo-Persian Oil Co. However Iran nationalised the oil industry in 1951 and British Petroleum was formed in 1954 and BP Tanker Co in 1955.Where the dredge was used from this point I am not sure. When the Suez Canal was re-opened following the closure of 1956 I understand the dredge may ha e worked on the canal before it was returned to the UK, and eventually sold.

The J.P.Porter Co brought it to Canada as Lockeport in 1961. In worked in many areas of eastern Canada and the Great Lakes, including the North Traverse.

6. Still in steam, Lockeport rests at The J.P.Porter Co yard in Dartmouth, amid the junk and wreckage left when the company failed.Porter's dock was almost under the Macdonald bridge, and has since been (mostly) cleaned up.

7. Following a drydocking at Dartmouth Marire Slips, Lockeport was rebuilt and re-engined at the French Cable Wharf by Sceptre Dredging.

8. In Sceptre colours, Lockeport in winter layup at the French Cable Wharf. It continued dredging the North Traverse despite changes in ownership.

When Porter’s was wound up following the dredging scandal, Sceptre Dredging acquired it in 1977 and it was extensively rebuilt, and converted from steam to diesel. Sceptre ran into trouble finding other work and Fraser River Pile and Dredge bought the ship intending to expand their interests to the east. They also did not succeed and the ship was sold to Verreault in 1992 and renamed Port Méchins. Despite a lot of money spent in upgrades, the ship did not meet Canadian standards and the long term contract for the Traverse was lost.

The receivers took possession of the ship in December 2011 and has also now been sold . Its Canadian register was closed May 23.

In recent years TSHDs have been chartered in from overseas to dredge the Traverse and the ports of the Magdalen Islands due to an absence of any Canadian TSHD dredges on the east coast. Recently a Dutch dredge was used to dredge the Sydney, NS harbour for new port development.

Two interesting developments on this front are worthy of note:

      An application has been made to grant a coasting license to the dredge Manzanillo II owned by the Belgian dredging giant Jan de Nul. The application is to use the ship to dredge Saint John harbour in New Brunswick. For mam years Verreault did this work and used conventional clam bucket dredges. In recent years Harbour Development has had the contract for this work (and may still have) and have also used clam shell dredges for the work. This has proven to be highly laborious, time consuming and expensive. Now the work will be done -presumably at a lower cost by using a TSHD. Work is to start July 1 and to be completed November 12.

     Weeks Construction of the US (and parent company of McNally Construction) has contracted for a new TSHD in the US. It would be safe to assume that this vessel might be available to work in Canada should conditions warrant. BAE Systems of Mobile, AB will build the 8,500 cy capacity vessel to a design by IHC Merwede, a leading Dutch dredge builder.

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Dredge up date

The dredge Rosaire and hopper boat I.V.No.14 got away from Meteghan on April 18 in tow of the tug André H. By the time the flotilla reached the Strait of Canso they had been a problem with the hopper boat, which had taken on a severe list to starboard. (see also Tugfax.) Repairs were underway in Mulgrave on Saturday April 21.

Thanks to comments from readers, it should be noted that I.V.No.9 and I.V.No.10 remain in Meteghan River at the time of writing and will probably form a second transport later on.

These unique hopper boats have an extremely interesting history.

They were built to carry newsprint from Quebec to New York City via the Richelieu and Hudson Rivers. The Richelieu canals dictated their size, including water draft and air draft due to low overhead clearances. The brain child of a man named Guy Toombs, they rejuvenated a long dormant form of transport between the two countries. The fleet was built in 1936-37 by G.T.Davie & Sons Ltd in Lauzon, QC and operated by a subsidiary called Davie Transportation. They were built in two lots. The first for their own account and the second for Quebec Paper Sales & Transportation. They loaded paper in such places as Donnacona, QC, but also on the Ottawa River. They then sailed along the St.Lawrence to Sorel where they took the Richelieu River south to Lake Champlain, joining the Hudson River via the New York State canal system all the way to New York.

By the late 1960s they had become outmoded and Verreault Navigation acquired at least six of the boats. In the end they converted five of them and remarkably all are still in service.

The conversion involved all new accommodation and propulsion, and rebuilding of the cargo hold to hopper space for dredging spoil. The bottom of the hull was fitted with hydraulic doors which could open to dump the spoil. Side tanks and bow space became buoyancy chambers which ensured that the boats remained in balance at all times. It is apparent from the photos of I.V.No.14 that there has been a failure somewhere, likely brought on by deterioration after several years in layup.

It is quite amazing that these 75 year old hulls, now more than 40 years after rebuilding, are still going.

2. to 6. A series of photos taken at Meteghan River April 14, 1971. The boats had completed working at Yarmouth and were refitting before going on to Saint John.

See the excellent coverage on http://bayferryman.blogspot.ca/ for more current photos, in the same area.

I have many photos of these craft at work, most often at Rivière-du-Loup, QC, where sand is washed in to the ferry dock every year by the spring freshet. Snow melting in the Laurentians floods down river well into summer and dredging can't begin until it eases down in July. The sand is dredged up, and moved to a dumping ground downstream, where it will not wash back in. But there is always fresh sand next year!   



7. Loaded boat gets away as empty comes alongside Rosaire.



8. Loaded and empty



9. Deck washed down, loaded boat gets away.



7. to 9. Working off Rivière-du-Loup, July 4, 1994.

10. to 12. Same place, July 1, 2004.



10. The boat's hold is loaded with sand. Some sand has spilled onto the foredeck.



11. A bucket full of water is dumped to wash down the deck..



12. Boat gets away for the dumping grounds



Dredging Shakeup

1. On Tuesday April 17 the dredge Rosaire and hopper boat I.V.No.14 are lying at Meteghan, NS, with the Groupe Océan tug André H. (in the background) preparing to tow then to Quebec.

Another of those monumental shakeups that seem to follow the Canadian dredging industry has passed beneath the radar of the English language press, since it appears (on the surface) to be a Quebec story - but don't be so sure.

In 1956 Verreault Navigation of Les Méchins, QC entered the dredging business. A local entrepreneur and ship's captain Borromée Verreault built his own little dredging fleet with unique self-propelled hopper boats. As the lucrative business base, it was able to expand its shipyard into a large enterprise. When the founder died his wife, and then two daughters took over and ran the company.

In 2000 the Verreault daughters decided to split the enterprise, with Denise Verreault keeping the shipyard selling the dredging business to her sister Claudette. Among the contracts that went with it was the lucrative North Traverse maintenance dredging. A yearly channel clearing project that used the trailing suction hopper dredge Port Méchins, originally J.P.Porter's Lockeport, which had been based in Halifax. Claudette Verreault discovered that the fleet was in poor condition and that Port Méchins would not meet Transport Canada standards. Verreault had also gobbled up a lot of old DPW plant, but it had not been used much and was also in bad shape. As a result there were lawsuits between the two family members and and the newly formed Dragage Verreault took on a large debt to keep the company going. One frequent contract for Verreault was Saint John, NB harbour dredging, but this was eventually won by Harbour Development (through Atlantic Towing Ltd, a J.D.Irving company.) Verreault also lost the Traverse work because Port Méchins could not be upgraded. It was sent to Veracruz, Mexico where it may have found some work.

Meanwhile Groupe Océan of Quebec City, an aggressive marine construction and tug operator was expanding, and was extremely well capitalized. In 2004 it acquired Dragage St-Maurice and never looked back. With its own shipyard, and ability to built its own modern dredging plant and adapt existing equipment for dredging use, it became a powerful force. It gradually wrested away the majority of the St.Lawrence work from Verreault, leaving the company with very little work after about 2009.

In 2011 Océan won the North Traverse dredging contract and now have their own dredge under construction at their own shipyard. It may be in service this year.

In December 2011 Verreault's creditors had enough and forced the company into bankruptcy. On March 29, 2012 its entire fleet was put up for auction - and in a bit of a coup Groupe Océan acquired the whole lot. Valued by some estimates at up to $15mn, they probably paid a lot less, but whatever they paid, they overnight became the major player in the Canadian dredging business.

As this is written Océan is gathering up the Verreault assets at its Shipyard in Ile-aux-Coudres, QC. This includes a dredge and three self-propelled hopper boats that had been laid up in Meteghan, NS for three years. Two of the boats sailed on their own, but Ocean's tug André H. (ex Point Valiant, ex Foundation Valiant) has the dredge Rosaire (ex J.P.P.No. 530, ex P.W.D. No. 21) and hopper boat I.V.No.14 in tow. They passed Halifax late this afternoon.

There are only a few other players in the dredging business. McNally Construction, which was taken over the US firm Weeks Marine in 2011, seems to be more concentrated on marine construction than dredging, but does maintain a large, if aging plant.

Harbour Development is rather a small player, and has not replaced the dredge Shovelmaster which sank in 2008. It is currently working on dredging at the pier 9C extension in Halifax and still has the contract for Saint John.

I expect that we will see Océan expanding out over a wider region beyond Quebec and continuing to grow.

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The dredge Rosaire was built by the Saint John DD Co in 1952 for the Department of Public Works. It was later acquired by the now defunct J.P.Porter Co. That company was brought down by the 1970s price fixing scandal and it was acquired by Verreault. Fitted with a 20 ton American crane , it has accommodation for 12 and is loaded with equipment.

I.V.No.14 is one of five self-propelled, self dumping spoil hopper boats converted from newsprint carriers. Originally built in the 1930s, they were rebuilt 1969-72 and are unique in the Canadian dredging business. All other operators use tugs and barges.

There are four other barge type dredges in the former Verreault fleet and a couple of scows.
The future of the Port Méchins however is in question.

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