News

Celebrity Cruises will offer new and longer European voyages onboard the new Celebrity Apex when she launches in 2020. Passengers onboard the Edge Class ship will visit Greece, Turkey, Italy, Portugal, Spain and more when she launches next year.

Konecranes Port Services will retrofit electrification to a Model 2 Konecranes Gottwald Mobile Harbor crane in DP World’s Liège Container Terminal in Belgium, lowering the terminal’s local emissions and noise. Strategically located along the Meuse river in eastern Belgium, the Port of Liège is the third-largest river port in Europe, directly linked to both Antwerp and Rotterdam. The DP World Liège Container Terminal (DPW LCT) is the only trimodal terminal in Wallonia, operating four barges to Antwerp every week.

The world’s largest container ship MSC Gulsun arrived at container terminal DCT Gdańsk on Friday. During its stop, 11,000 containers will be reloaded, which means the largest regular container exchange in Europe. MSC Gulsun is the first ship in the world with a width of 24 rows of containers and a capacity of 23,756 TEU.

Customers and port stakeholders of Operadora Portuaria Centroamericana (OPC), the Honduran subsidiary of International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) operating Puerto Cortes, Central America 4’s (CA-4) largest port, can expect faster cargo movement in and around the terminal with OPC beefing up its partnership with Honduran authorities for improved and more efficient port services. OPC is working with the Honduran government and Puerto Cortés authorities to enhance the port’s competitiveness and better serve its customers in the four-nation CA-4, comprising Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua. Enhancements include simplified and faster port transactions, and the construction of critical road infrastructure the will improve cargo movement in the region. As part of efforts to expedite intra-regional trade, the Honduran Customs Agency (Dirección Adjunta de Rentas Aduaneras – DARA) has streamlined its systems for early clearance and dispatch of cargo, matching OPC’s already-efficient operations. Operating hours of customs authorities were likewise extended until 7 p.m., thus giving agents and brokers more time to process shipment.

The Port of Rotterdam Authority has reached an agreement with Sif Holding n.v. regarding the lease of 20 ha of port site and a 200-m stretch of deep-sea quay at Maasvlakte. Sif’s new lot lies adjacent to its existing port site, where the company already works on the assembly of foundations for offshore wind turbines, the company said in its release. Sif will be using the newly allocated site on behalf of clients active in the offshore wind power sector. The first project to be undertaken at the new site will be the logistics handling of all 94 monopiles (wind turbine foundations) destined for the offshore wind farm Borssele 1 + 2, commissioned by Deme Offshore.

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has concluded an agreement with long-term customer EUROGATE Tanger (EGT) in Morocco to upgrade four ZPMC ship-to-shore (STS) cranes, as part of the terminal’s expansion plans. With a quay length of 821 meters, a terminal area of 400,000 m2 and a water depth of up to 18 meters, the facility is well-equipped to handle the new generation of containerships. The terminal’s equipment fleet already includes several Kalmar machines, including rubber-tired gantry cranes (RTGs). Furthermore, Kalar will be responsible for the planning, engineering and execution of the entire project, which involves heightening the four STS cranes by 11 meters and extending the booms by six meters. The project with Kalmar will help the terminal serve mega-sized container vessels.

The Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company (ASCO) will launch a test voyage of a feeder vessel along the Black Sea container route Batumi-Constanta by September 20. The vessel will sail every 10 days (3 times a month). If cargo volumes increase, the growth in the number of vessels and the regularity of sailings on the line is also expected.

Global Ports Holdings (GPH) is to operate Prince George Wharf and related areas at Nassau Cruise Port in The Bahamas for the next 25 years. According to an agreement with the Government of The Bahamas, GPH has joined forces with the Bahamas Investment Fund and the Yes Foundation to create the Nassau Cruise Port Ltd. (NCP) consortium. GPH will use its global expertise and operating model to manage Nassau Cruise Port. “I am delighted that NCP has signed a port operation and lease agreement for Prince George Wharf at Nassau Cruise Port,” said Mehmet Kutman, chairman and co-founder of GPH.

Kudos Trucking Company has ordered two Konecranes Noell Rubber Tired Gantry (RTG) cranes and two Konecranes Gottwald Model 5 Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHCs) for their terminal in Davao City, the Philippines. Konecranes booked the order in June 2019.

The U.S.-China tariff Opens a New Window. spat has led to a reduction of ships coming in from China and a spike in other Asia countries, according to Mario Cordero, the executive director of the Port of Long Beach. “At least in the first six months of this year, there has been a change of 22% reduction from the China origin of the cargo,” he told FOX Business Cheryl Casone on “The Claman Countdown.” Officials at the port announced earlier this month that cargo volumes in July were down compared to the year before, seeing a 9.7% drop.

Istanbul’s Galataport, a megaproject expected to boost the city’s tourism with cruise ports and increase tourism revenues, is and slated to open in May 2020. Galataport is jointly being built by Turkey’s Doğuş Group and Bilgili Holding with an investment of $1.7 billion. It is dubbed one of the world’s largest coastal projects, aiming to become one of the top cruise destinations. In a press conference held yesterday in Istanbul, Doğuş Group Chairman Ferit Şahenk confirmed that the port has a capacity to welcome 25 million visitors per year, including 7 million foreigners. The estimated revenues from the increasing number of tourists will be around $1 billion. “The port also has two museums and a recreation area of 14,000 square meters to host culture and art events,” Şahenk added. The Doğuş Group chairman remarked that a “1.2-kilometer-long coast line, which has been closed to the public for 200 years, is now preparing to welcome its visitors.

Genting Hong Kong (GHK) has officially secured funding for the construction and post-delivery financing of Dream Cruises’ two new Global Class ships. KfW IPEX-Bank will supply US$2.9 billion, with backing from the Federal Republic of Germany, Finnish export credit agency Finnvera, and the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. At an overall cost of €3.1 billion (US$3.4 billion), the two new vessels are currently being built at GHK-owned shipyard MV Werften in Germany for the fast-growing Asian cruise market. “We are very appreciative of KfW IPEX-Bank, the bank consortium, the Federal Republic of Germany, the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Finnvera for supporting GHK in the financing of the Global Class ships,” said Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, chief executive of Genting Hong Kong.

Qatar has established an investment partnership with Somalia to build a new port in the latter's country. The Ministry of Transport and Communications in Qatar said that the partnership between Qatar Ports Management Company (Mwani) and Somalia will see the construction of the Hobyo Port in the Mudug region of central Somalia. Hobyo Port is expected to bring multiple economic benefits for Somalia. The port could create new business opportunities for the country by bolstering the commercial relationship with new markets in Africa and providing access to global markets, in addition to providing maritime services to vast areas in Somalia. The Hobyo Port is in proximity to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, one of the world’s most important sea crossing points. Hobyo is also important due to its location in the Mudug region, which links the south and north of the country.

Gautam Adani is looking to expand his ports empire by closing in on buying a 65-70 per cent stake in Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd, the entity promoted by Hyderabad-based CVR Group to run a private deep-water port at Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh’s Nellore district. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), India’s biggest private port operator, is expected to pay more than ₹5,500 crore to buy the stake which will give it access to the country’s largest waterfront area (for a port) of 12.5 km and a transit storage area of 6,800 acres. It started operations in 2008. Currently, the port has a draft of 18.5 metres, a depth that can accommodate full-loaded Capesize vessel of 200,000-tonne capacity.

Fincantieri floated Silversea’s new ultra-luxury cruise ship, Silver Moon, out of the building dock at its yard in Ancona, Italy on 29 August. Representatives from Fincantieri and Silversea and other invited guests watched as the 596-guest ship touched water for the first time during a traditional coin ceremony. Fincantieri will now work with its partners to outfit the vessel’s interiors ahead of her sea trials and delivery in 2020. “Today, with the float out of Silver Moon, we draw ever-closer to achieving my father’s dream of a 12-ship fleet,” said Manfredi Lefebvre, Silversea’s executive chairman.

The Koper port placed 80th on this year’s list of 900 best connected container ports in the world, published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad). The port has been listed the highest among all Adriatic Sea container ports since the first such ranking in 2006. The first place went to the Shanghai port, while the port of Antwerp was the best in Europe, having been placed 6th in the world.

In July 2019 Konecranes received an order from Klaipeda Container Terminal (KCT) in Lithuania for two Ship-to-Shore (STS) cranes, which will be delivered in Q1 2021. The order follows an earlier agreement for a Konecranes Gottwald Model 5 Mobile Harbor Crane, which was delivered in June 2019.

Active construction is currently underway in the D-terminal of the Port of Tallinn being built by Nordecon, in order to open the first phase of construction of the renovated D-terminal to passengers within two months, the port says in a press release. A digital twin of the new D-Terminal building and the remodeled part which aims to make the building's life cycle more efficient was created in the BIM implementation model. The completion of the extension and reconstruction work of the port is scheduled for summer 2020.

Marine battery supplier Corvus Energy is to install its lithium-ion battery storage systems onboard AIDA Cruises’ ships to reduce fossil fuel use and emissions. In a project that will also involve ABB and Siemens, Corvus will install and commission the battery storage systems on the first AIDA ship in 2020. The companies then plan to then use their findings from the pilot project to successfully fit battery systems onboard other vessels in the AIDA fleet. “Our goal is the emissions-neutral ship operation,” said Michael Thamm, group CEO of Costa Group and Carnival Asia.

Port of Oslo in Norway has signed a cooperation agreement with an environmental non-profit organisation to help it become emission-free. The Port of Oslo, which first talked about its zero-emission ambition in June, will partner with the Oslo-headquartered Bellona Foundation to achieve its zero-emission goal. Emissions in the port are anticipated to be reduced by 85% by 2030 and gradually reduce until they are eliminated. “The Port of Oslo is in full swing with the green transition, and has begun the phasing in of emissions-free solutions,” said Port of Oslo chairman, Roger Schjerva. “It is enthusiastic about working alongside the Bellona Foundation and exchanging ideas and solutions with Bellona’s network of environmental experts and organizations. Maritime transport and urban ports are crucial in reducing the world’s greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector.”