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As part of its commitment to maximizing the efficiency, flexibility and reliability of its service to all customers, the Panama Canal announced changes to the Transit Reservation (booking) System for Neopanamax vessels, effective October 1, 2018. The modifications are a step in a positive direction for the Neopanamax Locks and take into consideration the lifting of certain navigation rules for liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels and ongoing customer feedback, as well as routine analysis of the utilization and fair market value of the Expanded Canal. “We are fully committed to understanding and meeting the ever-changing needs of the global shipping community,” said Panama Canal Administrator Jorge L. Quijano. “These changes, guided by input from our customers, strategic planning and years of experience, are an essential next step in ensuring the continued availability of the Expanded Canal for all.”

Since the initial agreement to build the port at Kribi was signed in 2009, 10 Chinese firms, including CHEC and its holding company, China Communications Construction Co., have obtained concessions to mine bauxite, iron ore and other minerals. Other Chinese companies are constructing office towers in the capital, Yaounde, and stadiums for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations soccer tournament. The Kribi project also highlights CHEC’s rapid expansion on the continent, where it’s won dozens of contracts and is expanding ports from Guinea in West Africa to Tanzania in the east. In Cameroon, CHEC has the country’s largest projects: the first and second stages of the Kribi complex will cost $1.3 billion, while it’s also building a $453 million highway linked to the port, holds a contract to dredge the port of Douala and has signed an accord for a railway to the Mbalam iron-ore deposit. After a slow start, the port shipped almost 3,000 logs of timber from the Central African Republic by June and handled about 80 vessels by mid-July.

The wait time for ships to pick up coal has stretched to three weeks. The main function of DBCT is to receive, process and store millions of tonnes of metallurgical and thermal coal extracted from mines in the central Bowen Basin. This coal is then loaded onto ships to be exported around the world. DBCT is only one portion of the entire coal supply chain. The other main components are the coal mines, the rail networks and the other coal export terminals. Damage to the Goonyella rail line caused significant delays and stockpiling after Cyclone Debbie. The coal is extracted from a combination of open cut and underground mines by the mining companies and then processed to a point where it can be stockpiled in preparation for loading onto incoming coal trains. When the train reaches the terminal, it passes through one of three inloading rail receival stations where the coal is dumped out of the open bottom of the train and onto conveyors that then transfer the coal to the DBCT stockyard. The stockyard holds different types of coal in stockpiles that can then be reclaimed and transferred via kilometres of conveyors to shiploaders 3.8 kilometres offshore. The shiploaders load the coal onto vessels that ship the coal to ports all over the world. Source: MiningMonthly

The Port of Tallinn says reconstruction works in Tallinn Old City Harbour's Terminal D have began. Passenger Terminal D serves Tallink ferries. As a result, passenger boarding and disembarkation routes within the terminal building will change. Please pay close attention to the signage in the terminal and allow extra time for passing through the terminal and for boarding the ships. Port of Tallinn will reconstruct and expand the passenger terminal giving it complete a makeover. The renewed terminal will have comfy and spacious waiting areas, lots of room for cafeterias and shops. New features include a playing area for children and a private lounge. The construction works will be completed by Summer 2020. The reconstruction of the Terminal D is part of a bigger plan to make the Sea Gate of Estonia and Tallinn more attractive and user-friendly. Source: en.portnews.ru

At least 30,000 metric tons of cocoa are trapped on their way to ports in Nigeria’s main city of Lagos as roads in a state of disrepair delay access to ships, the cocoa exporters body said. Travel to the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports that previously took hours, now takes as much as four weeks as trucks struggle through cratered and water-logged roads to get there, Pius Ayodele, president of the Cocoa Exporters Association of Nigeria, said. The affected cargoes are either in traffic jams or stored in transit warehouses in Lagos. “A greater part of this travel time is spent at the epicenter of the congestion which is just 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) to the ports,” Ayodele said by phone from the southwestern cocoa-trading center of Akure.

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Pelabuhan Tanjung Pelepas Sdn Bhd (PTP), a member of MMC Group, became the first port in the world to depart a vessel with a final load over 19,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The milestone was accomplished on Aug 18 this year when Mumbai Maersk, one of Maersk’s 2nd Generation Triple-E vessels, left the port with the record load of 19,038 TEUs. PTP in a statement said the vessel, deployed on the Asia-to-Europe Service (AE5) arrived from Shanghai, China, and is now en route to Port of Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has been awarded a contract to heighten four ZPMC ship-to-shore (STS) cranes operated by Generale de Manutention Portuaire (GMP), a joint venture between DP World and Terminal Link (CMA-CGM), located in the port of Le Havre.

Due to continued strong growth in loaded containerized cargo, Port Houston has surged higher in the rankings of the top container ports in the United States. Port Houston, which has been expanding rapidly in recent years, has climbed to become the fifth largest container port in the U.S., according to JOC Piers data covering the second quarter of 2018. Port Houston handled 1,057,964 twenty-foot-equivalent-units (TEUs) during that period and catapulted up from the sixth spot. Port Houston is outpacing trade for the U.S. as a whole this year, led by strong imports, the data also shows. For example, during the first six months of 2018, Port Houston imports from the Trans-Pacific region jumped by 24 percent, a significant hike compared to overall U.S. Trans-Pacific imports, which increased by 5 percent.

The Port of Long Beach is continuing to outperform 2023 clean air goals, with a drop in diesel particulates by 88%, sulfur oxides by 97% and nitrogen oxides by 56% since 2005, according to the port's annual “emissions inventory” for 2017. Meanwhile, cargo volumes have jumped to record levels. The report found the Port has maintained lower levels of emissions even though container traffic rose 11% in 2017. The Port’s efficiency in moving containers measured by tons of emissions per TEU has improved by 23% since 2005, according to Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero.

The Port of Rotterdam Authority is developing five permanent berths for barges on the Maas side of the Eiland van Brienenoord, the company said in its press release. The location has been an anchorage for barges for many years, but the new berths will improve safety on the river, according Ronald Paul, COO from the Port of Rotterdam Authority: ‘Barges are so large and heavy that they can break free when they are anchored. That happened sometimes with the tide changes. We don’t want that. The berthing facilities were realised in close consultation with various barge operators.’ There is space for five barges per berthing location. The central berths are for barges from 76.5 to 90 metres, the outer two for barges from 90 to 110 metres. There is at least 110 metres space between the berthing locations. The operations will be carried out by De Klerk from Werkendam. The five berths for barges will be completed by the end of September.

On August 28, 2018 at 05:48 local time the cruise ship Carnival Horizon allided with the Manhattan Cruise Terminal pier at West 54th Street in New York City. “The ship bumped into the pier while docking” said a New York Fire Department representative. “The ship caused structural damage to the pier.” The passengers were evacuated safely and no injuries were reported, an FDNY spokesman said. The city Department of Buildings responded to the scene and will inspect the damage to the pier before normal operations resume. Earlier this month the Horizon missed a port of call due to mechanical failures. In a letter to passengers Captain Gaetano Gigliotti apologized for the trouble stating that the problem “limited our ability to safely maneuver during this morning’s docking process.”

Naional Geographic Expeditions and Ponant, cruise company located in Marseille, have announced today, 2018/08/28, a strategic cooperation http://cruisedeck.de/neue-kooperation-von-ponant-und-national-geographic-expeditions/

Finnish Port of Turku has unveiled an ambitious development programme and the key players - Viking Line Abp, Tallink Silja Oy, Port of Turku Ltd and the City of Turku - have therefore signed a joint letter of intent to increase the attractiveness of the area. Viking Line’s and Silja Line’s separate terminals will make room for a single, state-of-the-art terminal.

The Chennai Port saw berthing of a very large crude carrier (VLCC) on Friday, the first time for an Indian port in an enclosed harbour. The vessel, MT New Diamond, with 1,60,079 gross registered tonnage (the ship’s internal volume), arrived from the Basra oil terminal in Iraq, carrying 1,33,719 tonnes of light crude oil on Thursday night. The vessel berthed in the oil docks of the Chennai Port on Friday. Port officials said the vessel had been chartered by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) for Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd (CPCL), which will refine the crude into products and supply them to the oil company. CPCL has its refinery at Manali, from which petro products are supplied to the three State-run oil companies. Officials said it would be a challenge to handle such a huge vessel. High-powered tugs and pilots would be used to safely navigate and berth the vessel. At present, the Chennai Port handles Suezmax oil tankers (mid-sized cargo vessels), with a capacity of 1,50,000 dead weight tonnage (DWT).

At APM Terminals’ inland services facilities in San Antonio and Santiago, Chile, safety supervisors previously monitored activities on the ground. Now the latest technology is enabling their work to be done more effectively and safely. APM Terminals is amongst the first to use drones for security and to drive operational efficiency. The drones are clearly visible in the air above the facilities, moving about their various tasks. “Our safety supervisors are the ones tasked with keeping the people and activities at our facilities safe, but by doing their jobs next to container stacks, trucks and other machinery, they were exposed to the highest risks,” said Hector Espinoza, director for Latin America at APM Terminals’ subsidiary Container Operators S.A..

The Port of Barrow has celebrated the latest addition to its fleet of survey vessels, the Christine H, by hosting a naming ceremony in memory of a former, valued colleague. ABP’s new vessel takes her name from ABP Barrow colleague, Christine Holmes, who sadly passed away in July 2017. The team at the Port of Barrow felt it would be a fitting tribute to Christine to name the vessel after her and continue her long association with the port.

The participation involves an investment of some 75 million euros and, in addition to holding 30% of the shares, the Port of Rotterdam Authority will have joint control of strategic decisions and positions at Executive Board, Supervisory Board and management level. The Port of Rotterdam Authority and Ceará State are expected to sign the decision next month, and the following months will be used to further finalise the participation. Allard Castelein, CEO Port of Rotterdam Authority is delighted with the decision in principle: ‘Our participation in the Brazilian Port of Pecém is promising for all parties. We have been working as adviser with Pecém for several years. This investment will further intensify the partnership. We will be working with Ceará State to ensure that Pecém expands to become the future logistics and commercial hub of Northeast Brazil.’

(Reuters) – Venezuela’s main oil port of Jose is operating partially after a tanker collided with a dock at the weekend, curtailing state-run PDVSA’s ability to export upgraded crude and receive imported diluents, three sources with knowledge of the incident said on Tuesday. PDVSA has been struggling this year to deliver exports on time to most customers because of falling oil output, legal actions by creditors aimed at seizing overseas assets and U.S. sanctions. In July, Venezuela’s crude production fell to its lowest level in over 60 years. Crude exports from Jose were running earlier this year at about 900,000 barrels per day (bpd), according to Thomson Reuters data. Some 60,000 bpd of naphtha imports, which is used to dilute Venezuela’s extraheavy crude for export, also are received at the terminal.

Low water levels on the Danube in Budapest continues which is now affecting the boat activity. Traffic is around 50% less than when there are normal water levels. General transport is affected the most but also international tourist ships are on hold. Now hundreds of thousands of tourists have to travel around the Hungarian capital by bus. The current level is 62 centimeters and experts now expect it to go as low as 50 in Budapest. But small sightseeing boats and commuter vessels can use piers but larger boats are unable to use the river.