Two vessels make first appearances

This week I take a look at two maiden callers, Challenge Premier and Cap Capricorn, and the sale of two former visitors, Maersk Barcelona and TNT Alltrans.

Japan's NYK group has been represented here over the years by various types of vessels, but it is only since November 2005 that tankers from its fleet have been appearing here, and Challenge Premier is now the third since then.

Unlike the earlier, Panama-flag visitors Challenge Passage and Challenge Pioneer, the newcomer is owned by NYK Bulkship Asia Pte Ltd and flies the flag of Singapore.

The 28,059gt, 45,897dwt was delivered from the Shin Kurushima Dockyard Company yard at Onishi, on August 12, 2005.

Over the past two months there has been a succession of the 2824TEU Hyundai-Mipo series vessels making their first visits. Cap Capricorn will be the sixth of these 28,616gt, Liberian-flag vessels chartered for Hamburg-Sud's European service.

Built as Valentina Schulte for Thomas Schulte, of Hamburg, the ship was laid down on October 26, 2006, launched on January 6, and delivered on February 22, 2007.

The ship revives the name of Columbus Capricorn,one of five similar "C" class vessels chartered by Hamburg-Sud for Columbus Line service in the 1970s.

Built for Hamburg interests by Orenstein and Koppel A.G., the ship was launched at Lubeck in 1973 as Rienzi, but completed as Columbus Capricorn.

The vessel called here on May 5, 1977, and August 9, 1979, not long before the charter ended. Since then it has had 12 changes of name and is still in service, having operated for Jakarta owners since 2001 as Hilir Mas. Maersk Barcelona, reported sold to Indian shipbreakers "as is" for nearly $US 10.6 million, is the hacked about A-class vessel that inaugurated the Maersk container ship link here on February 20, 1998.

It was then trading as Axel Maersk.

After its eighth visit on September 4, 1998, the ship was sold and chartered back as the Nassau-registered Maersk Barcelona.

It made a further nine calls under that name between October 2, 1998, and May 19, 1999.

As Axel Maersk, the ship was completed by Blohm and Voss, Hamburg, in May, 1976, a 26,939gt vessel with an overall length of 210.75m.

These figures changed to 29,903gt and 224.95m when the ship was lengthened in 1978.

Five years later, members of this class were lengthened in Japan by Hitachi Zosen, and also converted from steam turbine to diesel propulsion.

Axel Maersk returned to service as a 33,400gt, 239.28m long vessel.

But in lengthening, these vessels' forward and aft sections became well and truly mixed up. And in the case of Axel Maersk, its forward section was joined to the aft section of Anna Maersk in December, 1975.

Greek interests are reported to have bought the self-unloading alumina carrier Alltrans from McIlwraith McEachern Holdings, of Sydney.

Until 1994, the 27.662gt, 35,218 dwt vessel traded as TNT Alltrans.

It was completed at Innoshima by Hitachi Zosen in March, 1983.

The only one of its type to call here, it arrived at Port Chalmers, from Australia, on June 4, 1983.

The ship came here for a crew change, having been delayed for three weeks outside Bluff through a manning dispute.

It sailed the following day for Tiwai Point.

 

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