Contship Cup - back again and Franbo Lohas move

 Contship Cup

The ZIM feeder ship Contship Cup is back in Halifax after making a month-long loop to the west coast of South America. It made its first arrival here on March 25 on the ZCA service, and has since returned to New York, Kingston (Jamaica), Callao (Peru), Paita (Peru), Kingston, Miami, Philadelphia and New York.

The ZCA's southern terminus, Paita, was founded in 1532 and is a major seaport for Peru handling 650,000 TEU annually. From the number of temperature controlled boxes visible on the Contship Cup it appears that the ZCA carries a substantial amount of produce cargo. It is also a linking service to ZIM's wholly owned Intra Asia shipping company Gold Star Line, which also has reefer containers on board.

The ship appears to be carrying more containers this time, but as Halifax is the northern terminus of the ZCA it is not surprising that the ship is not deeply loaded.

Franbo Lohas

At Pier 9C the  Franbo Lohas completed loading cable racks and moved out to anchor in Bedford Basin.

This is the usual pattern for these ships, which sometimes remain at anchor for weeks before sailing to Portsmouth, NH to load fibre optic submarine cable. I note that a sister ship the Franbo Logic cleared Cape Town April 20 and is due in Halifax May 12 - presumably also to load cable racks.

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Mixed Bag

 Halifax harbour is noted for its variety of shipping activity. Today, April 28, lived up that reputation, as follows:

An unusual early arrival was the ferry Fundy Rose in for a week's in-water refit. As a result there will be no ferry service between Saint John, NB and Digby, NS until May 5. Operators of the service, Bay Ferries Ltd, also run the CAT service from Yarmouth to Bar Harbor, ME and the Northumberland Ferries between Caribou, NS and Wood Islands, PE. 

Fundy Rose was built in 2000 by Daewoo Heavy Industries in Okpo, South Korea as Superstar Ithaki, but was delivered as Blue Star Ithaki. It was temporarily renamed Canada 2014 for its delivery trip from Greece to Canada in November 2014. After its first refit in Halifax, it was registered as Fundy Rose April 8, 2015 and entered service soon after. Because it is owned by the Crown by way of the Minister of Transport, it is registered in Ottawa. Bay Ferries Ltd is the operator and responsible for maintenance.  

The ship had initial modifications and subsequent refits in Halifax in previous years, but must go to another port when drydocking is required as Halifax has no available drydock. (Saint John does not have convenient facilities, in part due to the extreme tidal range.)

Halifax is a busy container port, handling about 500,000 TEU per year. (2024 statistics are not available yet but will likely be less than that number). However this morning's container ship arrival was not to load or unload containers. The Adams arrived to undergo invasive species examination by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. 

The ship has recently been transferrred from an Asian container service and requires clearance before it can enter other Canadian ports. It operates for Hapag-Lloyd under charter on the new Gemini Cooperation, with Maersk. The AL1 / TA3 service from North Europe to North America is not scheduled to call in Halifax, so this is a "one of" call. Its port rotaton is Saint John /Hamburg / Wilhelmshaven/ Newark / Norfolk / Baltimore and Saint John.

The Adams was built in 2003 by Koyo Dockyard Co in Mihara, Japan. It was orginally named APL Ireland, becoming ACE Ireland in 2012, and Venetiko in 2013. It was renamed Adams in 2021. The 66,462 gt, 67,009 dwt ship has a capacity of 5928 TEU. It sailed after a few hours at anchor.
 

The bulker CSL Tacoma arrived for a cargo gypsum. The stockpile at Gold Bond's lower Burnside / Wright's Cove has seldom been so large. CSL Tarantau, is a Trillium class ship, built in 2013 by Chengxi Shipyard in Jiangyin, China with a tonnages of 43,691gt comes and 71,279 dwt.It was built for CSL Americas pool partner Klaveness and named Balto. In 2016 Klaveness withdrew from the pool and its ships were divided up with the other pool partner, Algoma.
 

The ship is a regular caller in Halifax carrying its gypsum cargoes to several US east coast ports. 

An early afternoon arrival was the tanker CL Virginia Woolf with refined product from New York for Irving Oil.

Just less than a year old, it was delivered by New Times Shipbuilding Co Ltd, Jingjiang, China,  in June 2024. With tonnages of 30,259 gt, 49,359 dwt, it is classed as LR1 (Long Range 1). Despite its Chinese ownership it is managed by Synergy Denmark A/S  a 700 ship operator of tankers, bulkers and auto carriers.

 There was also activity in Bedford Basin where two ships have been at anchor.

The Franbo Lohas arrived from Capetown, April 24 and anchored well out in the northern anchorages. It is a familiar ship in Halifax as a submarine cable carrier. Each time it has a cargo of cable to load in Portsmouth, NH it comes to Halifax to be fitted with special racking in the hold to spool the cable.

  The Honda shipyard in Saiki, Japan built the ship in 2016. One of a dozen or more similar ships, built for Thorco, it was delivered as Thorco Lohas. The 13,110 gt, 16,966 dwt ship has box shaped holds, moveable tween decks and a pair of 50 tonne SWL cranes. It was renamed Frambo Lohas in 2021.

It has now moved in to Pier 9C presumably to be fitted out again.  It was very windy in the Basin and the ship was assigned two tugs to keep in on course and to turn it off Pier 9C.

The two newest tugs in Halifax, Atlantic Ash and Atlantic Maple were assigned. They seemed a bit larger than needed for the job, but one of the Halifax tugs, Atlantic Fir appears to be out of service after its crunch yesterday [see post].
 

When the Atlantic Pilotage Authority's regular pilot boats are unavailable to transfer pilots inside the harbour, Dominion Diving Ltd provides a launch service. Today their usual boats were all over the map - as far away as the Strait of Canso, working elsewhere in the port or well offshore (unknown reason). They therefore called out the Dominion Pursuit to take the pilot out to the Franbo Lohas. It was certainly a splish-splash trip with stiff winds kicking up white caps in the Basin.

As a vessel of under 14 gt, it is registered by number (which never changes), C15244NS and its name is unofficial. Its original "name" - also unofficial - was Louis Bérubé. It was built for the Department of Fisheries, by AMT Marine Inc in St-Antoine-de-Tilly, QC. Acquired by Dominion Diving in 2004 it was "renamed" in 2007. The boat also sees duties as a dive tender and lines boat.
 

The other ship anchored in Bedford Basin is the crude oil tanker Goldway which arrived in ballast April 25. As noted in this blog on that date, it had recently changed ownership and as predicted the transfer includes a change in funnel marking and name.

 

Seen from afar today the funnel has acquired new colurs - although what I could see may not be the final scheme. The ship's name Goldway still appears on the stern, but it has been renamed - officially - and appears as Nordic Moon on official web sites.

If a better picture becomes available later today it will be posted below:

 

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Amazoneborg delivers

Ships of the Durch company Royal Wagenborg are well known at St.Lawrence River ports where they load "forest products" - generally paper, but also aluminum ingots. They have a variety of ships including stern and side loaders as well as the more common , multi-purpose, open-hatch, crane equipped type. They generally trade to North European ports in Ireland, England and France. Thw company runs more than 160 ships in

Last year, when Atlantic Container Line stopped handling the RoRo cargoes of aircraft components, manufactured in Northern Ireland, a variety of spot charter general cargo ships have landed the parts by ship's cranes at Pier 9C. Since Wagenborg ships are regularly crossing the Atlantic - usually light - they would be a likely carrier depending on availability.

Today, April 27, saw the arrival in Halifax from Belfast, of Wagenborg's Amazoneborg, a 11,864 gt, 17,355 dwt ship built in 2007 by Hudong Zhonghua, Shanghai. It is a multi-purpose type with all the usual features of open hatch (no overhanging of hatches over holds - no understow), fully box shaped holds, double hull, moveable pontoon tween decks and the other typical features, including de-humidified holds and three 60 tonne SWL deck cranes (partly combinable). It is a two hold ship, with hydraulically operated pontoon hatches. It is  also ice classed and can carry containers in the hold and on deck, but no container capacity is listed.

The ship tied up at Pier 9C where there was just room enough to land what appears to be a fuselage. (Many wind generator monopiles take up most of the open pier space.)

 The component sits on its own multi-axle trailer, which will require special permits to travel on the highway,and then probably only in the middle of the night.

It only took a few hours for the ship to land the component, and it was ready sail in less than five hours. When it let go from the pier it did not use a tug, and headed directly for Bedford Basin to turn and head for sea.

The ship's next port is given as Sept-Iles, QC where it will likely load aluminum ingots.

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Algoma East Coast - good bye kiss

 The new tanker Algoma East Coast arrived in Halifax April 13 fresh from the Hyundai Mipo Shipyard. It carried the Liberian flag for the delivery trip, but was registered in Saint John, NB on April 14. The 23,451 gt, 37,242 dwt ship underwent some post-delivery maintenance and was made ready to sail this afternoon April 26. It is headed for Saint John, NB to take on its first cargo on long term charter to Irving Oil, replacing the 2005 built East Coast. That ship's charter to Irving Oil ended last month and the ship is now in service inTurkey.

Getting away from Pier 9C the ship had the tug Atlantic Fir made up astern. It had no tug forward as it is equipped with a bow thruster.

 

Once clear of the berth the ship was to make its way northward to Bedford Basin then turn and head southbound for sea. However things did not go quite as planned. I believe the intention was for the tug to swing in alongside and accompany the ship to the Basin and assist in the turn.

However as the tug came in there was a steel-on-steel grinding crunch. From where I was standing (between Pier 9B and 9C) I could not see the actual contact.

 

But as the tug backed away the damage became evident.

 Apparently the tug got in under the ship's overhang and there was contact with the tug's davit/crane and the operator's platform.

 

The platform was partially displaced and deformed and the davit arm was knocked off its base. There did not appear to be any contact with the tug's hull or superstructure.

There was a brief pause in the operation but the move resumed and the tug accompanied the ship to the Basin and assisted in the turn... (that is the tanker Goldway at anchor - see yesterday's post).

 ... than let go and proceeded independantly.

As the two passed the Africville boat ramp I could not see any damage to the ship - other than some scraped paint just aft of the draft marks.

Damage to the tug has certainly put the boat davit out of commission for a time.

 

 The Algoma East Coast will be a frequent caller in Halifax in future, and I am sure that tug operators will be very wary of operating close under the ship's stern overhang.

 

The following photo shows the configuration of the davit and platform:

At one time the tugs rigged a rigid hull inflatible (RHIB) rescue boat under the davit, as in this older photo of sister tug Atlantic Oak...

...but that does not seem to be the case anymore. It seems now that the davit is used as a stores crane only.  I also think the access platform around the crane base was not original equipment but was added later. The davit may have been added later too.

 

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Big Tanker for the Basin

 The crude oil tanker Goldway arrived in Halifax this afternoon, April 25, and headed directly for an anchorage in Bedford Basin.

 Built by Sungdong Shipbuilding in Tongyeong, South Korea, the 81,545 gt, 154,781 dwt ship is classed as Suezmax even though the Suez Canal has been enlarged since the classification was initially devised. 

The ship is equipped with an exhaust gas scrubber, which is housed just abaft the funnel, in a prominent housing painted with the same markings as the funnel. The scrubber was retrofitted by Germak Shipyard in Tuzla, Turkey (date not known).

The most notable feature however is the patch of fresh black paint on the hull. That is where the "EPS Tanker" logo has been painted out as part of an ownership change. Orginal owners Eastern Pacific Shipping sold the ship, and a sister ship Diamondway, to Nordic American Tankers for a cool $68 million US each, with effect at the start of Q2 2025. The deal is financed through Ocean Yield with a leaseback and eight year charter and purchase obligation at the end.

The ship arrived from Canaport (Saint John) NB and previously Rotterdam. Its call here may be related to the sale, which could involve a name change or repainting of the funnel colours. 

See today's post of companion blog Tugfax for more news. 

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MSC over Maersk - amended

 Since over taking Maersk last year the Mediterranean Shipping Company has increased its lead as the largest container shipping company. As reported in the previous post, MSC now counts more than 900 ships (including owned and chartered ships) under its control. It was able to build its fleet by vacuuming up older ships from various owners. 

Two of those older ships arrived in Halifax today (April 24) and by coincidence, both are ex Maersk ships.

 MSC Rita V was acquired from Maersk in 2024 after serving as the Maersk Bentonville. It was built in 2006 by PS Werften Stralsund (Volkswerft GmbH) as a 48,853 gt, 53,702 dwt ship with a capacity of 4504 TEU including 1400 reefer plugs, It is unusual to see a ship with engines amidships these days. Although built as Maersk Bentonville it was renamed Bentonville from 2010 to 2013, but reverted to Maersk Bentonville again. Its Maersk hull banner was hastily painted over last year, but is still visible.

 The ship was named for Bentonville, Arkansas home and headquarters of Walmart - a major customer of many container shipping lines. On this trip it is serving MSC's Mediterranean Express and is en route from Sines, Portugal to Montreal.

Today's second arrival was the MSC Anya dating from 2005. Built by Hyundai Samho it is rated at 55,510 gt, 74,938 dwt with a capacity of 4993 TEU. It has also been reported at 5018 TEU and 550 reefer points.

 

Launched as  Santa Pelagia it was renamed Maersk Detroit on delivery and carried that name until 2010 when it reverted to Santa Pelagia briefly before becoming Cap Serrat the same year. It became Santa Pelagia again from 2012 to 2014 when it was renamed MSC Anya. The ship is arriving from Liverpool, UK on the Montreal Express to Montreal. Ships on that service don't usually call in Halifax, so it may be here to reduce draft to St.Lawrence River requirements. Curiously the ship's funnel does not carry the MSC emblem. (It is not owned by MSC but is under their management.)

Amendment:

Maersk ordered seven high speed container ships to run between China and the US west coast. Capable of a maximum 37 knots and a cruising speed of 29 knots, the ships consumed an estimated 300 tonnes of fuel per day to achieve that speed. The "B" class, which included Maersk Bentonville were delivered just as the economy took a nose dive, and the ships were laid up for nearly a year and never operated on the intended high speed route. Reducing speed to 12 knots also reduced fuel consumption to a more manageable 50 tonnes per day level.

I believe there was some incentive to built these high speed ships for future strategic (that is military) use. They could deliver needed cargo quickly over long distances in case of emergency.

The ships' huge Sulzer / Wärtsilä 12 cylinder main engines, delivering 58,344 kW / 78,240 hp. were too large to squeeze into the narrow after part of the hull, so had to be installed midships. The 96C type engine is a two stroke, turbocharged slow speed engine availabelin various sizes.   

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Carnation Ace

 The cars keep on coming, but today's arrival (April 23) was a bit different. The Carnation Ace, unlike most of the ships arriving at Autoport, did not come from a European port. Instead it arrived from Japan via the Panama Canal and the United States.

The Carnation Ace was reported in Tsuneishi, Japan from February 10 to March 9 - likely in refit - hence the tidy paint work.

 

The ship sailed from Yokohama March 14 and Hitachinaka March 17 then sailed non-stop (via the Panama Canal) to Brunswick, GA arriving April 13. It sailed the next day for Davisville, RI arriving and sailing April 18. It then arrived off Halifax April 21 and anchored until early this morning.

Operated by Mitsui OSK Lines, the ship usually carries Japanese cars, but not exclusively.  Built by Shin Kurushima Toyohashi Shipbuilding Co Ltd in 2011 it is listed at 60,975 gt, 16.416 dwt with a capacity of 5196 to 6202 cars (some say 6400) and has a 100 tonne stern ramp. It also has a small starboard side ramp.

Owners, Mitsui OSK Lines (known as MOL), with a fleet of about eighty car carriers, use the "Ace" in their ships' names to indicate Auto Carrier Express.

On sailing today it gave a destination of Baltimore.

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l'Atalante, Endeavor and research

The French research vessel l'Atalante arrived in Halifax this afternoon, April 22 and tied up at the Bedford Institute. It is on a month long mission from its base in Brest, France.

 

An impresssive ship of 3559 gt, it was built originally in 1989 by Atelier et Chantier du Havre but was extensively refitted in 2009 and in 2021. It is a multi-purpose oceanography, biology and marine geosciences research ship. Its numerous capabilities include the operation of a crewed submersible to -6,000 meters and a remotely operated vessel. It has eight labs on board and can also carry containerised mission-specific labs on deck.

It is equipped with a 22 tonne capacity stern A-frame, a 10 tonne deck crane and a 4 tonne traveling crane and a 800mm diameter well or moon pool. It is diesel electric powered with twin screws.

The ship is owned by the Flotte Océanographique Française par IFREMER. (Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer). Its actual operation is conducted by SHOM which is the Service Hydrographique et Océanographique de la Marine (the French Navy). Depending on the mission the ship carries a crew of 17 to 30 and can accommodate 30 technicians and scientists.

The ship was last in Halifax in June 2023, which apparently escaped the notice of Shipfax. It had assisted in the location and recovery efforts related to the Oceangate Titan submersible loss at the Titanic wreck site, using its ROV Victor 6000.

The ship's arrival in Halifax follows on the departure of the US flagged Endeavor on April 21 after carrying out some reseach for Canada.

 The Endeavor first arrived in Halifax March 26, sailed on March 19 and returned April 18 (photo). The long awaited replacement for the deep sea research ship CCGS Hudson has not yet been completed, which means that the Bedford Institue has chartered in ships to carry out some of its research work - particularly annual fish stock surveys that are conducted jointly with the United States.

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MSC Cagliari IV for Montreal and other Chinese built ships

 The MSC Cagliari IV on MSC's Canada Express service called today, April 19, at PSA Halifax Atlantic Hub, Pier 42. The ship's last port was Antwerp and it is en route to en route to Montreal.

 

The ship may have been here before under a previous name. It was built in 2007 as ZIM Genova and became Genova in 2018 and MSC Genova IV in 2022. It is a 40,372 gt, 52,943 dwt ship with a capacity of 4253 TEU including 400 reefers. The Roman numeral "IV" in its name indicates the ship's capacity range. It is therefore an aid to classifying the ship in the bewildering array of ships in the Mediterranean Shipping Company fleet.

That fleet has just reached the (almost) unheard of number of 900 ships. Aside from Helen of Troy's reputed flotilla, no other shipping fleet has reached that size. (MSC owns several separate companies which are included to make up the 900 ship total.) The fleet consists of 609 owned and 291 chartered vessels with a capacity of 6.7 million TEU (that's a million TEU larger than Maersk). A further 132 ships are on firm order with various shipyards. 

This one was built at the Dalian Ship Industry Co in Dalian, China, and as such may soon be facing  a Trump tax on Chinese built ships.

Another ship that will be facing that punishing tax also called in Halifax today. The auto carrier Lake Tazawa docked first at Pier 9C with RoRo cargo then moved to Autoport to discharge cars.

The 71,631 gt, 19,213 dwt ship has a capacity of 7,000 CEU on 12 decks with a 150 tonne capacity stern ramp and a 20 tonne starboard side ramp.The ship is dual fuel to Tier III standard and carries two 2,000 cubic meter LNG tanks. It also has shaft generators and lithium battery storage and can connect to shore power.

It was built in 2024 by China Merchants Jinling Shipyard Co Ltd, and is one of series of ships to be operated by Eukor. It and its sister ship Lake Shirasagi are now regular callers on the Wallenius Wilhemsen transatlantic service - at least for now. The addition of punishing tarifs on imported cars may well change that.

Another familiar caller is back again and will not be facing any similar taxes. As one the few US built cruise ships Victory I resumes its usual itinerary of cruises to the Great Lakes. 

Docked at Pier 23, its heavy fendering shows up well. The combination of standoffs and a full length rub rail protect the ship's hull while transiting the Seaway locks. With sister ship Victory II they have had checkered careers since delivered by Atlantic Marine of Jacksonville, FL in 2001and 2004 as Cape May  Light and Cape Cod Light respectively. After several renamings and ownership changes, the 200 paasnger ships remain popular.

Coming from the direction of the Great Lakes is the Canadian tanker Kivalliq W. of Coastal Shipping Ltd. It anchored in the lower harbour waiting its turn at Imperial Oil with cargo from Sarnia, ON.

The ship's owner, part of the Woodward Group, is headquartered in Goose Bay, NL, but the ship operates out of Lewisporte, NL and in the summer season serves the far north. In the off season, as it was this past winter, it is flagged out to operate overseas. Its registration was shifted to the Marshall Islands December 1, 2024 and it returned to Canadian flag April 7.

Built in 2004 by Jiangyang Shipyard, Shanghai it is listed at 8882 gt, 13,670 dwt. Initially named Falcon it was renamed Sten Fjord in 2009 and renamed again when acquired by Coastal Shipping in 2018. It rarely trades to the United States so will likely escape the tax on Chinese built ships.

 

Algoberta at Imperial dock number 3, April 18.

Algoma's thanker Algoberta also working for Imperial Oil sailed back to Nanticoke this morning after unloading and Algoscotia, which has been waiting at Pier 27, moved over to Imperial Oil on departure. Algoscotia most commonly runs between Halifax and Sydney, NS.

 While Algoscotia was at Pier 27 April 8, there was a tank truck on the dock (not visible in the photo) possibly for refueling or possibly to take off tank washings.

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Yellowbill - new for Canfornav - CORRECTED

 Canada Forest Navigation, CANFORNAVfor short, is a growing Canadian based deep sea shipping company. Its current fleet of 47 ships trade internationally in and out of the Great Lakes. All owned or chartered bulk carriers, they are registered offshore. Their green hull colour is distinctive - as are the ship's names which are all species of ducks. 

 One of their newest ships, the Handysize Yellowbill, arrived in Halifax this afternoon, April 17, and anchored in the lower harbour. It was soon met by the launch Halmar presumably bearing inspectors from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. 

At 32 m wide, it is too large for the St.Lawrence Seaway and comes in at 25,069 gt, 39,633 dwt and carries four 31 tonne SWL cranes. It was delivered in Jul 2025 by Saiki Heavy Industries in Saiki, Japan. CANFORNAV ships are frequent grain carriers, despite the name of the operating company.

 The ship arrived from Asian ports, most recently Singapore, and is due to sail this evening for Quebec City likely for grain.

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Polar Prince

 The privately owned icebreaker Polar Prince got away from its winter layup berth at COVE (the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship) this morning for a day at sea. Since 2021 the ship has been operated by Miawpukek Horizon Maritime Services Ltd, It serves as a training vessel for Miawpukek First Nation seafarers, but also carries out expedition and research work.

Built in 1959 by Davie Shipbuilding + Repair Co Ltd in Lauzon as CGS Sir Humphrey Gilbert, it received a major rebuild at Halifax Shipyards in 1983 when it was given a new, stronger bow. It was declared surplus in 2001 and renamed 2001-06 until  sold in 2002 and renamed Gilbert I and soon after, Polar Prince. Since then it has engaged in a variety of work in the north including seismic research, and the notable 2017 C3 Expedition. It was given the temporary, unoffical name of Canada C3 for its trip from Toronto to Victoria via the Northwest Passage.  

Its trip to sea today (April 16) nearly coincides with the sinking of the Titanic April 15, 2012. That event, with the tragic loss of 1500 lives, and the resulting fascination with the event, resulted in the best known but most unfortunate event in the story of the Polar Prince. The ship was the mother ship for the submersible ROV Titan which imploded while descending to the Titanic wreck site on June 18, 2023. All five persons on baord died including the founder of OceanGate, the expedition organizer and owner of the submersible.

Wreckage of the ROV (Remotely Operated Vessel) was subsequently located 500 meters from the bow of the Titanic wreck in 3,800 meters (12,500 feet) of water.

The Polar Prince has been the subject of nearly a dozen posts on this blog over the years. Search for these posts will turn up numerous photos.

 

More Cars

 A new to Halifax auto carrier arrived in Halifax this afternoon, April 15, after spending some time anchored offshore. The Morning Chant is on the usual Wallenius Wilhelmsen transatlantic service from Goteborg, Bremerhaven, Antwerp and Zeebrugge.

Built in 2014 by Hyundai Heavy Industries in Gunsan, it is a 59,615 gt, 20.190 dwt ship with a capacity of 6,674 cars.

The ship's movements prior to this loop show a departure from Shanghai January 21 then calling in Civitavecchia March 2 to 4, Koper, Piraeus and Izmir before heading for Goteborg.

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Aircraft components and Euro fuel

 The multi-purpose general cargo ship Unistar arrived this morning, April 14, at Pier 9C to offload aircraft components from Belfast, Northern Ireland.

 

Despite the pier being full of wind farm parts and pieces, enclosed in whire wrap, there was still room to land to plane parts to waiting trucks. 

The Unistar is 6351 gt, 9688 dwt ship built initially in 2012 by Jiangsu Yangzi Changbo Shipbuilding in Jiangjiang, China, and completed by Volharding, Foxhol. It started off with the name Sinus Roris but was renamed Thorco Autora later in 2012 and became Unistar in 2027. It is equipped with portable tween decks (some of which can be seen stowed on deck) and two 60 tonne SWL cranes, The cranes can work in tandem for a 160 tonne lift. The ship can also carry 258 TEU on deck and 210 TEU below.

In failing light and a stiff breeze, the ship let go from Pier 9C and headed to Bedford Basin to turn (without tug assisatance) and put out to sea destined for Point Comfort, Texas.
 

 In the late afternoon the tanker Canal Street arrived from Antwerp, Belgium with refined product for Imperial Oil.

 The ship was delivered in 2012 by Onomichi Zosen with the name Pacific Topaz, which it carried until 2014. It is a typical long range tanker of 28,426 gt, 49,993 dwt. 

Its name is likely from the well known street in Lower Manhattan, New York, but there is also a Canal Street on the Dartmouth side of Halifax harbour. It was the site of an ambitious project to link Halifax harbour with the Bay of Fundy, using an ancient canoe route. Portages were to be replaced with locks and access to the Canal in Dartmouth Cove was via an inclined plane. The project began in 1826, was in used by 1856 but was not completed until 1861. It was closed in 1871 with the advent of railroads. 

The inclind plane has been replicated as a static display and parts of the inland locks have been preserved. Canal Street is a short street roughly parallel to the canal entrance / outfall.

Algoma East Coast

 The new product tanker Algoma East Coast arrived in Halifax today, April 13, on its delivery trip from the Hyundai Mipo shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea. 

 

The ship, which is carrying the Liberian flag temporarily, has yet to carry a cargo. It will undergo Canadian regulatory inspection here, and will transfer to Canadian flag over the next few days.

A thin weld bead of the outline of Saint John is faintly visible on the transom.

 It will then proceed to Saint John, NB to load cargo for Irving Oil and assume its spot in the usual port rotation, delivering refined product to Halifax, Charlottetown and St.John's. It will be an occasional caller in other ports including Quebec City and Montreal and some US ports such as Boston.

The ABS Ice Class 1B ship measures 23,451 gt, 37,242 dwt and includes many features such as cold-ironing (shore power) capable and methanol fuel ready.

The ice knife, installed above and in line with the rudder, prevents ice from jamming the rudder when backing or turning. The hull plating is also thicker to well above the waterline. The transition line is visible in the photo.

Irving Oil has chartered the ship from Algoma Tankers Ltd, and unlike Irving Oil's most recently chartered ships, this one bears no indication of any connection with Irving Oil. It is painted in Algoma Tankers colours and carries the parent company  Algoma Central Corporation "bear" funnel mark and bow crest.   

The ship takes the place of the similarly sized East Coast (23,552 gt, 37,515 dwt) which completed a twenty year charter from Vroon last month and has since been reported in Turkey for refit.  It arrived inYaklova on March 31. 

Irving Oil has contracted with Algoma for two ships, and the second, the Algoma Acadian, has departed  Korea and has been reported arriving in Tarjun, Indonesia, April 7. It will replace the chartered Acadian which is currently unloading at Irving Oil's terminal in Halifax harbour.

 Acadian in Halifax April 5 (it has since been to Charlottetown and Saint John)

 Acadian will be the last ship to carry the well known Irving Oil colours of green boot topping, "biscuit" hull colour and black capped yellow funnel with the Irving logo. It arrived in Halifax April 12.

Algoma Tankers was established in 1998 to take over the Imperial Oil domestic product tanker fleet. It has since become the premier Canadian flag tanker operator with nine ships. It also has an interest in one foreign flag tanker with ten more under construction.

The Algoma East Coast will soon become a familiar sight in Halifax, but seldom in the Narrows. It is seen on arrival today coming alongside Pier 9B. It shows some "lock rash" from its recent Panama Canal passage.

 

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