By Karen Robes Meeks
In an effort to bolster services, one of Matson Navigation Company, Inc.’s three barges serving Hawaii's neighbor island ports will be replaced with a newer, larger one, the company. announced January 2.
Built in 2012 by Gunderson Marine as a Deck Cargo Barge, the container barge Columbia – now called Mauna Loa for the barge it replaced – is 360 feet long, 100 feet wide and is capable of carrying 500 TEUs. That’s 12 feet longer and 40 feet wider than the former Mauna Loa barge.
The new barge is designed to be faster, more fuel efficient and able to carry a diverse mix of cargo.
This is the latest upgrade made by Matson, which is heavily investing in its Hawaii service. The firm recently bought three new gantry cranes and enhanced three existing cranes – part of a $60 million project to modernize its Sand Island terminal in Honolulu Harbor to get ready for next year’s arrival of larger containerships.