BBC Rhonetal sails

 After the laborious process of loading several hunded (maybe as many as one thousand) sections of gas pipe, the BBC Rhonetal sailed today, April 19, for Moerdijk, Netherlands.

The pipe, according to the markings I could see, was manufactured in Japan and coated in Canada. The shipment was then transported to Halifax on railroad flat cars, usually with eleven pipes per car, (There were a few pipes of different diameter and length.) It took a hundred or more cars to transport the shipment. As mentioned previously the pipes were loaded aboard ship one at a time or in small bundles of two or three, using the ship's own cranes. Apparently the cargo filled the holds and a dozen or so pipes were secured on deck.

The BBC Rhonetal arrived in Halifax March 29 from Port Cartier, QC where it had off-loaded some wind turbine components. It had been waiting off Port Cartier for a time as fleet mate BBC Topaz was off-loading first. When it arrived in Halifax, there was BBC Topaz was occupying the berth and it had to wait at anchor until April 7 before it could begin to load the pipe.

 BBC Rhonetal was built in 2013 by Taizhou Sanfu Ship Engineering Co and is a general purpose type ship with full width hatches and box shaped holds. The 14,941 gt, 17,577 dwt ship carries three 80 tonne SWL cranes that can be combined in pairs for 150 tonne lifts. It is also rated for 1047 TEU (nominal) with 152 reefer plugs.

There have been several posts on this blog over the past few weeks on both ships.

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Neither snow nor rain...(again)

 I have often referred to the US Postal Service's motto here when weather makes it difficult for shipping in the harbour (and for me to keep track of it.)

The last couple of days, April 12 and 13, have seen heavy rain and high wind (but fortunately no snow) and dense fog. Pilotage operations have been suspended for various periods due to swells and surges and several arrivals and departures have been delayed.

As for operations in the harbour, unless winds are extremely high, the container piers* can still work cargo. (There is a maximum wind speed for safe operation of the cranes.) Containers are largely impervious to rain, so if the ship can make it into port, it can be loaded and unloaded.

Today's (April 13) arrival for the ZCA service ZIM Container Atlantic, the Navios Indigo, managed to reach port before the latest pilotage suspension. The ship started calling for ZIM last year. See my post for October 27, 2023

Lingering fog was considerably thinner over Bedford Basin where the ship was tied up at the Fairview Cove west berth*.

 At Pier 9C* the BBC Rhonetal continued to load gas pipe despite the rain.

The ship was using its own cranes to load, and appears to have been working two or even three holds at one time, but has closed most of the hatches. There are hundreds of pipes left to load, so the ship will be here for some time yet. They are often loaded in bundles of two or three, depending on how they are to be organized and secured below deck.

Some ships were able to sail, one being the Fairwind Legion which departed long term anchorage in Bedford Basin for Portsmouth, New Hampshire to load submarine cable. It has been in port since February 28.

[April 3 photo]

See my post of February 28 for details on the ship. A sister ship Nord Logos has been waiting offshore and is due tomorrow, probably to load cable racks. 

* Footnote on Terminolgy

The Port of Halifax does not use  standard terminology to designate some of its facilities - see subsequent post for my exposition on this topic.

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Another BBC

 A second BBC Chartering ship arrived in Halifax today and anchored in Bedford Basin. Its fleet mate BBC Topaz has been in Halifax since March 20, docked at Pier 9C where it took on a large quantity of gas pipe. See previous post from March 21.

Today's arrival, BBC Rhonetal, will likely load the remainder of the pipe.

BBC Topaz arrived from Port Cartier, QC where it had off loaded vanes for a wind energy project. BBC Rhonetal had more vanes for the same project and waited offshore until the berth became clear to discharge its cargo.

Despite periods of zero visibility in the port today, I was able to grab a few photos when the fog shifted. (The fog tends to move in and out of port with the tide.)

BBC Rhonetal was built in 2013 by Taizhou Sanfu Ship Engineering Co and is a general purpose type ship with full width hatches and box shaped holds. The 14,941 gt, 17,577 dwt ship carries three 80 tonne SWL cranes that can be combined in pairs for 150 tonne lifts. It is also rated for 1047 TEU (nominal) with 152 reefer plugs.

 

BBC Topaz has completed loading gas pipe in the holds and its hatches have been closed and sealed. Crews spent much of the day rigging two large spreaders and connecting them to their next load.

 It looks like that load will be lifted aboard tomorrow, and as previously reported, it is to be the work boat C-Horizon the former Tidal Pioneer, which will be transported to Europe.

Following the bankruptcy of its previous owners, the vessel was laid up at Dominion Diving in Dartmouth Cove. It was Dominion's tug Dominion Rumbler and workboat Dominion Bearcat that moved the vessel today to Pier 9C alongside the BBC Topaz. (on the ship's port side, and not visible from the Halifax shore.)

I hope that conditions will be clear enough tomorrow to see something of the lifting operation - not as it was for some of the time today:

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