Over recent years the size of vessels operating between the UK and the near continent has increased. This, together with the fact that many smaller vessels have been sold or scrapped after reaching the end of their lives, has posed…
Before containerisation, vessels were equipped with cargo-handling cranes to load and discharge their cargoes. As dock cranes or mobile cranes became more widespread, so the traditional gear became obsolete. Many vessels with the old equipment that had traded in the…
The container shipping market continues to show signs of growth after a couple of difficult years. The 20 largest container lines expanded their fleet capacity by 14 per cent in 2010, with the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) leading the way.…
Singapore’s Keppel Shipyard has completed conversion of the former car/container ship Merlion Ace into the livestock carrier Ghena for Merlion Ace Compania Naviera SA, an affiliate of Jordan’s Hijazi & Ghosheh Company. The 190m by 32.2m vessel, powered by a…
Some time ago the Geest North Sea Service was incorporated into services run by Samskip. One vessel that traded on the route was Geest Trader (1995/2,899gt). Owned by Limburg of Schuelp, Germany, she is operated by G. Kopping Reederei Gmbh,…
Refrigerator ships have long been some of the most graceful ships at sea, but their future is in doubt as container carriers continue to nibble away at their base cargo of fresh fruit and produce. Container lines, such as Denmark’s…
Three owners have ordered open-hatch ships recently, a vessel type developed in the 1960s for handling forest products as well as containers, but now seeing wider employment. Saga Shipholding of Norway, a subsidiary of Japan’s NYK, has ordered a series…
Mid-November 2010 saw the winter start to take its toll on coastal shipping. Arklow Raider was leaving the Irish port of Drogheda on 16 November with a cargo of cement for Swansea when she ran aground at the mouth of…
The Chinese 20,763gt cargo ship Cleantec (2009) and the German container ship Frisia Rotterdam (2004/25,406gt) collided in the North Sea at the north-western tip of Denmark. The Hong Kong-flagged vessel Cleantec was carrying 10,000 tons of fertiliser and 30,000 tons…
Last year will go down as a bad one for the car carrier shipping sector. Vessels were either laid up or sold to reduce operations. However, the year ended with signs of improvement, although car carriers were still finding their…