Current Events

 There were some notable events in the harbour today (March 17)  - some involving ships.

It was a return visit by CMA CGM Alexander von Humboldt that triggered the pun in the title. [Puns are an hereditary affliction for which I cannot but apologize.] The huge current off the west coast of South America is named for the scientific explorer (1769-1859) as are several geographical features, areas, and towns around the world. In fact von Humboldt is reputed to be the first to recognize human induced climate change (in 1800 to 1831) but who was listening?

When the ship was first here December 27, 2021 I noted that its 16,020 TEU capacity put it in the running for largest ship to call in Halifax. CMA CGM's Explorer class of ships are all the "same size" but CMA CGM Marco Polo comes out slightly larger in the measurements game: CMA CGM, biggest

No matter which ship is the largest in the class, they are all impressive.

Also a large ship, relatively speaking, but nowhere near as large is Oceanex's 26,786 gt Oceanex Connaigra back in Halifax on its alternate week sailings to Newfoundland. With fleetmate Oceanex Avalon, the ship is filling in for the Oceanex Sanderling which is in an extended refit in Amsterdam.

Oceanex Connaigra crosses the harbour late this afternoon, moving from PSA Halifax to Autoport. It has a large stern ramp for RoRo cargo.

The Connaigra and Avalon each usually run weekly from Montreal to St.John's, but have been doing so only on alternate weeks since the Sanderling left in late December. Its return is expected in mid-June. In the meantime only the Connaigra has RoRo capability.

While waiting to see the Oceanex Connaigra I took a shot of Irving Oil's Woodside terminal, where the familiar East Coast was off loading its latest cargo of refined products.

Passing alongside the tanker and on its way to Autoport, was the small tug Roseway. The tug is used at both the Woodside jetty and at Autoport to run lines ashore or to a mooring buoy.

 

 Also passing was the duty pilot boat Captain E.T. Rogers. Built in 2012 by Abco Industries in Lunenburg, NS, it was originally named Chebucto Pilot, but was renamed when it was transferred to Saint John, NB in 2017. However it has been back in Halifax for some time.

 

In the background at the C.O.V.E. dock, the Coriolis II is in winter layup.

 

There are signs of spring in the air. Yesterday's snow fall has almost completely melted and I spotted a loon for the first time this year.

 

 

Although they are known to winter over in Halifax harbour, eiders have not been seen much in the area of Black Rock Beach this year, until this one this morning:

At Pier 9C the multi-purpose cargo ship Franbo Lohas is installing fibreopotic cable racks.

The ship was built in 2016 by Honda, Saiki as the Thorco Lohas, one of several ships of the same class. With portable pontoon type tween decks and a pair of 50 tonne capacity cranes, it is a particularly versatile ship of 13,110 gt, 16,966 dwt. 

In fact some of its sister ships have also been in Halifax for the same type of work. 

Thorco Liva, Logic (above), Logos and Luna and other members of the Thorco fleet have called in Halifax.

The ships must be particularly well suited for transporting fibreoptic cable. In Halifax partially prefabricated racks are loaded aboard and welded in place, and the ships sail for Newington, NH to load the cable directly from the manufacturing plant. Neither the ships, nor the cable racks are ever seen again in Halifax, as they are dispatched to sites around the world.

The ship was acquired last year and renamed by the Fanbo Lines Corp of Taiwan. The company is a fast growing one that also has bulk carriers which it is converting to carry containers.

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Taking Turns at Fairview Cove

 As Hyundai Faith was finishing up cargo work this morning March 15 at Fairview Cove the NYK Demeter was inbound from sea to to take its place.

Tugs are preparing to make up to the 8566 TEU Hyundai Faith at Fairivew Cove.

Hyundai Faith arrived yesterday March 14 [see previous post] westbound, on THE Alliance's EC5 service. (stated port rotation is: Laem Chabang, Cai Mep, Singapore, Colombo, Halifax, New York, Savannah, Jacksonville, Norfolk, Halifax, Jebel Ali, Singapore, Laem Chabang = 84 days) However the line is skipping eastbound Halfax calls on this service.

NYK Demeter is eastbound on THE Alliance's AL5 service (Southampton, Le Havre, Rotterdam, Hamburg, Antwerp, Halifax, Port Everglades, Cartagena, Panama, Los Angeles, Oakland, Seattle, Vancouver, Oakland, Los Angeles, Panama, Cartagena, Caucedo, Halifax, Southampton = 77 days.)

NYK Demeter passes Halifax Shipyard where the third RCN Arctic Offshore Patrol Vessel is fitting out. To be named Max Bernays, it was launched in October 2021.

NYK Demeter was built in 2007 by Hyundai, Ulsan, and is a 55,487 gt, 65,965 DWT ship with a capacity of 4922 TEU.

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Hyundai Faith - a tight squeeze

 One of the regular callers on THE Alliance's EC5 service is the Hyundai Faith. It's arrival today March 14 is its fourth visit since joining the rotation in June 2021. It is a big ship for the Narrows and is always an impressive sight whether coming or going.

In the Narrows northbound the ship has one tug on each side and one aft- Atlantic Oak to port, Atlantic Fir to starboard and Atlantic Beaver astern.

Tugs keep the ship in line for the bridges, then turn the ship, once it reaches Bedford Basin, to back in to the Fairview Cove container terminal.

The ship was built by Hyundai Samho in 2008 and is a 94,511 gt, 98,967 dwt vessel with a capacity of 8566 TEU.

Owners HMM (formerly Hyundai Merchant Marine) were orginally refused full membership in THE Alliance until they resolved their finanace crisis. The Korea Development Bank stepped in and bailed out the company in 2016. It had always been their intention to sell the renamed HMM and there is now speculation that a sale may be iminent.

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Riding it out

 With another wind storm sweeping through Atlantic Canada, ships were riding it out in various places around the region. 

Chedabucto Bay - to the east of the Strait of Canso - saw the unsual sight of two ships with similar names. The bulk carrier Algoma Integrity anchored not far from the cable ship IT Integrity, both familiar Halifax callers. A third ship from Halifax, Nolhan Ava, en route to Argentia and St-Pierre et Miquelon on its weekly service also sheltered nearby.

For its arrival in Halifax March 10 the Nolhan Ava had calm conditions.

High winds forced other ships to leave their berths for more secure moorings. Among them was the Canadian Navy's chartered supply ship Asterix . On Friday March 11 it was tied up at Irving Oil's Woodside terminal for one of its periodic refills but returned to HMC Dockyard on Saturday March 12. It will move back to Woodside when conditions improve.

Asterix tied up at Irving Oil's Woodside dock, but next door neighbour Imperial Oil's tank dominates the lamdscape with its label facing Halifax. The red and white checkered tank is part of the Shearwater military base.

Ferry services on the Bay of Funday and Cabot Strait were suspended due to high winds, but fortunately two troubled ships had reached port safely. The container ship MSC Kim arrived in Sydney Friday March 11 in tow of the Atlantic Kingfisher with the tug Atlantic Spruce as tethered escort and CCGS Jean Goodwill standing by. It lost power in the Gulf of St.Lawrence on March 7.

Meanwhile in Newfoundland the 180,000 dwt bulk carrier Comanche was brought to anchor in Placentia Bay March 12 by local tugs. The ship lost power after bunkering at Come by Chance on a trip from Sept-Iles to Asia (via Suez) with a cargo of iron ore. The supply tug Maersk Clipper was mobilized from layup to assist. CCGS Terry Fox was also nearby.

In Halifax harbour, the Canadian product tanker Algoterra went to anchor in Bedford Basin on arrival March 12. Its eventual destination is Imperial Oil, but the berth there is not safe in these high winds.

 

 

Algoterra first arrived in Halifax April 14, 2019 after it was purchased from Knutsen Product Tankers. Built in 2010 by Jiangnan, Shanghai as Louise Knutsen it carried the name Louise K for the delivery trip from Amsterdam. It was registered in Halifax April 15, 2019.

Algoterra is a 11,889 gt, 16,512 dwt ice class product tnaker. It was in winter layup in Montreal from December 12, 2020 and sailed March 7 to Lévis, QC. There it loaded March 8 and 9 and sailed for Halifax. Recent world events may have disrupted normal supply chains and brought the ship back into service. Imperial Oil does not usually acquire product from its competitor refinery.

Recent tanker acquistions by Algoma have kept the paint schemes of the previous owners and may not appear in Algoma blue until their next scheduled drydocking. Algoterra still wears the orange hull of Knutsen ships, but does carry the Algoma "Bear Spot" funnel mark.

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MSC Kim - end of chapter one

 The container ship MSC Kim sailed from Halifax in the late evening of March 5, bound for Montreal. It had been at PSA Halifax for a few hours to decant some cargo to reduce the ship's draft to meet St.Lawrence River restrictions. It is regular practice of Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) ships to call in Halifax en route to or from Montreal to off load from or top up to ocean draft. This visit was no different, see Shipfax March 5

The ship was making its way across the Gulf of St.Lawrence in the early hours of March 7 when it had a main engine breakdown 40 nautical miles south of Anticosti Island and 66 nautical miles east of Percé. The ship began to drift in high winds and by today (March 10) it was reported to be 50 nautical miles off Port au Port, NL, still without the use of its main engine.

In the meantime, the ship's owners scrambled to develop a salvage plan. Details have not been released as the whether this was a Lloyd's Open Form (No Cure No Pay) salvage contract, or a more basic towing contract. However in view of the potential of the situation, the Canadian Coast Guard would have the responsibility to oversee and grant approval for any operation.

The CCGS Terry Fox icebreaker was the nearest large CCG asset and it was dispatched to Stephenville, NL where Atlantic Towing Ltd had some powerful tugs laid up. ATL rounded up a crew and quickly mobilized the 16,000 hp anchor handling tug/supplier Atlantic Kingfisher from cold layup. According to reports the Terry Fox provided fuel to the tug then broke out the ice in the bay to allow the tug to sail. It was able to reach the ship and rig a tow in matter of a few hours.

Latest reports on the evening of March 10 have tug and tow due in Sydney harbour in the early afternoon of March 11. CCGS Terry Fox will likely be escorting the pair. The tug Atlantic Spruce out of Saint John, which had just towed the CCGS Kopit Hopson 1752 from Shelburne to Halifax, was also sent on to Sydney to assist.

The tug Atlantic Kingfisher was built by Halifax Shipyard in 2002 and was named for the avian emblem of the old City of Halifax which also appears in the middle of the coat of arms and flag of the Halifax Regional Municipality (formed in 1996). (It is apparently a symbol of industry.)

 Ironically, at 23,200 bhp, the Terry Fox is one of the most powerful tugs ever built in Canada, but as a CCG ship it is not equipped or mandated to tow except in dire emergency. Civilian craft are expected to make commercial arrangments for towing. Canada operates no Emergency Towing Vessels (ETVs) on Canada's east coast. A sister ship of Atlantic Kingfisher, the Atlantic Eagle and a similar vessel Atlantic Raven, are contracted as ETVs on the west coast. That controversial contract has been extended but expires in Novemeber of this year (2022.)

CCGS Terry Fox, one of Canada's two big icebreakers, was built as a tug supplier.

Kopit Hopson 1752 arrives in Halifax

 The CCGS Kopit Hopson 1752 arrived in Halifax this morning, March 10, in tow of the tug Atlantic Spruce.  The ship had nearly completed a Vessel Life Extension process at Shelburne Shipyard, however the work will now be finished in Halifax. Irving Shipbuilding Inc (ISI) was awarded the contract for the refit and assigned the project to its Shelburne yard, but today ISI announced that they will be selling the Shelburne operation to Mersey Seafoods of Liverpool, NS.

CCGS Kopit Hopson 1752 arrives in tow of the Atlantic Spruce (left) and is met by another tug (likely Atlantic Bear). They shepherded the dead ship to the IEL dock in Dartmouth.

The extensive refit of the ship, which included replacement of its cargo derrick with a crane, was accompanied by a renaming. The ship was built by Marine Industries Ltd of Sorel-Tracy, QC in 1981 as Edward Cornwallis. It was the second CCG ship to carry the name of the founder of Halifax. However in recent years the namesake has been brought into disrepute (to put it politely) for his treatment of the first nations population of Nova Scotia. Political pressure forced the CCG to rename the ship, in consultation with the Mi'kmaq people. I have written extensively on this in prior posts: Kopit Hopson 1762 and here

It was not possible to get a close look at the ship on its arrival, but the new crane changes the ship's profile considerably.

 The original derrick has been removed and replaced by a crane, radically changing the ship's profile. Cranes have proven to be quite capable of handling the buoys that the CCG ships tend in this region.

The Kopit Hopson 1752 will look more like its fleet mate the CCGS Sir William Alexander, but the cranes are different. Along with several other similar CCG ships it is considered to be a member of the Martha L. Black class of light icebreaker / navaids ships.

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Morning, Afternoon and Evening

With longer days, and with Daylight Saving Time iminent, the opportunities for ship photos increase almost daily. Today, March 10, the arrival and departure times and the sun cooperated, permitting photos of several interesting ships.

The most interesting arrival is actually covered in a separate post - see Kopit Hopson 1752

An unusual mid-morning arrival for Autoport was the Morning Calypso a Eukor car carrier working on the Wallenius Wilhelmsen transatlantic service.

Once inside Maugher's Beach, tugs take charge of the ship to assist it round  Macnab's Island to Autoport.

 

Built in 2013 by Imabari Zosen in Marugame, Japan, the 59,590 gt, 18,713 dwt ship has a capacity of 6142 car equivalent units (CEU). Once it had completed loading the ship made a 1700 hrs (AST) departure time and there was still enough light to catch it in roughly the same position after it rounded Ives Knoll and was outbound for New York.

 

 Another caller was the Seamax New Haven on MSC's Indus 2 route from Northwest India to the US east coast.  It arrived early yesterday, March 9 and tied up at PSA Halfax, and had a pilot order to sail at 1730 hrs today. With the usual routine of raising cranes, making fast tugs and letting go lines, it was after 1800 hrs when the ship was clear for a photo.

 

 An unsual charter for MSC (possibly a short term or spot charter, because the ship does not carry an MSC name), the ship is owned by Tranship LLC and under the commercial management of Seamax Capital Management LLC of Stamford, CT. The company manages a closed private equity investment fund and currently runs twelve (older) post-Panamax container ships totaling more than 100,000 TEU. All are named for cities in Connecticut, which has become the "haven" for New York shipping companies.

 

The Seamax New Haven was built in 2005 by Samsung, Koje as Ever Charming for Reederei NSB [Niederelbe] on charter to Evergreen Marine Corp of Taiwan. It is a 90,449 gt, 100,887 dwt vessel with a capacity of 8084 TEU including 700 reefers. It was acquired by Seamax and renamed in 2017. As with many US owned ships it is registered in the Marshall Islands. Technical management is entrusted to Fleet Ship Management Pte Ltd of Hong Kong.

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