Familiar vessels slip under radar

Time goes by and probably not a lot of attention is given by residents to vessels that have become very familiar to this harbour over the years.

Those I have in mind are Port Otago's two locally built tugs, Rangi and Karetai, and the split-hopper suction dredge, New Era.

Age, of course, is catching up with the trio, but how many, offhand, remember when they were built? Both tugs were built upside down on the foreshore in Dunedin, while the dredge was prefabricated beside the former Sims Engineering shipyard at Boiler Point, Port Chalmers.

Rangi was launched on June 18, 1974, and was completed in August, 1974.

Karetai entered the water on July 12, 1975, and was completed in October, 1975. Launched on December 20, 1984, New Era was accepted into service during April, 1985.

All three were launched sideways into the water.

The two tugs were built in the twilight years of conventional cargo liner services.


Containerisation was already making steady inroads into services throughout the world and Port Chalmers did not have a container crane.

Today, there are four there, with the oldest now earmarked for demolition.

And since Rangi and Karetai were commissioned, the port has hosted visits by larger ships, particularly cruise ships and container vessels.

However, both 30-year-plus tugs have outlived a number of ships built after them, such as the second-generation container ships built in 1977-78, that were scrapped in 2002.

Then there are the likes of the two bulk-cement carriers, Wesport, built in 1976, and Milburn Carrier II, dating from 1987.

Has the former attracted much attention on its 158 visits, or the latter on its tally of 182 calls? Last week, another new tanker entered service under the New Zealand flag.

Named Awanuia, the vessel arrived at Auckland under the Maltese flag on August 20, but was re-registered at Auckland on September 1.

Built at the Yardimci yard at Tuzla, Turkey, Awanuia is an 80m-long, 3747gt, 3900dwt, double-hull vessel.

It will be operated by Seafuels, a joint venture between Ports of Auckland and PB Sea Tow (part of the Pacific Basin Shipping group).

The new vessel is a state-of-the-art bunker tanker that will transport marine fuels from Marsden Point to Auckland.

The third log ship to call here in the past nine days, the brand new Zeus I, berthed on Saturday evening and departs tonight.

Owned by the Falcon Shipping Company and registered at Panama, it is a 13.8-knot, 16,833gt, 27,000dwt vessel.

Built in China by the Zhenjiang Zhenghe Shipbuilding Company, the ship was only completed on June 10.

However, it had been launched in late October 2008, under the name Elliot Aconcagua.

First-time Malaysian-flag visitor Alam Senang, in port a few days earlier, joined the fleet operated by Pacific Ship Managers, of Port Klang, in 1993.

The handily sized 17,056gt, 28,098dwt, a product of the Hitachi Zosen yard at Innoshima, entered service in April 1984 as Golden Alliance, then traded as Atlantic from 1988.

Sister ship Alam Sempurna visited Ravensbourne last November.

Hanjin Brisbane, which loaded logs and sailed for Shanghai at the end of last month, made its only other visit in February 2008.

On that occasion, the vessel arrived directly from Zhenjiang to discharge cement at Port Chalmers and Dunedin.

The 16,270gt vessel has been in service with the Hanjin Shipping Company's fleet since April 1997.

Built at Ulsan, South Korea, by Hanjin Heavy Industries, it is one of a class of 10 built there from 1995-97.

Seven of the series have now called here.

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