Coastal Shipping Ltd - update

 Kitikmeot W getting under way from anchorage for Argentia with a chemical cargo.

 Since making yesterday's post on Coastal Shipping Ltd's latest acquisition, the tanker Kitikmeot W, I have learned that the company has acquired three tankers, not two. I mentioned that a sister of Kitikmeot W, the Icdas-11 has been purchased, but not delivered yet, nor renamed as far as I know.

The third tanker is to be named Tuvaq W. It is currently sailing under the Swiss flag as San Pietro. Built in 2012 by Taixing Ganghua as Bering it was acquired and renamed by the current owners in 2013. It is a small ship of 5422 grt, 7598 dwt, and will be used to supply some of the ports that larger ships cannot service.

Once again the ship's new name has significance for Coastal Shipping and the Woodward Group, recalling a previous ship named Tuvaq and using the letter "W" for Woodward.

The first Tuvaq was an impressive ice breaking tanker, built in 1977 by Werft Nobiskrug in Rendsburg, Denmark, for Neste O/Y of Finland. Neste was a pioneer in winter navigation in the Baltic and the ship was built to operate without icebreaker assistance when the Baltic was iced in. It was named Tiira by Neste and measured 10,929 grt, 15,954 dwt and was powered by two V-12 Atlas engines delivering 15,600 bhp through controllable pitch propellers. Neste thought enough of the ship to re-engine it in 1997 with new MaK engines giving 15,999 bhp. Such a major expenditure is unusual in a twenty year old ship.   

Coastal Shipping purchased the ship in the autumn of 2002 for delivering their own petroleum products, but also for chartering out to others. It was registered in St.John's, NL February 14, 2003 and named Tuvaq. The word means edge of the ice, an important interface in the arctic where sea life is abundant. Under Canadian registry the ship measured 11,290 grt.

The ship made many northern trips for Coastal, but also did charter work with Ultramar and likely others, and made some trips to the Great Lakes.

Some of its calls in Halifax were documented here in 2009 and 2012.

In early 2013 Coastal sold the ship to Panama flag owners called Tuvaq International Inc, and the Canadian register was closed June 11, 2013. Identified as a crude oil carrier by this time, the ship's movements have been difficult to trace, but by October 2015 it was laid up in Magdalene River, Barranquilla, Columbia, apparently abandoned.

The new Tuvaq W has sailed from the Netherlands as San Pietro and is due in St.John's, NL next week where it will be brought under Canadian flag and renamed.
Icdas-11 is reported anchored in Singapore.

To make room for all these ships in the fleet, Coastal has recently sold Nanny (register closed March 9, 2018) and Travestern (registry closed March 19, 2018). These follow the sale of Alsterstern in April 2017 and Havelstern in October 2017.

Of these one recent caller here was Nanny, which brought in several loads for Wilson's Fuel from Come by Chance in 2015 and 2016.

Built in 1993 by Hyundai Ulsan, as Natalie Sif, the 6544 grt, 9176 dwt ship also called in Halifax in 1998 under its original name and Danish flag.  After leaving the Coastal fleet it sailed to Taipei, Taiwan.

The Coastal fleet also includes the Sten Fjord, 8882 grt, 13,670 dwt, built in 2004 as Falcon by Jiangyang, Shanghai, which joined the fleet in June 2017. It has been chartered out over the winter, and is en route from Montreal to Estonia but is expected back in Canada in time for summer arctic work.

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Alsterstern pit stop

The Woodward Group tanker Alsterstern put in for a pit stop today, topping up her fuel tanks from Algoma Dartmouth then headig out to Saint John to load cargo.

Coastal Shipping Ltd., the Woodward tanker subsidiary, runs five tankers, all of them ice class, which in summer serve Newfoundland, Labrador and the Canadian arctic. Alsterstern and two identical sisters, Havelstern and Travestern are frequent callers in Saint John, but along with smaller fleet mates Dorsch and Nanny also run up the St.Lawrence to load.

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Travestern in the Novadock

1. Travestern has just entered Novadock.

The Coastal Shipping Ltd tanker Travestern arrived yesterday (in thick fog) and anchored in the harbour until this morning when it entered the Novadock floating drydock at Halifax Shipyard.

Coastal (part of ther Woodward Group of Goose Bay, NL) acquired the tanker in March of this year from Rigel Shiffahrts of Bremen, Germany.
It arrived in Lewisporte March 11 after waiting several days for icebreaker assistance, and was registered in Canada on March 15. A chemical / product tanker of 11,423 gross tons and 17,080 deadweight, it was built in 1995 by MTW Schiffwerft in Wismar, Germany.
It is one of three sister ships  bought by Woodward (Alsterstern and Havelstern inn 2011) to replace older units of the fleet. The ships have been very busy this summer running from Saint John to destinations in Newfoundland and the far north.

Coastal has recently taken to keeping ships names from previous owners, however in their earlier ships they did select family or local names.

Among those names was Sibyl W., used twice for Woodward Group ships.

Sybil W. (i) was the former Imperial Quebec. Built by Collingwood Shipyard, it was launched August 21,
1957 and delivered in December. At 375' x 52' x 27' depth, it was too large to transit the old St.Lawrence canals, so was confined to the Lakes until the St.Lawrence Seaway was opened in 1959. It was then fitted with a bulbous bow and saw service on the coast and as far afield as Frobisher Bay and Venezuela, based out of Halifax.

2. Imperial Quebec alongside pier 23 in Halifax March 21, 1983 for some minor repairs, the ship shows off her bulbous bow.

The ship started life with the traditional Imperial Oil black hull and red superstructure, but looked far better with the blue and cream scheme. It was also smaller than the newer ships at 4,679 gross tons, 6150 deadweight. With those larger fleetmates working more efficiently and some mechanical problems, Imperial sold the ship to Woodward in 1987.

3. In 1982 she was starting to have some engine issues and was easily identified from a great distance by her smoke plume.

Renamed Sibyl W. by Woodward, the ship served Atlantic Canada and the north until March 1992 when she was sold to the Panamanian company SSS Trading and renamed Panama Trader. She was later re-flagged to Belize, but she was laid up in 1995 and scrapped at Guyamas, Mexico in May 1996.

Woodward meanwhile had added Sibyl W. (ii) to the fleet. It was also a former Imperial tanker, the much smaller Imperial Tofino, built in 1973 by McKenzie Barge & Marine Ways of North Vancouver. Designed to serve small coastal communities it originally measured only 650 gross tons. In 1979 it was lengthened 24 feet to about 170 ft loa and re-measured at 764 gross tons. 

The ship made its first call in Halifax  September 1, 1992 and called here about once a year for a few years, but was mostly confined to Newfoundland and Labradorian waters.

4. The second Sybil W. in Halifax in 1995.

In 2009 as the fleet expanded again, Coastal Shipping sold the second Sibyl W. to Honduras Aero Marine S de RL of Atlantide, Honduras. They did not rename the ship and she is reportedly still in service as a bunkering tanker in the Atlantic anchorage off Panama.

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Alsterstern for bunkers [corrected]

Corrected version (I had the ship's name wrong as Havelstern on first posting):

The Woodward Group, Coastal Shipping Ltd tanker Alsterstern arrived for bunkers and anchored in Bedford Basin this morning, June 13. The ship is one of three sisters acquired by Woodward to transport fuel in Newfoundland, Labrador and the far north. All three were acquired form Rigel Tankers in Germany, first to arrive was Alsterstern in July 2001, then Havelstern in September 2011 and Travestern in March of this year. At 11,423 gross tons and 17,080 deadweight, they are able to reach many of the smaller ports.
They generally work seasonally and layup for the winter, and are reactivated in spring for northern work. Last year Alsterstern arrived in Halifax on June 14, docking at Ultramar in Eastern Passage. It is likely to load there again this year before sailing.

Alsterstern anchored off Rockingham, 2013-06-14 waiting for a berth.

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Havelstern - another from Woodward's

Coastal Shipping, rare callers until this year, had their fourth ship in port inside of a month. This time it is Havelstern one of a pair of ice class coastal tankers purchased last year from Rigel Shipping of Germany. A sister to Alsterstern, the ship is 11,423 gross tons, 17,080 deadweight and was built in 1994 by WTW Schiffs. of Wismar. Owners Coastal Shipping Ltd of HappyValley-Goose Bay, NL, are part of the Woodward Group.

Havelstern anchored in number 2 anchorage to take on bunkers. It will proceed to Ultramar to load and will sail north to service remote comnunities.
For the other Woodward ships see: Nanny June 9, Alsterstern June14, Tuvaq Jume 16.

Alsterstern - another first for Coastal and Woodward

Another first time arrival today for a tanker from Coastal Shipping. [see Nanny last week]
This time it is Alsterstern one of a pair of tankers acquired last year from the German Rigel Shipping Co. Neither ship (the sister is Havelstern) has been renamed.

Built in 1994 by MTW Schiffswerft in Wismar, Germany these chemical/product carriers measure 11,426 gros and 17,080 deadweight, and are considerable larger than the similar Desgagnés trio, which were built by the same yard for the same orginal German owners. One of those, Dara Desgagnés was in this week too, and loaded at Esso.

Dara Desgagnés was built in 1992 as Elbestern, and came to Canada as Diamond Star in 1993 for Rigel's Canadian operation. After charter to Desgagnés it was sold to them in 2010. It measures 6,262 gross tons and 10,511 deadweight. The ship usually carries product from the Ultramar refinery in St-Romauld, QC.

Alsterstern tied up at Ultramar in Eastern Passage to load for Newfoundland and Labrador.
Coastal Shipping is part of the Woodward Group a multi-armed industrial/commercial operation, based in Happy-Valley-Goose Bay.