New for Nirint, New for ONE [REVISED]

More first time callers in Halifax today.

Nirint Shipping BV, the Dutch company that runs a Europe / Caribbean container line, has the contract to carry nickel sulfides from Moa, Cuba to Halifax on the return leg. (The mineral is sent from Halifax by rail to Fort Saskatchewan, AB for primary processing, then goes to Belgium by way of Montreal for final refining.) Nirint uses a variety of chartered tonnage, usually on charters of a year or more, but seldom renames the ships. Today's arrival, Hooge does not appear again on Nirint Schedules after this trip, so seems to be covering off  other ships, perhaps for drydocking.

Hooge was built in 2006 by Shandong Weihai Shipyard in Weihai, China. The 15,633 gt, 16,986 dwt ship has a container capacity of 1306 TEU, including 238 reefers and has a a pair of 45 tonne cranes. It is a multi-purpose ship and although classed as a single deck, fully cellular container ship, it also has general cargo capability. Number two hatch has been kept clear to allow for unloading the bagged nickel in Halifax without having to unload any containers.

The name "Hooge" is taken from an island in the Nordfriesland district of Germany. The ship is managed by Briese Schiffahrts, a German company, and other ships of the same class are also named after nearby islands. Canadians might be forgiven for assuming it was named after Hooge, Belgium, near Ypres, where there is a Canadian World War I military cemetery called Hooge Crater, but that is not the case.

REVISION: Thanks to a reader for pointing out that HOOGE was here November 9-13, 2019 on a dry run / trial trip. In fact its visit was covered with two posts on this blog (!!)
http://shipfax.blogspot.com/2019/11/seasonal-change.html  and
http://shipfax.blogspot.com/2019/11/saturday-business.html 


The new to Halifax ship for Ocean Network Express is ONE Matrix, another of the former MOL ships repainted and renamed by ONE.

ONE Matrix works its way inbound to Halifax with the crane rig Thialf in the background.

Built as MOL Matrix in 2010 by Mitsubishi, Kobe, the ship was renamed in March of this year when it received ONE's magenta paint job. A 78,316 gt, 79,312 dwt vessel it has a capacity of 6724 TEU, including 500 reefers. It is another of ONE's contribution to THE Alliance's service along with several fleet mates of the same class.

Atlantic Oak (forward) and Atlantic Fir (stern) are active escorts as the ship passes west of George's Island in Halifax harbour.

The ship's last port of call was Colombo, Sri Lanka on April 6 - a very long way between stops.

Its magenta paint is still fresh and has not yet been scuffed up by tugs (at least on the port side) but that will not be the case for long.

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Seasonal Change

After yesterday's wild winds and driving rain, it was colder, clearer air today. The fresh breeze did not hinder shipping, but it certainly felt more like late autumn as temperatures dipped below freezing.

Far from the equatorial headquarters of its owners, Unicorn Moon Pte Ltd of Singapore, Leopard Moon was discharging cargo at Imperial Oil's number 3 dock. Built in 2013 by SPP Shipbuilding in Tongyeong, South Korea, it is a 29,939 gt, 49,999 dwt product tanker. In a bit of a change from recent deliveries from Antwerp, this one appears to be from Baton Rouge, LA. Exxon Mobil operates a giant 503,000 bbl/day refinery in the port city located just over 200 miles up the Mississippi from the Gulf of Mexico.

Clearing for Rotterdam the Hooge made its way to sea early this afternoon, allowing for a clear photo  unencumbered by the fences in my November 9 report.

The crane set up is interesting, allowing a clear deck space between for four stacks of forty foot containers. On this trip access to number three hold was kept clear for discharging its nickel sulfide cargo. This is a unique trip for this ship as the Nirint Schedule shows the ships Geeske taking over this slot but with no call in Halifax until January.

Hooge is one of six sister ships in the Briese Schiffahrt fleet, all named for islands in the North Frisian group.

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Saturday business

It was typical Saturday business in Halifax, despite a light dusting of snow over night.

It was back to more typical sized ships as CMA CGM Norma arrived at Halterm and tied up at pier 41. Built in 2006 by Hyundai, Samho, it is a 107,711 gt, 113,999 dwt vessel with a capacity of 9415 TEU, including 700 reefers.

Maersk Patras tied up at pier 42. It is a regular on the five ship rotation usuallly calling on Saturday  from Montreal.

It was a different ship for Nirint's service from Cuba at pier 31. Hooge flies the Gibraltar flag while sailing in the Briese fleet.

Dating from 2006 when it was built by Shandong Weihai, the 15633 gt, 16,986 dwt ship has a capacity of 1306 TEU (870 if loaded to 14 tonnes) and has a pair of 45 tonne cranes. Both cranes were working today to unload bagged nickel cargo. (I would not have taken a picture through so many fences if it had not been a first time caller.)

The PCTC Morning Crystal managed to squeeze in at the adjacent pier 27 to unload RoRo cargo.

With a capacity of 6,215 cars, the ship can also carry a variety of wheeled cargo, some of which will be offloaded at pier 27. Built in 2011 by Imabarai Zosen in Marugame, the ship measures 59,524 gt, 18,918 dwt.

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