Vancouver Shipyards Shortlisted for Ferry Upgrades

By Mark Edward Nero

BC Ferries, the government-contracted service provider of ferry service along coastal British Columbia, said July 9 that it has shortlisted three shipyards, including one in British Columbia, for its Spirit-class vessels’ midlife upgrades, including conversion to dual fuel so they can operate on liquefied natural gas.

Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards, Remontowa SA of Poland and Fincantieri of Italy were shortlisted from the five shipyards that responded to BC Ferries' request-for-proposals process. More than 20 national and international shipyards expressed interest in the initial stages of the procurement process.

BC Ferries said it would negotiate with the three proponents over the next three to five months to select the final bidder.

Originally, BC Ferries was planning the midlife upgrade (MLU) and LNG conversion for the Spirit of Vancouver Island to occur in the fall of 2016 through the spring of 2017 and that of the Spirit of British Columbia the following year.

However, BC Ferries says it is deferring the project for a year to ensure sufficient equipment procurement lead times, detailed engineering and necessary regulatory approvals, and perform additional financial due diligence. The one-year deferral is expected to allow BC Ferries to obtain even more technical clarity and commercial certainty, while regaining program schedule contingency.

“Due to the complexity of this major project, we need more time for engineering design to ensure we meet our own high standards for delivering major capital projects on time and on budget,” BC Ferries’ vice president of engineering, Mark Wilson, explained.

BC Ferries plans for the Spirit of British Columbia to be the first ship through the MLU and LNG conversion process and commence actual conversion from the fall of 2017 through the spring of 2018. The Spirit of Vancouver Island is expected to follow from the fall of 2018 through the spring of 2019.

BC Ferries said it expects to award a contract for the Spirit-class midlife upgrades and conversions to the successful bidder by late fall of this year.

First Female American Cruise Ship Capt. Named

By Mark Edward Nero

For the first time in the cruise industry, an American female will take the helm of a mega-ton cruise ship later this year.

Beginning in August, San Francisco native Kate McCue, 37, will command Celebrity Summit – a 91,000-ton, 965-foot ship in the Celebrity Cruises fleet, sailing between the eastern United States and Bermuda. As Captain, she’ll be responsible for the safe navigation of the ship and the onboard experience of its 2,158 guests and 952 crewmembers.

Celebrity Cruises, which operates a fleet of 10 ships, says it promoted McCue to captain based on her 15 years of successful experience and leadership in the maritime industry. During her tenure, McCue has managed ship logistics while sailing worldwide itineraries, including the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, Europe, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean and along the Panama Canal.

Kate McCue's appointment follows that of Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, who was named President and CEO of Celebrity Cruises in December 2014.

“Of all the great moments throughout my career, this is at the top of my list,” Lutoff-Perlo said. “I am both honored that Kate accepted this position, and proud of the way our team continues to transform the way people think about Celebrity, and about cruising in general.”

A graduate of California State University's California Maritime Academy, Captain McCue has held a variety of roles in the maritime industry, beginning as a cadet and deck officer, then working through a series of successively more responsible positions to her most recent role as Master Mariner with Royal Caribbean International.

“Becoming the first female American captain of a cruise ship has been a goal of mine for as long as I can remember,” McCue said in a statement. “The honor is amplified by being the first at a company like Celebrity Cruises.”

Four West Coast Ports Receive Environmental Awards

By Mark Edward Nero

The environmental sustainability commitments of the Los Angeles, Long Beach, Seattle and Tacoma seaports have earned them the Inbound Logistics Green Supply Chain Partner honors.

The Puget Sound and San Pedro Bay facilities were four of seven US ports honored. Seattle and Tacoma were recognized for their efforts to reduce seaport-related emissions through the comprehensive Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy program, as well as restoring habitat and find solutions to manage stormwater runoff.

LA and Long Beach were honored for their joint Clean Air Action Plan and Clean Trucks Program, which they formulated in 2006 to reduce emissions. The ports have committed to reducing diesel particulate emissions, NOx, and SOx by double digits in the coming years.

Trade magazine Inbound Logistics honored 75 organizations from various trade sectors this year, including ports, truckers, railroads, shipping lines, freight forwarders and air cargo carriers. Other honorees included Matson Navigation, Maersk Line and Union Pacific.

“The G75 list represents 75 visionaries who have demonstrated a long-standing history of driving efficiencies in their customers’ operations and an internal commitment to be as lean and green as possible,” Inbound Logistics editor Felecia Stratton said.

The complete list of award recipients is listed in the magazine's June issue.

Real Estate Attorney Named to Oakland Port Board

By Mark Edward Nero

Real estate attorney Joan Story is set to join the Port of Oakland Board of Port Commissioners on July 11 after being appointed this week by the Oakland City Council.

The City Council on July 7 appointed Story, a partner in the international law firm of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton, to a four-year term. During the same meeting, the Council also reappointed incumbent Port Commissioner Cestra “Ces” Butner to an additional term.

“We are delighted that Joan Story is joining the Board of Port Commissioners to strengthen our deliberations and policymaking with her skill and experience,” Board President Alan Yee said in a prepared statement. “We’re also grateful that Ces Butner will continue to provide us with his vision and leadership.”

Story has over 35 years of experience representing developers, foreign and institutional investors and corporate users of commercial real estate. She graduated from Occidental College and also received a Master’s in Political Science from UCLA and a law degree from the University of California at Davis. She’s also a former member of The Trust for Public Land California Advisory Board.

“It’s a privilege to join the Board of Port Commissioners,” Story said. “The port is vital to the economic health of the East Bay and I’m eager to help guide its future with my new colleagues.”

“I’m excited by the opportunity to continue supporting the Port and the people of Oakland,” said Butner, a local business owner and Oakland resident since 1981. “And I look forward to working with Joan Story – her expertise in real estate and land use planning will be critical in our future decision-making.”

Port St. John Awarded Infrastructure Funding

By Mark Edward Nero

The Canadian government has awarded $68.3 million in federal funding for a project to modernize Port Saint John’s Westside terminals under the National Infrastructure Component of the New Building Canada Fund, it was announced July 8.

The $205 million project involves improving and consolidating the Rodney and Navy Island terminals to allow the port to accommodate larger vessels. New operational systems and technology are also planned for installation to enhance cargo-handling capabilities.

The project covers a 60-acre area: 25 acres are slated be transformed into container storage, 10 acres into a multipurpose yard, with the rest used for terminal access roads, stevedoring operations, trans-loading and cargo-consolidation warehouses and lay-down areas for break-bulk and project cargoes.

The main channel at the port is also being deepened from 8.4 meters (27.5 feet) to 10 meters (32.8 feet) as part of the project.

Port Saint John is a year-round, deepwater port that handles an average of 28 million tons of diverse cargo annually.

The funding is conditional on the project meeting applicable federal eligibility requirements.

This is the first announcement under the National Infrastructure Component of the New Building Canada Fund in New Brunswick. This component is providing $4 billion in financial support for projects with far reaching benefits for Canadians. It supports infrastructure of national significance that has a strong impact on Canada’s competitiveness, productivity and economic well-being.

Maersk Orders Nine 14,000-TEU Vessels

By Mark Edward Nero

Maersk Line on July 8 signed a new building contract with Hyundai Heavy Industries for nine vessels with a capacity of 14,000 TEUs each. The agreement includes an option for up to eight additional vessels.

The vessels will have a length of 353 meters (1,158 feet).

The contract, which has a value of $1.1 billion, was signed by HHI Chief Operating Officer Sam H. Ka and Maersk Line COO Søren Toft during a ceremony at Maersk Line’s Copenhagen headquarters.

This is the third new-building order in Maersk Line’s investment program, which was announced in September 2014. The order follows the seven 3,600 TEU feeder vessels and eleven 19,630 TEU Triple-E vessels announced earlier this year as part of Maersk Line’s $15 billion investment in new-buildings, retrofitting, containers and other equipment.

“I am very pleased about this order for which we have taken a new approach. The vessels will be designed to operate in and perform efficiently across many trades and not just designed for one specific trade. They will help us stay competitive and make our fleet more flexible and efficient,” Toft said.

The nine vessels are expected to join Maersk Line’s fleet in 2017 and sail under Singaporean flag.

Since 2002, HHI has delivered more than 50 container vessels to Maersk Line, including 22 WAFMAX (West Africa Maximum) vessels of 4,500 TEU, which were delivered in 2011-13.

Air Board Approves Ship Emissions Capturing System

By Mark Edward Nero

Clean Air Engineering-Maritime on July 1 said it has received California Air Resources Board approval for the first commercially ready ship emissions capturing system, called the Maritime Emissions Treatment System (METS).

The METS is mounted and deployed from a barge positioned alongside ships berthed at the Port of Los Angeles. The system is positioned over vessels’ smoke stacks and captures and treats more than 90 percent of particulate (PM), NOx, SO2 and related diesel pollutants emitted.

The Air Board testing, which began in 2014, included performance evaluations of the METS on five separate vessels for a minimum of 200 hours. CARB approved the system by executive order on June 26.

The proprietary treatment technology was developed in collaboration with Tri-Mer Corporation of Owosso, Mich., a supplier of catalytic ceramic filter systems. METS is the first CARB-approved alternative to plugging in to shore-side power – also called cold-ironing.

“The METS-1 will have an immediate, direct and positive impact on the communities surrounding the Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach,” CAEM President Nick Tonsich said. “In the long term, given the fact that there are so many ships in the world’s fleet without cold-ironing capability, the METS system could have a profound impact on the entire shipping industry and our global environment.”

The Port of Los Angeles has been a leader in development of technologies to control at-berth emissions. Currently, 24 berths at the Port of Los Angeles are equipped for shore power, the most of any port in the world. Using shore power while at berth eliminates upwards of a ton of NOx emissions per vessel per 24-hour period. Similar results have been demonstrated by the new METS alternative.

Partial funding for the METS project came from a $1.5 million grant from the Port of Los Angeles’s Technology Advancement Program (TAP) to TraPac, LLC, a Port of LA container terminal. TraPac contracted with CAEM to conduct research and develop the METS project. TraPac has entered into a service agreement for use of the METS-1 at TraPac on all vessels that are not capable of using an existing Alternative Marine Power (AMP) system. Provisions in the TAP grant make it possible for the Port of Los Angeles to receive repayment of the grant proceeds.