On the waterfront: Phosphate carrier will set upper harbour record

Another interesting assortment of newcomers started last week with the arrival of the Italian-built container ship MSC Rafaela. But this week the focus is on four vessels built in China.

They are the container ships Balthasar Schulte and Maersk Jakobstad, Pacific Legend, to load scrap metal at Dunedin, and Global Frontier, to discharge phosphate from Morocco. This vessel will also create a new gross tonnage record for the upper harbour.

Since MSC made its debut here on March 7, 2006, all Panama-flag vessels owned by the company comprised second-hand tonnage. MSC Rafaela, on the other hand, was the second new ship built for the company.

The first was MSC Alexa.

They were ordered from the Ancona yard of Italy's state-owned Fincantieri shipbuilding group, and were completed in June and September 1996.

Last week's visitor is a 244.20m long, 42,307gt, 3300 TEU vessel designed for a service speed of 22.5 knots.

Balthasar Schulte is a new 40,542gt, 4256 TEU, having an overall length of 261.06m and a maximum speed of 24.4 knots.

The vessel flies the Liberian flag and is one of the latest ships to join the 40-strong container ship fleet of Reederei Thomas Schulte GmbH, of Hamburg.

It is also one of several sister ships ordered by this concern from the Jiangsu Yangzijiang shipyard at Jiangsu, where construction time does not appear to break any records.

The ship was laid down on December 25, 2008, launched before January 1, 2011, and was delivered only this year, on February 16.

The ship then sailed direct to New Zealand, on charter to Hamburg-Sud, for deployment in its Trident service.

It replaced the chartered Cap Beaufort in this service. Containers from this vessel, seen here for the last time on February 24, were transhipped from Napier by the new vessel.

Maersk Jakobstad (build name Arica) entered service during December 2007. The ship was the second of eight 32,901gt, 2750 TEU sister ships built by the Zhejiang Yangfan yard for NSC Schiffs, of Hamburg.

It joins Algarrobo and Angeles, two of the later sisters that have been here, on the Tanjung Pelepas run.

Pacific Legend is a 20,767gt, 32,701dwt handy-size bulk/lumber type, registered at Panama to the ownership of the Rubato Line SA, and managed by Doriko Ltd, both of Seoul.

This 13.7-knot vessel was launched on January 16, 2010 and delivered a few months later on July 23, by the Nanjing Domze yard at Nanjing.

Global Frontier flies the same flag and is also linked to South Korean interests, the owners being the Namco No 25 Shipping Company of Seoul.

But it was built in China by South Korea's STX group's STX Dalian Shipbuilding Company, which was established at Chjanghxing Island, Dalian, on March 30, 2007.

The 57,298dwt, 190m long bulk carrier was laid down on June 25, 2009. It was launched on June 1, 2010, and delivered on August 28, 2010.

At 33,226gt the ship will be the largest vessel to navigate the Victoria Channel. The ship snatches the record from the 32,817gt Tenor which berthed at Ravensbourne on September 17, 2010.

Larger vessels of over 30,000gt have been visiting the upper harbour since May 2001. Global Frontier will bring the total up to 36, 20 bulk carriers and 16 tankers.

 

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