Price EUR 7 No 7 – November 13, 2009 www.shipgaz.com
The breed called captainowner is rapidly disappearing from the Danish maritime scene. But Jens Nørgaard Nielsen has no intention of living any other way. PAGE 32
Yards challenged
“Deplorable development”
A major part of the European yard industry may be facing shutdown by the end of 2010 if there are no new orders. PAGE 26
Dr Marie Jacobsson, legal adviser and ICL member, calls for a human dimension of maritime safety and security. PAGE 20
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THEY CALL US EXPERTS. GUESS wHY?
Adress: P O Box 370, SE-401 25 Göteborg, Sweden Phone: +46-31-62 95 70 Fax: +46-31-80 27 50 E-mail: info@shipgaz.com Internet: www.shipgaz.com ISSN 2000-169X Editor-in-Chief/Publisher Rolf P Nilsson +46-31-62 95 80, rolf@shipgaz.com
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WAT E R P R O O F
Last man standing The breed called captainowner is rapidly disappearing from the Danish maritime scene. But Jens Nørgaard Nielsen has no intention of living any other way. PAGE 32
Yards challenged A major part of the European yard industry may be facing shutdown by the end of 2010 if there are no new orders. PAGE 26
“Deplorable development” Dr Marie Jacobsson, legal adviser and ICL member,
calls for a human dimension of maritime safety and security. PAGE 20
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4 SHIPGAZ NO 7 2009
Intro PORTRAIT
Seamen behind bars WELCOME Marie Jacobsson, legal adviser and member of the ILC, describes in this issue how seamen used to be a natural part of the city where she grew up. Today, the ISPS code has made sure that sturdy bars separate seamen from the rest of the world upon stepping ashore. She calls the development deplorable.
Master Mariner
»Today, the ISPS code has made sure that sturdy bars separate seamen from the rest of the world«
Mikael Palmroos has been a part of making shipbuilding history at STX Europe in Turku, from where the Oasis of the Seas recently sailed off. Here, he tells the story of his path from a kayak to the largest passenger vessel ever built.
Captain Jens Nørgaard Nielsen, born
in 1964, has spent his whole career on ships called the Saturn. The one he owns now is a couple of years younger than himself and still going strong. He likes being his own boss and has no plans to step away from being a captain-owner, although he belongs to an almost extinct kind.
Next year may be the year of reckoning for the European shipbuilding industry. With few orders coming in and a growing competition from Asian yards, the situation is critical. But Shipgaz has met with several Norwegian shipyard respresentatives that have a strong belief in the future.
ASSISTANT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Anna Lundberg anna.lundberg@shipgaz.com
RETRO The modern cruise ship was born in Finland in the late 1960s. For a comprehensive cavalcade of vessels, from the Bohème to the Allure of the Seas, look at PAGE 70
REPORT Børge Jensen has sailed as captain of the coaster Vest for 37 years. Now, he has to have a pilot to pass the same waters – and the fee just went up 430 per cent. PAGE 46
SPOTLIGHT Painful to lay up a ship? That’s nothing compared with the agony of starting it up again after a long lay-up, preditcs Engineer Per Nyström. PAGE 24
NO 7 2009 SHIPGAZ 5
Intro »The Full City officers must feel they’re stuck in a nightmare. It’s outrageous« EDITORIAL PAGE 7
In this issue 14
From kayak to megacruiser
20 Fenced in seafaring 24 Start-up worse than lay-up? 26 Challenging times for European shipyards 32 “I’ll be the last man standing” 42 Stena Bulk to conquer Russia from Finland 46 “Another terminal blow to coaster traffic” 50 Declining business, more actors 54 Taking ship design a step further 58 Working toward a common goal Mikael Palmroos from Stockholm is chief officer on the recently delivered Oasis of the Seas. He has been with the owner’s newbuilding team on the shipyard in Turku since last May, having a really busy time before it was time to finally set course towards the Caribbean in October. PAGE 14
60 IMO boosted by EU and USA 70 The modern cruise vessel was born in Finland 78 Cruiser and aircra carrier
Regular sections 7
Editorial
8
Review
12
Market Review
14
Portrait
62 Technical Review New ship designs are developed as the environmental impact has become an increasingly important factor in the offshore sector. PAGE 54 REPORT
REPORT Stena Bulk just moved the Moscow
office to Helsinki. “We simply think that the Finns are better to do business with than the Russians”, says Ulf G Ryder, CEO. PAGE 42
66 Fleet Review 70 Retro
Looking for a challenge Able Seaman, DFDS Tor line
Captain, DFDS Torline
NO 7 2009 SHIPGAZ 7
Editor-In-Chief Rolf P Nilsson rolf@shipgaz.com
Editorial
Outrageous treatment of seafarers »Would they have said that if this story had been about two Norwegian officers in a Chinese jail?«
magine the following: A Norwegian-flagged vessel has gone aground in severe weather conditions somewhere off the Chinese coast. While working intensely to stop bunker oil from reaching its shores, local authorities also find the time to prosecute two of the vessel’s Norwegian officers. Their passports are confiscated; they are stranded in China and told that they might be facing a court trial several months from now, with a 10-year prison term hanging over their heads. The main reason is that Chinese authorities are afraid that by allowing them to go back to Norway, they will never return to China to stand trial.
I
Two Norwegian sailors have a hard time trying to understand what is happening. They feel that they did everything possible to avoid an accident. They didn’t succeed. With hindsight there are, as in all accidents, lessons to be learnt and there is room for criticism. The seafarers should of course acknowledge this, but also others, as questions were raised regarding how authorities had handled the accident and how spill protection resources had been allocated along the coast. Two Norwegian officers thrown into a Chinese prison on these grounds would most probably raise both indignity and governmental activity in Norway with appeals for their imminent release.
Now, the above hasn’t happened but the reverse has. In July, the Chinese-owned Full City grounded off Langesund in Southern Norway. It had anchored in a position advised by the Brevik VTS. This was however outside the VTS area, and although the operator told the master to listen to its working channel, the vessel never received any information on the deteriorating weather, something that the master said he had expected. The vessel anchored with five shackles on its starboard anchor. Around midnight the vessel started to drag the anchor. After a while, the anchor flukes are thought to have snapped. At 00:09 the master gave order to start the engine. This was done at 00:17 but a couple of minutes later, the vessel hit the rocks.
Critics can argue that the watchkeeping officer wasn’t observant enough, that the engine should have been on stand-by at an earlier stage and so forth. The master has been criticized for not having radioed for assistance at an earlier stage, but even if he had called at the exact moment when the vessel started to drag its anchor, it’s unlikely that any help would have arrived before Full City went aground. The final investigation report will give answers, lessons to be learnt and critique to those who deserve it. But bringing criminal charges with a maximum penalty of ten years imprisonment to two officers that during half an hour did whatever they could to save their ship is outrageous.
Being stranded in a country far away in the hands of people talking a language you don’t understand and not knowing when you can return to your family, only that it can take several years, must be a nightmare for anybody. It must be even worse when you know that you have not deliberately caused any harm, and when you know that the authorities also know this. Official reactions from Norway have been scarce. Norwegian unions have teamed up with international maritime organisations, strongly condemning the acts of the authorities. The environmental organisation Bellona has applauded the decision to detain the officers, rather showing a distinct lack of empathy for two humans than concern for nature. The only statement from the Norwegian government is that the Chinese officers are treated well and in accordance with the international guidelines for fair treatment of seafarers. Would they have said that if this story had been about two Norwegian officers detained in China?
Rolf P Nilsson, Editor-in-Chief
Forward, Midship & Astern FINNISH TONNAGE TAX ON ITS WAY. Finland already has a tonnage tax scheme. The problem is that it is so disadvantageous that only two vessels have entered it. Now the Finnish government has launched a new scheme, which could boost the Finnish merchant navy if some amendments are accepted by Parliament.
RED FIGURES KEEP COMING The world is looking for positive signs in the world economy, sometimes desperately. The shipowning community and its suppliers however will have to cope with low rates and a low order intake for a number of years to come. Survive will those that have saved during boom times.
SHIP GUNS 46 per cent of seafarers participating in a poll by the union Nautilus say that they should be armed for piracy protection. This call should not be seen as an answer to a security risk, but as a reaction to the world’s failure to provide a safe transit for the people it depend on for trade.
8 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Review 2
Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
Photo: dfds
1
3
Photo: hapag-lloyd
Photo: eu commission
Forget restored liner conferences politics The EU Commission has no plans to restore the bloc exemption from competition rules for liner conferences, Hubert de Boca from the Commission’s Competition Directorate told the European Maritime Law’s annual conference, Lloyd’s List reports. Calls for a temporary respite have come from some shipowners, claiming that this would facilitate a capacity restriction ne cessary to ride out the current down-turn, the worst recession ever experienced by container shipping.
2,000 Up to 2,000 vessels could be setting out to their final voyages next year, Henning Gramman, head of ship recycling at Germanisher Lloyds, told a conference in London recently.
German Hapag-Lloyd cuts salaries Labour The crisis stricken liner company Hapag-Lloyd has announced pay cuts across the board in the organisation ashore and at sea. Board members will see their remunera tions cut 20 per cent, managing directors will have their salaries reduced 15 per cent, senior directors 10 per cent, middle manage ment 7.5 per cent and the rest 5 per cent.
According to Hapag-Lloyd, the cuts are necessary to meet conditions set by the Ger man government for a EUR 1.2 billion loan guarantee. The loan is much debated. Recently, the Danish Shipowners’ Association heavily crit icized state loans to shipping companies.
“If German Hapag-Lloyd and French CMA-CGM are granted state aid, they should at least reduce their fleets’ capacity”, says Jan Fritz Hansen, Vice president of the Danish Shipowners’ Association, Danmarks Rederiforening. In the middle of October the Dan ish Shipowners’ Association and the EU Commission held a session during which the Danish delegation once again argued against government aid to European ship owners. However, if shipping companies are granted state aid, they have a respon sibility to take part in the solution of the industry’s main problem, the Danish Ship owners’ Association argues.
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 9
The editor of the Review section is Pierre Adolfsson, contact him at pierre@shipgaz.com
Review Photo: bent mikkelsen
Photo: copenhagen malmo port
4
Photo review
1. The Queen of Scandinavia will be used as floating hotel during the upcom ing COP-15 summit in Copenhagen. 2. Olof widén, MD of the Finnish Ship owners’ Association, welcomes the gov ernment bill on a new tonnage-based tax – but raises concern over a paragraph re garding dividend taxation. 3. Port of Malmö has been granted EUR 5.9 million in EU infrastructure funding. 4. The coaster owner and operator C J Helt & Co has filed for bankruptcy.
Photo: us navy
Photo: royal caribbean international
Suspected pirates keep their hands in the air as directed by the US Navy.
Piracy at historic levels
Oasis of the Seas cleared the bridge newbuilding On October 28 2009, STX Europe’s Turku shipyard delivered the 225,000 GT Oasis of the Seas to Royal Caribbean International. She is the world’s largest cruise vessel and she left the shipyard in the morning of October 30. The last obstacle, before enter ing deeper waters, was the passage of the Great Belt bridge during the night between October 31 and November 1.
As the 361 meters long vessel has an air draft of 72 meters, the passage under the 65 meters high bridge demanded special ar rangements. The solution was a telescopic funnel, which when lowered reduced her air draft
to the required. Under the command of captain William S. Wright the passage was made at a speed of 20 knots, increasing the draft of the vessel by 30 cm due to the squat effect. The passage was made with good clear ance. After a brief stop off Southampton on November 2, the voyage continued across the Atlantic to Fort Lauderdale, where the Oasis of the Seas is due for arrival on 11 No vember. The vessel will be cruising in the Caribbean with Fort Lauderdale as turna round port. The official naming ceremony will take place on November 30. The vessel departs for her inaugural sailing on December 5.
piracy A total of 306 piracy incidents were reported to the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre in the first nine months of 2009 – the figures have already surpassed the total number of attacks in 2008 as 293 incidents were reported last year.
”The increase in attacks is directly attributed to heightened piracy activity off the Somali Coast, where 47 incidents were reported compared to just 12 for the same period of the previous year, and in the Gulf of Aden, which had 100 inci dents compared to 51 for the same period of the previous year”, IMB says in its re port. Global piracy statistics reveal that in the first nine months of 2009, 114 ves sels were boarded, 34 vessels hijacked and 88 vessels fired upon. A total of 661 crew members were taken hostage, twelve kidnapped, six killed and eight reported missing. The number of incidents where guns have been used has increased 200 per cent.
10 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Review Photo: maersk line
Photo: pawel flato
Andreas Carlgren.
EU gets tough on ship dismantling politics The EU environment ministers have adopted the Council’s conclusions regarding the Commission Strategy on Ship Recycling.
This could lead to a legislative pro posal to ensure that ships with a strong link to the EU in terms of flag or owner ship are dismantled only in safe and en vironmentally sound facilities world wide. “It is good news that the EU has adopted the Council’s conclusions on ship recycling as the EU is a key actor in the shipping industry. This shows that the EU is taking the issue very seriously and that methods that are safe for the environ ment and for workers can be promoted,” said the Swedish Minister for the Environ ment, Andreas Carlgren, after a meeting of the Environment Council in Luxem bourg on October 21.
Vote now shipgaz poll The Norwegian governmental agency GIEK fears a wave of bankruptcies among Norwegian yards. Do you share their fear?
71% Yes, I do think that some of the yards will have to close down. 21% No, the yards will survive. 8% I don’t know. Please visit our website at www.shipgaz.com, and take part in our web polls.
Maersk Line saves USD 500 million on fuel reductions Finance Maersk Line is saving millions of dollars as a result of lower fuel consumption by the container carriers in its fleet. Last year, Maersk Line had an ongoing fuel saving campaign as part of a cost reduc tion plan in the current crisis. So far this year, Maersk Line has cut the fuel consump tion by 15 per cent per cargo unit.
“The 15 per cent reduction in fuel con sumption will reduce costs by about USD 500 million if oil prices remain at their current level”, says Eivind Kolding, CEO of Maersk Line, to newspaper Børsen. Maersk Line hopes to reduce fuel con sumption per unit by a further 20 per cent. “I am sure we will reach that goal by 2012”, says Eivind Kolding. This measure and a number of others will, according to several analysts, enable Maersk Line to reach break-even in the mid dle of next year. More Maersk Line news – the company is now targeting the break bulk market in order to gain new costumers for its liner service. Recently, Maersk Line purchased more than 10,000 new flat rack and open-top
containers, which have added significant capacity to the break bulk service. In recent decades, break bulk cargoes on container carriers has been downsized due to lack of space on board the ships, but in the current crisis with a declining number of tradition al containers, Maersk Line is returning to old virtues in liner shipping. The new service will initially target the North American market and its industrial clusters. Maersk Line will be the first interna tional operator to include a Baltic port in a direct service to the Far East. As of January 6, Gdansk will be the turnaround point for Maersk Line’s AE10 service running from Gdansk to Ningbo, China. It is the growing trade between Poland and especially Russia that has persuaded Maersk Line to include Poland in a direct service. A feeder service will be established between Gdansk and St Petersburg. The first vessel to call at Gdansk will be the Maersk Taikung, which will depart from Gdansk on January 6. AE10 will still call at Göteborg and Aarhus, but after Janu ary, Dunkerque will be removed from the schedule.
no 7 2009 Shipgaz 11
Review Photo: hyundai heavy industries
Photo: bent mikkelsen
Shipyard sale attracts owners
The Simara Ace – laid up and for sale.
ACE Link suspends payments finance ACE Link, which operates pure passenger ferries on the Helsingborg – Hel singør run, has suspended payments to suppliers and the Danish part of the company is under reconstruction. A trustee has been appointed and the owner, the Norwegian shipping group Eitzen, will provide the necessary funds to continue daily operations during the 3month long reconstruction period. If there is no improvement during this period, the company can apply for a 3month exten sion. If this also fails, the probable next step is bankruptcy.
”tHis is Hell, now we will have to ana lyse the situation to see if we actually have a future”, says Mogens Worre Sörensen,
chairman of Ace Link, to daily Helsingborg Dagblad. The company has two ferries in opera tion, the Siluna, built in 2008, and the Silet ta, built in 1980, and one ferry, the Simara, which was built 2007 and is currently laid up and for sale in Helsingborg. One year ago Simara Ace was taken out of service as the company realized that it was not possible to gain enough passengers to fill the two new vessels Simara Ace and Siluna Ace. The capacity was doubled from around 320 passengers per hour to around 620 passengers per hour at the inau guration of the two cruise ships in the beginning of 2008.
»In Copenhagen we will not be able to conclude a treaty, but it is important to lay down a political framework which will be the basis of the treaty« German Chancellor Angela Merkel comments COP 15 at an European Summit in Brussels. COP 15 will take place in December.
sHipbuilding The prices offered by Chinese and South Korean shipyards have fallen by about 40 per cent. A handysize now costs around USD 25 million, compared to USD 40 million 18 months ago. A Capesize newbuilding can be ordered for USD 56 million, compared to almost USD 100 million.
”it is better for owners to get a new building and build it the way you want it, rather than take a resale at higher price to gain just an extra six or seven months trading”, Pluton Varvaros, broker at Greek Allied Shipbroking told Lloyd’s List. The shipyards are now taking advantage of previous orders walking away from an order and leaving a first down payment. The shipyard can then sell the open slot to another owner and use the previous down payment to finance a rebate. cHinese autHorities are now warn ing of massive cancellations at Chinese yards. According to China’s National Develop ment and Reform Commission, up to half of all orders may be cancelled or delayed as a result of the overcapacity in the in dustry. The commission claims that the current capacity in the world is 180200 million DWT, while demand stands at half.
New Nordic Yards Strategy sHipbuilding Nordic Yards in Wismar
and Warnemünde, formerly known as Wadan Shipyards, will leave the container vessel market and focus on the construction of more complicated tonnage for the Russian market, the new company owner announces.
12 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Market Review
Scrapping is picking up Analysis Scrapping has picked up speed as the recession continues and the deadline for single-hull tankers closes in.
»There is still a premium when selling a ship to be converted to other purposes«
Clarksons reports that vessels of a combined 23.2 million deadweight tons have been sold for demolition this year, almost twice as much as during the full year 2008. With 8.2 million tons and 7.5 million tons respectively, Bangladesh and India continues to lead the buyers’ league. Pakistan and China is following at a rather significant distance, with 2.6 million and 2.1 million tons respectively. The scrapping price has never returned
to the almost hysterical levels experienced in the summer of 2008, when breakers paid for old vessels at levels around USD 750 per ldt. The recently sold VLCC Front Vanadis went to the scrap yard reportedly for USD 325 per ldt, a price obviously with a pre-
mium included, as other sales at the same time indicated levels at USD 270 – 295 per ldt. That means that the 1990-built vessel fetched some USD 10.6 million for its owner. A good price, but a perspective on the volatility in this industry, is that a sale at last summer’s levels could have resulted in a price tag around USD 21 million. Although scrapping has increased, many are surprised of the not too intense sales activity in the single-hull tanker fleets when 2010 is just some months away. According to an analysis by McQuilling Services, many VLCC owners are still look-
Idle offshore vessels a common sight Offshore The North Sea offshore market has slid into a softer balance, with a fleet of 80 supply vessels vying for jobs in the spot market. It is not unusual to see as many as 20 vessels tied up in Aberdeen and also several in Norwegian west coast ports. Not only have the going market rates plummeted since August, but also the waiting time between jobs become more trying. The first platform supply vessels (PSVs) have been laid up, and some will probably follow over the winter. The rate level for anchor-handlers has dropped from GBP 60,000 at the end of August to 7-8,000 at the moment of writing. This is well below breakeven for a fleet of modern vessels, of which practically all are in the +15,000 BHP category and fitted with DPII systems. Despite the oversupply of vessels, owners seem to have managed to
GBP 1,000 200
150
100
50
0
Week 45 50 1
5
10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Two of the 2007 start-ups in the Norwegian market with ambitions in the subsea sector have now managed to clear their commitments in face of the credit crunch and general uncertainty. Sea4 AS, with Atle Bergshaven of Grimstad as main investor, ordered to ST-254Ls from Astilleros Freire in Spain at USD 80 million each. In September the vessels were sold to G C Rieber Shipping, Bergen, at NOK 800 million, after which the company will be closed down. A similar story has happened to GDV Off-
shore, later merged to become Aquanos AS, which ordered an MT-6000-type light construction vessel from Aker Brevik and two ST-254s from Bergen Yards. The list of investors included names like Stein Erik Hagen, Arne Blystad and Petter G C Sundt. However, all three newbuildings have now been sold. The Brevik vessel passed to Tidewater at USD 65m, the first Bergen vessel to Mermaid of Australia at USD 91m and the last recently to Island Offshore of Ulsteinvik at something like USD 120m. Having covered its debt, Aquanos will now be wound up. Initiatives like these, born at a time of high oil prices and high hopes, have been steered for hard landings and at a sacrifice by the initiators. The vessels, however, will be around to see a career for other owners. Dag Bakka Jr
Some new term charters North Sea: Charterer Vessel Type Venture Siem Louisa psv Venture Toisa Intrepid psv AGR North Stream psv Talisman FS Aquarius psv Talisman Far Supporter psv
Operation 6 months firm + opt, support Noble Scott Marks 6 weeks firm + 6x1 weeks support 1+1 well, support Stena Carron ext 6 months + 6 months opt ext 6 months + 6 months opt
New term charters internationally: EDT Offshore Norman Neptun ahts KNOC Sea Ocelot ahts KNOC Sea Eagle 1 ahts Woodside Far Swan psv Petrobras Siem TBN psv Petrobras Siem TBN psv Hess Havila Fortune psv Hess Havila Aurora psv
2 yrs firm from Dec, Egypt 4 months from Oct, Korea 4 months from Oct, Korea 18 months firm + 18 opt, Dec, Australia 2 yrs firm + 1 yr opt, Dec 09, Turkey 2 yrs firm + 1 yr opt, Dec 09, Turkey 1 well + 5 opt, Oct, Libya 1 well + 5 opt, Oct, Libya
Source: Shipgaz Bergen, November 2009
Source: Shipgaz Bergen, November, 2009
Offshore earnings
maintain a certain level which at least covers operating costs. The PSV market appears softer, with day rates at low at GBP 2,500 for medium-sized vessels. Larger PSV, however, have fared better, with charterers willing to pay a premium for well-fitted vessels, occasionally up to GBP 7,000.
no 7 2009 Shipgaz 13
Market Review ing for conversion options. In the same month as Front Vanadis was sold for demolition, two other, slightly younger and smaller, VLCCs were sold to Chinese conversion buyers for USD 14.5 and USD 13.9 million, respectively. this shows thAt there is still a premium when selling a ship to be converted to other purposes, than sending it to the scrap yard beach. The gap is however closing. In the beginning of the year, VLCC owners sold vessels for conversion projects at a price 90 per cent above the scrap rate.
price gap between conversions and scrapping will continue to narrow.
Tough times for products carriers
ClArksons Also highlights prices recently offered by Chinese breakers. These are at around the same level as sales to India. According to Clarksons, a combination of Chinese breakers paying “adventurous” prices when the sub-continental yards are uncertain over prices could mean a more competitive market. Looking at the current rates levels and the prospects in the freight markets, this could be good news for owners.
wet & dry Moore Stephens has recently published its OpCost report for 2009, and Clarksons has compared the operating expenses (crew, stores, maintenance and insurance) according to the report with earnings during the last three months for some vessel types and sizes. The OpCost report is based on detailed information from owners on actual costs for 2,100 vessels during 2008.
editor-in-ChieF
mCQuilling ConCludes that as the single-hull phase-out draws closer and owners runs out of options for their oldies, the
Rolf P Nilsson rolf@shipgaz.com
the result wAs miXed to say the least for tankers. While VLCCs and Suezmaxes made USD 14,000 per day after operating expenses (OPEX), Aframaxes made some hundreds of dollars under. For the VLCCs and Suezmaxes, the surplus was enough to cover depreciations for a USD 80 million ship.
Expected ice boosts Baltic market shortseA dry Bulk Again we are seeing some improvement in cargo volume in the Baltic region especially. Most likely it is a result of Charterers wanting to get cargo moved before ice-restrictions are put in force, but also a result 800 of higher activity in general.
sure we will see lower volume in coming months.
700
ACCording to eArly reports water temperatures in Bothnia are colder than normal 600 indicating that we can expect more ice this winter than last year. 500 Everybody remembers the winter of 2003 and the effects it had on the Baltic market. 400
on the Continent things are moving 300 more sideways with fairly acceptable cargo flow in the agri product sector especially. 200 there is feed products moving from Still 45 50 1 5 10 15 ARAG for the salmon farm industry, but for
USD/ton 800
700
600
eArnings estimAtes
Past 12 months. EUR/day 4,000 3,500 3,000 2,500 2,000
400
lAst yeAr sAw A Jump in their operating expenses to USD 7,500 per day, but with earnings averaging USD 33,000 per day the last three months, leaving enough money to cover depreciation on a USD 160 million ship. with usd 7-13,000 and USD 10,500 generated in average per day, also Panamaxes and Handies came out with a surplus to contribute to capital costs. ContAiner Vessels oF All siZes fell below OPEX the last quarter, while the large gas carriers had earnings similar, or close to their operating costs. rolF p nilsson
BAltiC dry Bulk indiCes
1,500
300
200 45
the Chinese Bulk-Buying spree saved the dry bulk owners the last quarter, with Capesizes coming out best.
End ’08 mid-May ’09
1,000 Week 50 1
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
500
Week 45
5,000
4,000
50 1
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
mid-Oct ’09
Clean Tanker Index
839
478
481
Dirty Tanker Index
1252
473
567
Baltic Dry Index
784
2544
3043
1,250 DWT
1,750 DWT
3,500 DWT
6,500 DWT
2,500 DWT
Source: BaLTic eXchange
500
in the mediterrAneAn it seems clear that improved activity in recent weeks has resulted in higher tonnage demand. Owners have for months avoided to trade Mediterranean if possible resulting in a shortage of supply in the size 1,000–3,000 dwt especially. Rates are slowly on the move, but considering the state of the world economy it seems quite obvious that any rapid reWeek bounce is unlikely. 20 25 30 35 40 geir JerstAd Source: norBroKer aS, novemBer, 2009
Source: BunKerWorLD/norBroKer aS, novemBer, 2009
mgo rotterdAm CiF priCes
For produCt CArriers, it was a disastrous quarter, with average earnings of USD 4,300 per day. That’s USD 3.600 per day less than needed to cover operating expenses. Also Panamax tankers bled money.
in FrenCh BAy And irish seA owners are struggling to secure backhauls with ships often seen ballasting towards looking mgo ARAG iFo 180 for new employment.
Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 15
By Pär-Henrik Sjöström par-henrik@shipgaz.com
Mikael Palmroos
Portrait
From kayak to megacruiser As a teenager Mikael Palmroos competed in the Finnish national team in canoeing. Now, some fifteen years later, he is the chief officer of the largest passenger vessel in the world. Master Mariner Mikael Palmroos has made an amazing career in Royal Caribbean International, which is one of the leading cruise brands on the contemporary market. In five and a half years he has advanced from second officer to chief officer. “I have not in any way tried to rush my career. I have simply been at the right place in the right time and Royal Caribbean is a strongly motivating employer”, he says in the modest way, which is so typical for Finns.
As a matter of fact it is questionable if it is correct to call Mikael Palmroos a Finn. His roots are indeed in the small town of Ekenäs in Finland, but he has lived in Sweden for ten years. Now his home is in Stockholm. Still he has spent the last years mostly in his former home country as a member of Royal Caribbean’s survey team at the STX Europe Turku shipyard. “All my life I have had a close relation to the sea. My father was in the boating business in Ekenäs and already as a kid I knew a lot about all kinds of outboarders, motor boats and sailing boats.”
His first professional touch with life at sea he got from summer jobs in the store of the taxfree shop on Eckerö Linjen’s ferries. Most of his spare time during the summer season he spent at sea in his flat water kayak.
»During my time in the navy I realised that life at sea was really my thing« Master Mariner Mikael Palmroos lives in Stockholm, but his roots are in Finland, in the small town of Ekenäs.
“I went for canoeing to one hundred per cent, but in high school I understood that I had to start thinking about my future. I then decided to do my military service in the navy and at the same time learn to speak Finnish. Ekenäs, where I grew up, was quite a Swedish speaking environment. In my family we only spoke Swedish and my friends were Swedish speaking too.” After his high school graduation he served on the mine layer Pohjanmaa for nine months before he returned to the civilian world. “During my time in the navy I realised that the life at sea was really my thing. I had this feeling already when I was working during the summers at Eckerö Linjen, but now I was
sure about it. I wanted to be a deck officer.” Mikael Palmroos moved to Sweden and started his studies to deck officer at Chalmers in Gothenburg in 2000. “In the nautical school there were extensive training periods, in all twelve months, when we sailed on different types of vessels as cadets.” His first cadet period he spent on the Swedish Maritime Administration’s work vessel Scandica. “We checked that the lighthouses were working properly and that all buoys and fairway marks were in their right positions. I found this most interesting.”
From coastal fairway work Mikael Palmroos moved to deep sea shipping with Wallenius Lines’ car carrier Traviata. He also served as a cadet on other vessels such as the paper carrier Joh. Gorthon as well as on a chemical tanker and a coaster. His last vessel before getting his watchkeeping licence was the ferry Silja Symphony. “I felt that I just had to try to work on a ferry too. Already during my first day on board I knew that I most of all wanted to work on passenger vessels.
16 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Portrait Mikael Palmroos Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
Chief Officer Mikael Palmroos on his coming working place, the bridge of Oasis of the Seas. Still I think that the experiences from cargo vessels have been most important for me.” After Mikael Palmroos’s graduation the labour market was tough. He sent job applications to many shipping companies but it seemed impossible to get a job as a mate. Instead he signed on as an AB on the ferry Roslagen.
“Then I got a phone call from Royal Caribbean. They had asked my former chief officer on Silja Symphony if he thought I was ready to work as a second mate on a cruise vessel. He said give him a chance, and this chance I took without hesitation.” Mikael Palmroos immediately left the Roslagen, went home to Gothenburg to pack his bag and fly to Port Canaveral, Florida, where the Sovereign of the Seas was alongside. “I signed on as a second officer. At the end of my first contract the vessel shifted from NIS to Bahamas flag. A lot of Norwegian officers left the fleet and I was promoted to first officer. In
»This is a dream job for me, there is never a dull moment on a cruise ship« During the long voyage until you are ready to have a command of your own, it is important to prepare for that huge responsibility and gain as much experience as possible, Mikael Palmroos thinks.
this position I got navigational command on the bridge as there during normal circumstances always is a first and a second officer on watch.” On the Sovereign of the Seas Mikael Palmroos worked during several contracts in different disciplines such as fire fighting, safety and navigation. But after being on the same vessel for quite a long time he thought that it was time to move on.
“The master asked me if I was interested in surveying the newbuilding Liberty of the Seas at the Turku shipyard. I took the challenge and after two weeks of familiarisation on the sister ship Freedom of the Seas I travelled to Turku and became first officer on the newbuilding. Although the Freedom-class is ex-
tremely large the ships are very easy to work with as there are so many automation systems assisting you all the time.” After a couple of contracts as first officer on the Liberty of the Seas Mikael Palmroos went back to Turku where the third sister Independence of the Seas was under construction.
“I travelled home from the Independence after the transfer voyage to Southampton and my intention was to return to the vessel as first officer. However just a month later I was promoted chief officer safety and appointed a vessel of the Voyager-class, the Adventure of the Seas.” After three contracts on the Adventure Mikael Palmroos was again offered a new position introduced with the Oasis-class, chief officer maintenance. It had turned out that on such a large ship the staff captain cannot manage everything concerning maintenance, as he is involved in so many other things on board.
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 17
Mikael Palmroos
Portrait Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
»It is important that you have the right experience when you reach a new position« While chief officer safety is a pure training position, responsible for training and that all certificates and safety equipment are in order, the chief officer maintenance handles the traditional tasks of a chief officer. “As a chief officer maintenance my responsibility is the exterior of the ship. We work closely with the hotel to keep the ship in perfect shape.” Mikael Palmroos is also responsible for the stability, ballast operations and trim as well as cargo handling. “As a senior officer I will be on the bridge assisting the master during arrival and departure. I am also a part of the bridge team. Company policy states that there shall always be a senior officer on bridge if we are close to land or if the weather is bad. But I am not a watchkeeping officer.”
He enjoys every day at work and cannot wait to see this magnificent ship in action. While a normal contract includes ten weeks of work on board and ten weeks off, Mikael Palmroos has been working since March 29 and he estimates that he will be able to go on leave on February 6. “Now I am doing an extremely long contract. I started on the Adventure and left her on May 6 for Turku. During my stay here at the shipyard I have visited my father in Ekenäs a few times, but for the rest of the time I have been on board, seven days a week. The hand over note to my colleague will be quite a long story. There will however be a two weeks hand over period when we are both at work.” Mikael Palmroos has an extensive experience in survey of newbuildings, and the latest project has been the most challenging of them all. “I am of course not a naval architect, but I have been with this project from keel to the top and after this I know quite a few things about how to build a vessel. This has been an amazing experience.” Mikael Palmroos is the kind of person that always is looking forward.
There has been much to do to make the Oasis of the Seas ready for her maiden voyage. Being an officer on a large cruise vessel has so far fulfilled all of his high expectations of a career at sea. “This is the dream job for me, there is never a dull moment on a cruise ship.”
He also thinks it is most rewarding and motivating to work in a company as Royal Caribbean, where it is possible to advance if you are ambitious. “In the end it is always up to yourself how much you are willing to work and how interested you are. Our employer offers fantastic possibilities to advance if you do a good job. Now I will work as hard as possible in this position to get ready for the next step that will be staff captain.” Mikael Palmroos’s ultimate goal is the same as that of so many other deck officers – to become a captain. “It is important that you have the right experience when you reach a new position. The next step for me will be staff captain and before that I
Largest passenger ship Having a gross tonnage of 225,000, the Oasis of the Seas is the largest passenger vessel ever built. She was delivered by STX Europe, Turku shipyard, in October 2009.
want to know all about maintenance. My current position is most useful for me also when thinking about the future. It enables me to go deep into the maintenance sector and simultaneously get the good old chief officer’s knowledge.” During the hectic months at the shipyard he has not had much time to think about anything else. But when the vessel gets operational and normal routines are introduced, he assures that there is plenty of things to do on board the vessel, also if one is not working. “It is up to yourself how to spend your free time. It is of course possible to go ashore but there is so much to do on board too. We have excellent spaces for the crew.”
“At home I have no specific hobbies for the moment. The first days after I have come home from a time on board I usually just rest and take it easy.” “It is a fantastic feeling when you
18 Shipgaz no 7 2009
Portrait Mikael Palmroos Photo: Pär-henrik sjöström
»We work very hard so that Oasis of the seas will be the best ship in the whole fleet« don’t have to get up to the alarm bell or a call on the walkie-talkie. There is also time to take care of everything else at home.” Mikael Palmroos thinks that it is very important to take care of the relations with family and friends. He does not see that the job makes it impossible to maintain close contacts with the people ashore.
Ten weeks is after all quite a short time, he thinks, and he says that it nowadays is possible to keep in touch with home even daily if needed. “We have online internet connections in the cabins and the cell phone is working most of the time so I don’t feel cut off from the rest of the world.” “My girlfriend is of course most important for me. I hope that she
The Oasis of the Seas on her second sea trials, a month before delivery. The vessel left the shipyard for her transit voyage to Fort Lauderdale on October 30. will be able to attend the crossing to Florida and if I am working during Christmas and New Year she is on board.
But right now Mikael Palmroos is to one hundred per cent on board, also in his mind. There are thousands of things that must be done and lots
of small problems still to be solved before the vessel is ready to sail. When that day comes he thinks that the result will be excellent. “We have a really strong team here and we are all very enthusiastic. We work very hard so that Oasis of the Seas will be the best ship in the whole fleet.”
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20 Shipgaz no 7 2009
By Pierre Adolfsson pierre@shipgaz.com
Report Seafarer rights
Photo: AnnA lUndBerG
Fenced in seafaring
The restrictions surrounding today’s seamen are far-reaching and deprivation of liberty is becoming more common. “It’s time for a human dimension”, says legal adviser and ILC member Marie Jacobsson. In her new book “International law, the sea and the individual” Principal Legal Adviser on International Law Marie Jacobsson addresses the lack of a human dimension within maritime safety and security. In some 15 years the working conditions for seafarers have changed fundamentally.
“We need to find a balance of interests. Today seamen are exposed to an abundance of new rules and regulations, and there are reasons to put the spotlight on their working conditions when they get jammed – which they do occasionally.” When safety, developed in order to protect ships and their cargo and seafarers’ fundamental rights, meets security, new aspects need to be addressed, according to Marie Jacobsson. Maritime security has been very much affected by the terrorist attacks in the United States of America on September 11, 2001. “Measures that were not even fore-
seeable before ‘9/11’ were accepted in the fight against international terrorism. The traditional borderline between maritime safety and maritime security became hazy.” One of these measures, the ISPS code, is controversial among seafarers.
»The traditional borderline between maritime safety and maritime security became hazy« ISPS CODE The International Ship and Port Facility Security Code is a comprehensive set of measures to enhance the security of ships and port facilities.
“The ISPS code cuts both ways. On the one hand the regulation promotes protection against terrorism, which also the people working on board benefit from. On the other hand basic rights as freedom of movement are restricted. The old-fashioned way of seeing personal integrity will probably never come back. When I grew up in Karlskrona, Sweden, seamen were a natural part of our urban environment. Today, one can see bizarre pictures of seamen nearly sit-
ting behind bars when in port. It’s a deplorable development I must say.” The problems are discussed in the International Maritime Organisation, IMO. Important work takes place in the non-governmental organ Comité Maritime International where a specially appointed working group investigates the relation between the ISPS code and the legal rights of the individual, trying to find ways to balance the conflict of interests. However, the work is only in its initial stages, according to Marie Jacobsson. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, UNCLOS, which among other things defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world’s oceans, was concluded in 1982. However, the Soviet Union refused to include or even mention the declaration of Human Rights in the convention. “The words ‘human rights’ are mentioned in the yearly UN reports
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 21
Seafarer rights
Report Photo: Pierre Adolfsson
Dr Marie Jacobsson is a member of the International Law Commission and Principal Legal Adviser on International Law at the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. on the Law of the Sea for the very first time in 1995. Suddenly it was possible to discuss these issues, as existing regulations collided in many ways. If you take a vessel carrying migrants into custody, you don’t know if they are illegal migrants, refugees or maybe terrorists. International law prescribes different rules and regulations to handle this.” In the 2008 report, ‘human rights’ are mentioned twelve times, and ‘human’ or ‘humanitarian’ 53 times and ‘individual’ ten times. “This is a remarkable development
and the consequences are not easy to fully grasp”, says Marie Jacobsson.
One of the first institutions to recognise the role of human rights norms in the context of the Law of the Sea was the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, ITLOS in Hamburg. The Tribunal’s first case was connected to another significant step within the maritime regulations’ package – exclusive economic zones (EEZs). In 1994 the UNCLOS came into force, including a number of provisions as exclusive economic zones.
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ILC The International Law Commission was established by the UN General Assembly in 1948 for the “promotion of the progressive development of international law and its codification.”
EEZs extend from the edge of the territorial sea out to 200 nautical miles from the baseline. Within this area, the coastal nation has special rights in the exploration and use of marine resources. The coastal state has the right to take legal action against anyone who commit environmental crimes, in its economic zone. “If a vessel and its crew are detained, the Convention on the Law of the Sea prescribes a prompt release on bail, but this is not always the case. There are examples of crew members
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22 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Seafarer rights Photo: International Transport Federation
The “Hebei two”, Captain Jasprit Chawla and Chief Officer Syam Chetan. who have been detained for months. However, they cannot be jailed or imposed fines that can be changed into imprisonment.” “The coastal state cannot detain the crew for a long period, probably not more than two weeks, at least according to the standards set by European Convention of Human Rights. When a state detains a ship and its whole crew, it’s clearly an effect of the approach ‘the vessel and its crew is one unit’. This approach would be completely unthinkable in many other areas. If the owner of a factory commits a crime, by allowing pollution of the environment, the employees are still free to go home to their families after the working day has ended, no one would accept if all the employees were to be detained in the factory. When you are kept on board a ship you will not only be detained against your will, you will probably not even get paid.”
When a ship is detained and the coastal state refuses a ‘prompt release’ the flag state can appeal to the tribunal. “But if the flag state refuses to take action, you are in a very insecure situation. The crews’ respective home countries could intervene and turn to the detaining state, however this will probably not be the case.” The Hamburg tribunal raised the issue of the treatment of the M/V Saiga crew in its very first case. The M/V Saiga served as a bunkering ves-
»If the owner of a factory commits a crime, the employees are still free to go home to their families after the working day has ended«
The environmental challenges facing governments throughout the world are numerous and complex, and the pressure from the public to react on environmental pollution is often intense, forcing states as the US to sharpen its territorial waters legislation.
Today, seafarers may face imprisonment and huge fines when polluting the waters off the US, as long as the offence took place within the territorial waters. The US is surely not alone. One of the most attended cases in the world came to an end in June this year, when Captain Jasprit Chawla and Chief Officer Syam Chetan from the Hebei Spirit were released by the South Korean Supreme Court after being held in South Korea for 550 days. The two men were arrested after the accident in December 2007, when a crane barge hit the tanker resulting in the worst ever oil spill in South Korea. Several international organisations such as Intertanko and Bimco have criticised the treatment of the ‘Hebei Two’, and they are still criticising the way matters are handled. “When someone is found guilty
ITLOs The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea is an independent judicial body established to adjudicate disputes arising out of the interpretation and application of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, UNCLOS.
sel supplying fuel oil to fishing vessels and other vessels operating off the coast of Guinea. The vessel, having crossed the maritime boundary between Guinea and Guinea Bissau and entered the exclusive economic zone of Guinea, was arrested by Guinean Customs patrol boats in late October 1997. The vessel was brought into Conakry, Guinea, where the vessel and its crew were detained.
The flag state, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, turned to the tribunal in Hamburg, demanding M/V Saiga and its crew be released immediately without requiring that any bond be provided. “The tribunal was tough against Guinea and ruled in favour of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, undoubtedly. According to the tribunal Guinea had violently cracked down on the vessel.” “From an international law point of view, it’s obvious that the ‘criminalization’ of seafarers, as IMO denounces it, began in 1994 when the coastal states were allowed to establish economic zones”, says Marie Jacobsson.
of crime the principles of the state governed by the rule of law must be applied. However, one can argue that it goes against other regulations in the criminal law to imprison a person who committed the crime without any intent.” Seafarers have been involved in many legal processes not only involving environmental pollution, the last two years. In August 2008, international organisations and observers in shipping were shocked after a verdict against the master of the reefer Coral Sea. Croatian Kristo Laptalo was sentenced to 14 years in jail and huge fines by a court in Patras, Greece, for drug smuggling. He was also imprisoned for one year, awaiting the trial. Despite the evidence being inadequate and that everything pointed to the fact that the crew had been unaware that there were 51.6 kg of cocaine in two of 27,000 banana boxes from Ecuador that Coral Sea discharged in Aegion, Kristo Laptalo was sentenced. According to the verdict, Laptalo was, nevertheless, guilty as he as master is responsible and should have known what was in the cargo. Three months
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 23
Seafarer rights
Photo: NOAA
The Hebei Spirit, shortly after the collision.
Report
INTERIOR INSULATION VENTILATION PIPING ELECTRICAL
later he was acquitted from all charges of drug smuggling by a Greek appellate felony court.
In August 2001 a diplomatic dispute broke out between Australia, Norway and Indonesia after the cargo ship M/V Tampa had rescued 438 Afghans from a distressed fishing vessel in international waters. The Afghans wanted passage to nearby Christmas Island. The Australian government sought to prevent this by refusing the Tampa entry into Australian waters, insisting on their disembarkment elsewhere. The captain Arne Rinnan found himself in a very odd situation. He and his crew saved hundreds of people, but then faced a standoff with the Australian government on where to land the Afghan refugees. “The captain has an unambiguous responsibility to respond to distress at sea, but he or she must be guaranteed the possibility to disembark migrants or refugees. However, that is not always the scenario, as the Tampa-case clearly shows. The Tampa captain cannot stop the vessel’s commercial journey to embark these people in Norway, that’s impossible. There must be a political will to solve situations like this, but today that is not always the case.” “The captain is obliged to maintain laws and rules while at sea, solely. There are no corresponding situations elsewhere, which makes the captains’ working conditions unique.”
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24 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Per Nyström, per@shipgaz.com
spotlight Technology
Start-up worse than lay-up? no longer exist and today’s engines are usually delicate technical pieces that have to be handled with care and skill. A moderate crevice corrosion in cylinder units of a modern medium speed engine may cause serious damage to the engine. Also the giant long stroke engines are today built with narrow tolerances that cannot be allowed to deteriorate by corrosion and many sensitive parts are exposed to the engine room atmosphere.
Technology: Per nyström Per Nyström has a long experience as Chief Engineer, Shipyard Superintendent and as troubleshooter when propulsion systems fail. He is part owner of FT Engineering AB.
any ship operator office staff got some serious headaches when their ships were laid up during the financial recession, but this is nothing compared to the headaches ship staff and superintendents will have when the ships are to enter service again. There is reason to believe that entering service will be at short notice and in a hurry, even if it today appears that the growth on the hull is faster than the growth in the financial market.
M
What will the condition of laid-up ships’ machinery be when the cargo appears again in the market? Previous financial crises also led to laid up ships, and at those times there were numerous surprises when machinery was started up after a long inactive period. This time a causious prediction would be that it might be even worse. Last time it was replacement of medium speed engine crank shafts that was the main headache, mostly due to corrosion.
Apart from marine growth on hull and propeller, which will require drydock to solve (there are fewer drydocks available now than during the last recession, and they are farther apart), a ship’s technical standard is more complex than ever before.
»Today it appears that the growth on the hull is faster than the growth in the financial market« CReViCe CoRRosion Stainless steel may suffer from crevice corrosion if exposed to high humidity, especially if the humidity contains chlorides.
Piping and pumping systems are often forgotten when a ship is inactive for a longer period of time and so are reduction gears and shafting systems. Sticking steam traps, leaking pump shaft seals, stuck isolating valves and regulating valves and clogged viscosimeters are only a few examples. Electronic and pneumatic regulating and monitoring systems can offer a few sleepless nights for a chief engineer, if they have not been treated properly at the time of lay-up. Dry rubber diaphragms in pneumatic systems or oxidized contacts are only two examples of problems that are usually very time consuming to correct. Cargo gear as cargo pumps, cranes, cargo hatches and ramps do all create certain problems, also when they are in frequent use and it will hardly be better when they have idled for a year in a humid environment.
Most owners have certainly made sure that main engines are well protected against corrosion by installing de-humidifiers in crank cases. Boilers are probably also well protected against corrosion. The chief engineeer may however find that the spare parts he were supposed to use have rusted away during the lay-up. What has to be born in mind is that machinery like main engines and boilers are more sensitive today than they were a decade ago, the rough built engines of yesterday do PHoTo: WWW.SHIPSPoTTING.CoM
Most engineers are aware of the above, hopefully the owner will give them ample time for start up of the machinery so that necessary minor repairs can be done in time. But what about the new problems that we have limited experience from since previous lay-ups? To restart a lap top will not always solve a problem, especially not if it has been exposed to high humidity, or lost its memory. The shipping industry has for many years been used as an experimental workshop for many manufacturers of electronic equipment. A five year old monitoring system may be considered so old that spare parts are difficult or impossible to get hold of. Also, many manufacturers might not exist after
»The shipping industry has been used as an experimental workshop for manufacturers of electronic equipment« the current recession. During the last decade it has been very hard to sell any equipment to a ship that is not regulated or monitored by electronic circuits of various qualities.
When the time comes, and we all hope that it will be soon, for the laid up ship to enter service, careful planning and ample time for testing of all equipment, especially the safety related ditto, will be an essential part of the start-up. During previous recessions in our business, ship repair facilities, companies with electronic skills and engine manufacturers have been in a great number, but today it is different. Engine manufacturers that can assist at start-up are few, with a limited number of technicians that can handle upcoming problems, and the ordinary service engineer is not always skilled in the electronics required for the engine operation. Many ship repair facilities suffer from lack of qualified technicians that can assist on complicated technical matters, related to plant start-up. On the electronic side, the manufacturer of the equipment is usually the only one that can troubleshoot the equipment, since specially programmed computers are required (it is well known that the car industry work in the same way, you can’t find what is wrong with you car if you don’t have the special computer for that particular car). Previous generations of machinery were delivered with detailed instruction books, often with drawings to scale and given tolerances. Today’s generation of engines are delivered with a tiny instruction book with very limited information and an e-mail address to the manufacturer. So in order to reduce headaches and have a good night’s sleep, it might be worthwhile to be ahead in the process of entering into service again, and this might be sooner than many pessimistic editor-in-chiefs have predicted.
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Low Humidity essential Maintaining low humidity is the most essential issue for protection of the engine and the control room. The Relative Humidity (RH) should be less than 60 per cent. If higher humidity is accepted, corrosion and oxidation will be widely spread. This is also valid for the bridge and cargo control room.
NORDIC MARITIME ACADEMIES
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 25
Technology
Spotlight
Nordic Master in Maritime Management An opportunity for officers and shore-based personnel in the shipping cluster to enhance knowledge in Maritime Management and acquire a Master Degree at Chalmers University of Technology
The programme is directed to: • officers looking for a broader and deeper knowledge of operating a vessel • officers trying to find a shore-based job in the shipping cluster • shore-based personnel looking for deeper knowledge in shipping and logistics Application deadline: 15 January 2010
www.nordicmaster.info
The Master´s Programme is run jointly by four Nordic Maritime Academies: Chalmers University of Technology, Åland University of Applied Science, Novia University of Applied Sciences and Vestfold University College.
26 SHIPGAZ NO 7 2009
By Rolf P Nilsson rolf@shipgaz.com
Report Fighting for survival
PHOTO: ROLF P NILSSON
The STX-built well intervention vessel Sarah. She is still lying at the shipyard, as the owner has failed to secure the necessary funding to take delivery.
Challenging times for European shipyards
Building high-end specialised vessels is Norwegian shipbuilders’ strategy to meet the global shipbuilding downturn. European shipyards are struggling, the industry is facing a huge challenge. If a major crisis is to be avoided, the time for new orders is five to twelve. Although statistics say that the current orderbook shows deliveries to 2012, industry sources claim that shipyards with up to half of the European shipbuilding capacity face a situation where the last man turns off the light and leaves at the end of next year if no new orders show up now.
High-value, specialised ships dominate the European orderbook. According to the Community of European Shipyards’ Association, CESA, 74 per cent of its member yards’ orderbook was for specialised ships in
2008, against 81 per cent of standard ships in the world orderbook at that time. Some of the specialized sectors do not face the looming over-supply situation that is a major concern for large bulkers, tankers and container carriers. As all other sectors, also the specialized ones, have been hit by slow demand growth due to recession and the limited availability of finance. Now CESA is calling for support with active stimulus for newbuilding projects such as replacing ageing tonnage in European waters. Access to project financing is also needed as well as new forms of innovation col-
»Our shipbuilding will be strong, we are so specialized« Erik Haakonsholm, VP of STX Norway Offshore Design.
laboration. The EU Commission is also urged to find ways to restore and defend a level playing field. ”It is not a question of returning to the old days”, says Reinhard Luken, secretary-general of CESA, meaning direct subsidies to the shipyards.
The pass from the shipbuilding industry has been met with mixed reactions in Brussels. Bureaucrats and politicians at EU level recognises the severity of the industry’s situation, and some are in favour of some kind of scheme to support European shipbuilding, while others are hesitant bearing in mind failed and costly attempts in previous shipbuilding crises. Some critics also claim that a con-
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 27
Fighting for survival
Report Photo: ulstein
»We will maybe see a 50 per cent shipyard capacity cut in the coming years, maybe in the next five years« sequence of the long demand boom experienced by the shipbuilding industry contributed to hiding the underlying structural problems at European yards. With full orderbooks and production capacity running at its max, nobody had the time or will, critics argue, to address those in many cases sensitive issues that have to be tackled to enhance productivity and to meet the competition from Asian shipbuilders.
There are also more nearby threats to handle, not least from East European shipbuilders. EU shipyards are focusing on high-end, expensive and complex ship projects, but the competence gap that is their strength is closing, not least by the EU shipbuilding industry’s own hand. Many shipyards have outsourced the hull construction to East European shipyards for cost reasons, but this has also led to a transfer of competence. If a shipyard builds hulls for a time, it won’t take that long before they get the ambition and the necessary knowledge to also equip the ship and deliver a complete vessel. The European shipyard industry is estimated to directly employ around 100,000 people. If EU shipyards go down, the number of people affected will however not be restricted to those directly involved. Subcontractors, companies developing equipment, research institutions and other activities depending on shipbuilding will follow. The shipbuilding side has also met resistance from shipowners when claiming that support to European shipowners have contributed to the enormous orderbook at Asian yards, and asks if this is a good way to spend European taxpayers’ money. This has been countered by Europe’s shipowners saying that support to European shipbuilders will not solve their (the shipbuilders’)
The siblings Tore and Gunvor Ulstein lead the family-owned Ulstein Group. problem, and that it would also make things worse for the shipowners, as Asian shipbuilding nations would follow suit with support to their industries. According to the shipowners, this will only trigger a subsidy contest with increased oversupply of new vessels as a consequence. There are however other voices in the European shipbuilding industry than the doom watchers’. You’ll find one source in Norway, where the crisis is acknowledged, but where there also is a strong belief in the future.
The Møre region in Western Norway houses one of the strongest maritime shipbuilding and marine technology clusters in the world, recognised by the Norwegian government as one of 12 NCEs (Norwegian Centre of Expertise). These NCEs are clusters consisting of world-class enterprises in their field, and as facilitator for the maritime NCE a not-for-profit organisation has been set up in Ålesund. The region has an impressive cluster including 15 design companies, 14 ship-
Ulstein The company was founded in 1917 and has approximately 800 employees. The companies in the Ulstein Group are gathered under the holding company Ulstein Mekaniske Verksted Holding ASA.
yards, 159 equipment suppliers and ship owning companies. The companies employed over 21,000 people in 2008 and had a combined turnover of NOK 51.5 billion. For perspective, the entire county of Møre and Romsdal has about 250,000 inhabitants, with some 42,000 people living in the largest city Ålesund.
The core discipline for this cluster is offshore supply services. As this is at the utmost forefront of maritime technology development, there is a significant element of research and development in the region. Although in many cases being fierce competitors in the market, companies stress their commitment to the cluster and its importance for knowledge sharing and competence building. At STX Norway, the global crisis is acknowledged but also somewhat down toned. The company has delivered 42 offshore/specialised vessels in the last 18 months. According to Erik Haakonsholm, VP of STX Norway Offshore Design, there have been no
28 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Fighting for survival Photo: stx
The STX Norway yard in Brattvaag. cancellations of orders yet and the order backlog consists of 46 vessels worth NOK 20.5 billion. In addition, the company has ten design packages in order from external yards. The last year, the company has however only secured four new orders. ”These are challenging times, but at the moment we have no concern for
STX Europe STX Europe comprises 15 yards in Norway, Finland, France, Romania, Brazil and Vietnam.
our five Norwegian shipyards”, says Haakonsholm. He also sees a future ahead.
”Our shipbuilding will be strong, we are so specialized”, he says. Although many newbuildings will enter the offshore supply markets, adding to the oversupply situation in several niches, Haakonsholm points
out that most vessels built for the first offshore period in the 1970ies are still sailing, indicating that there will be a substantial replacement need coming up. The question is what is needed to make oil companies push the goahead buttons for new development projects. According to Haakonsholm and
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 29
Fighting for survival
Report Photo: rolf p Nilsson
»We ordered equipment for both vessels at the same time« spokespersons for several other companies when talking to maritime journalists during an international press tour in the region last month, an oil price of USD 70 or above per barrel, and that the oil companies feel that this is sustainable over time, is a key factor. During the last month the price has followed an upward trend, from about USD 67 to close to USD 80 per barrel at the end of October.
At the Ulstein shipyard in Ulsteinvik on Hareidlandet some 30 minutes by fast ferry from Ålesund, you can find concrete evidence of the financial crisis. Moored alongside is the well intervention vessel Sarah. This newbuilding was completed and an impressive namegiving ceremony was held in July this year. At the time of writing, she is however still lying at the shipyard, as the owner Marine Subsea has failed to secure the necessary funding to take delivery, despite having a tenyear charter agreement for the vessel signed by Sonangol for operations in Angolan waters. Ulstein has carried on with the construction of a sister vessel, the Karianne, for the same owner. This vessel is planned for delivery in October next year, but the yard is actually ahead of the schedule. “Because of the difficult situation a couple of years ago, we ordered equipment for both vessels at the same
Talking at the NEVA conference in St Petersburg, Reinhard Luken, secretary-general of CESA, drew up a very gloomy picture of the situation for European shipbuilders. time”, says Gunvor Ulstein, CEO of the Ulstein Group.
She is however confident, and believes that a solution is imminent. If all pieces fall into place, the Sarah might have cast off its mooring ropes at the time when you read this. The family-owned Ulstein
Group has about 800 employees, made a healthy NOK 431 million profit last year, has an order backlog worth around NOK 4 billion and has full utilization of its production capacity until September 2011. “To use money, you have to make money” is one cornerstone in the company’s philosophy. And money
30 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Fighting for survival Photo:Nordic yards/wadan yards
»It is very reassuring in these times to be family owned and not a public company« they spend, to secure its future presence in the market. “On average, we spend around NOK 80 million on R&D annually”, says Tore Ulstein, deputy CEO of the group. Another cornerstone is to never take on more than 90 per cent of the capacity in all its companies, to secure deliveries on time.
The Ulsteins also stress the importance of being a partner of a very strong cluster. Being a familyowned company has its advantages if you want to work and develop long-term. “It is very reassuring in these times to be family-owned and not a public company, we don’t have to put resources on short-term issues as quarterly reports or to support share prices”, says Gunvor Ulstein. A long-term strategy is needed according to Gunvor Ulstein. She expects a difficult year next year for offshore projects, and probably also in 2011, but this could be turned into an advantage.
“A downturn is good for innovation” she says and exemplifies with the company’s X-Bow design that was developed during the previous slack in the market. “We have to take advantage of the opportunity” says Gunvor Ulstein.
Nordic Yards in Warnemünde, formerly known as Wadan Shipyards. The Group also has a yard in Wismar.
CESA The Community of European Shipyards’ Association was established to promote the interests of the European shipbuilding and shiprepair industry.
“We also need better understanding, our technicians must know what money a client can earn in Europe as well as in Brazil.” She identifies the difficulty to secure finance for newbuilding projects as a major obstacle and also highlights the way China is moving its position forward.
“Nordea and DnB turn to German and UK banks to syndicate loans. These have suffered tremendously and the Nordic banks have no counterparts. Chinese banks are solid, the Chinese save and banks lend to a greater extent than in the West”, she
claims. In her view, the shipbuilding overcapacity in the world is substantial. A correction will occur. “We will maybe see a 50 per cent shipyard capacity cut in the coming years, maybe in the next five years”, says Gunvor Ulstein. Slashing the world capacity by half will mean the end for several shipbuilders, design companies, equipment suppliers and other maritime activities, but it is apparent that Ulstein does not intend to be one of them, an attitude they share with the other actors in the strong maritime cluster in this part of Norway.
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»I’ll be the last man standing«
The breed called captain-owner is rapidly disappearing from the maritime business. On the Danish maritime scene there are only a few coasters left owned by their captains. Many of the coasters disappear with the retirement of the captains. TEXT & PHOTO: BENT MIKKELSEN
Shipgaz visited the 800 DWT coaster Saturn in August, while discharging a special cargo at Esbjerg on the Danish west coast. The ship is one of only four operative coasters below the 1,000 DWT mark. he total fleet below 1,000 DWT is nine units, of which two are museum coasters (the Caroline S and the Samka), while three ships – the Dania, Malene and Atlas – are laid up for sale ever since their certificates ran out. The Saturn is owned by captain Jens Nørgaard Nielsen (born 1964), who has been signed on to the Saturn since it was purchased in 1989 in part-ownership between himself and his father, Poul Nørgaard Nielsen. All told the present Saturn is the fourth in the Nielsen family’s ownership, going back to the mid 1950s.
T
“I believe that I’m going to be the last man standing in this business”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen. “I kind of like the way of life on a small coaster like this one and have no intention of doing it any other way. I’m sometimes tempted to purchase a bigger vessel in order to have a healthier economy, but at the moment I don’t think I will gain any more profit from such a vessel.” “If one looks at a vessel like the Saturn it should not be possible to earn a living from it, but we have managed to do so for several years, despite the market. I think the main advantage I have over my colleagues is that I’m today the owner of a ship with no mortgages. That gives me a good head start when it comes to the day-to-day economy”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen. “But that fact doesn’t give any kind of leeway to
NørresundbyRederi A/S Founded in 1989. Started out with one ship, but today the company controls nine coasters. Owned by Michael Krog Christensen, who also owns brokering firm Janus Andersen & Co.
The Saturn moored at Esbjerg with a con siderably high deck cargo, but with only a few tons on board.
Captain Jens Nørgaard Nielsen is giving a hand with the cutting of the sea fastening after discharging of the goods.
Apart from the training ship Denmark, Jens Nørgaard Nielsen’s discharge book does not show any other ship names than the Saturn – but several of them.
During the years a few technical installations has eased up the work load for the crew. An electrical travelling crane takes all the hatch covers in one operation.
»In that plan I’m to sell the Saturn as quickly a possible and invest the profit in one of the pallet carriers run by Nørresundby Rederi and have a nice steady job as captain or chief mate on board« spending a lot of money or not working hard. On the contrary, we have to be extremely careful with all our expenses and do much of the maintenance work our selves, instead of sailing to a shipyard. There will simply not be enough money to pay a shipyard worker to do some replacing of steel on an old vessel like this. Along with my crew, who are two Filipino seamen, we do a lot of the steel work ourselves on the lay days that we have between cargos.”
The Saturn is run strictly with special cargos, which was just the case on the arrival at Esbjerg in August. On board was only around 100 tons of cargo spread over nearly 30 items of varying kinds, like a steel construction welded to the deck and hatch coamings and protruding six to seven meters up. All material demounted from the installation barge Sea Jack in Ijmuiden and sailed to Esbjerg to be put in stock. “That’s the kind of cargo for the Saturn”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen. “There is absolutely no economy in taking a standard bulk cargo from Europort to Scandinavia. We need this kind of special assignment in order to gain a profit. So in cooperation with our commercial broker, Janus Andersen & Co in Nørresundby, we often wait until these kinds of cargo come up. Sometimes we only sail a couple of voyages in a month, but the economy shows nice black figures despite the fewer number of voyages.”
The Saturn arrived at Esbjerg on August 23 and was discharged in the early hours of the following day. At the end of the same day the vessel was ready for the next cargo, but it was not until September 2 that the ship arrived at Hamburg to take a special cargo bound for Kristiansand. “The waiting time alongside the quay is used for fixing up the ship. Amongst the things done on board is fixing a nice dayroom for the crew. In former days, with much more crew than now, they had only a small messroom, but now it has been changed to a larger room with a fixed computer with satellite internet connection and Skype, making it possible to make telephone calls to the family back home in the Philippines”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen. “We still use the cellphone when we are in Danish ports” explains Benjie Suarez. “We don’t have a computer in our home, so my wife has to go to an Internet café to use Skype, but it’s not that expensive to use a cellphone from Denmark.”
“I’m very satisfied with the Filipino crew”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen. “I have three Filipinos signed on, but one at a time is always at home on vacation. All together they cover the whole year.” “At present the mate – the fourth person on board
Captain Jens Nørgaard Nielsen talks with one of his two Filipino crew members during the operation at Esbjerg.
Benjie Suarez (front) and Glen Busalla are two of three Filipinos employed on Saturn. One is alway away for vacation in the Filippines. Both have served several years on board the coaster.
»The ship is a little old, but we are still able to keep up with the mechanics like the engine. It is still the original engine and it works without trouble.« – is one of my former colleagues. I have signed on captain Egon Baand, who was a captain-owner himself until February 2008. He sold his coaster the Lone Baand, but was not ready for full retirement even though he is now 67 years old. So he is sailing with me on the Saturn, and to be honest we have a great time together on board”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen.
“I’m not yet prepared to go the same way. My broker and their shipowning department – Nørresundby Rederi A/S – have already drawn up a plan for my future career. In that plan I’m to sell the Saturn as quickly as possible and invest the profit in one of the pallet carriers run by Nørresundby Rederi and have a nice steady job as captain or chief mate on board.” “It is nice to be cared for, but I must admit that I like to make my own decisions whether to sail or not, instead of being like a bus driver with steady hours and vacation every second month.
“I like being my own boss. I’m only two years older than the ship, but I think we can get along together for some more years.” Jens Nørgaard Nielsen has himself already a special career at sea. He started, obviously, on his father’s coaster the Saturn as a young boy sailing with his dad.
In the early 1980s he signed on the state owned training ship Danmark to have the compulsory basic course needed to start any maritime education. At the end of the six months of sailing he was nominated best mate by his fellow students and crew on the entire voyage. Shortly after, he went back to sailing on the Saturn under his father’s captainship. So apart from sailing on the training ship, his discharge book does not show any other names than the Saturn. “I have only sailed on our own coasters. I have never longed for any other way of sailing. I saw my father’s and mother’s lives sailing together and found that it was a nice way of life. And it is still so, I don’t envy anyone else’s life at sea. I have my own”, he adds.
The Saturn was launched from the Dutch shipyard Scheepswerf Vooruitgang in Foxhol on Winschoterdiep on December 22, 1965, and was named the Wilma Frank for the German captain-owner Konrad Frank in Brake. Her career under German flag ended on March 1972, when the coaster was sold to Peer Liebmann Jensen in Frederikssund, Denmark, and was renamed the Douro Star for the Star companies. Peer Liebmann Jensen purchased a fleet of coasters in the early 1970s for money invested by ordinary citizens. In 1979, the ship was sold to Marstal, becoming the Dorca in the hands of Captain Hans Christian Grube. After ten years and a change of ownership to to his son Carsten Grube, the coaster was sold to Nørresundby in May 1989 and changed name to the Saturn. “The ship is a little old, but we are still able to keep up with the mechanics of the engine”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen. “It is still the original engine and it works without trouble.”
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The Saturn is an oldfashioned coaster with a special MWM-engine where the engine’s running direction has to be turned if the ship is to go astern. “It works, but we have to be extra careful on our manoeuvres”, says Jens Nørgaard Nielsen.
42 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Stena Bulk on the move Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
Stena Bulk to conquer Russia from Finland
Stena Bulk closed its office in Russia and opened a new one in Finland. Now all business with the customers in Russia and the Baltic Sea region is handled from Helsinki. In 2003 Stena Bulk was the first international tanker owner to establish an office in Moscow. “Everyone, including ourselves, was going after the growing Russian market for oil shipments. Unlike the others, who worked from for example from London or Geneva, we decided to go straight to the centre of events”, explains Ulf Ryder, President and CEO of Stena Bulk.
It was the right move then, but Ulf Ryder says that it became more and more obvious that it was quite difficult to make business in Russia. “We learnt a lot during these
years, but we finally decided to close our office in Moscow. Of course we still wanted to be present in the Baltic Sea and therefore we opened an office in Helsinki instead.” “We simply think that the Finns are better to do business with the Russians, because they have a more pragmatic view on Russia and Russian business ethics. Now we have an office with eyes and ears Eastwards, that is Russia, Southwards, that is
»You must be in the business in a longterm perspective, for better and for worse« Mauri Harki, General Manager & Head of Stena Bulk Finland.
Latvia and Poland and Westwards, that is the rest of the Baltic.”
The Helsinki office is managed by Mauri Harki, General Manager & Head of Stena Bulk Finland. He has been working for Neste Oil and Fortum both in Finland and abroad and has almost three decades of experience from tanker operations. The last ten years he was vice president for chartering and commercial activities in Neste Shipping. “Our mission is to expand Stena Bulk’s presence in the sea transports in the Baltic Sea area. There has been a will for that for a long time within
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 43
Stena Bulk on the move
Report Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
Ulf Ryder, CEO of Stena Bulk, thinks that the B-Max is the ideal Baltic Sea crude oil carrier. Stena Bulk but now we will start realizing these strategies. Some might say that this is the wrong time to expand the business. We think that now is definitively the right time.”
Mauri Harki thinks that the market is so sensitive that you constantly have to be present, offering customers your services. In his opinion it is not possible to run away as soon as there occurs a weaker market situation. “It is not possible to establish a position on the market in just one day. You must be in the business in a long-term perspective, for better and for worse. Our purpose is to show our customers that our activities are continuous, systematic and long-term. Only this way it is possible in the future to score the fruits of a wide portfolio of customers.” Stena Bulk has a clear expansion strategy in the Baltic. “If all parts fit together as planned our aim is to become a major player with a market share of 15 per cent of
the crude oil shipments in the Baltic Sea. This is the segment which we initially will focus upon”, says Mauri Harki. He stresses that this is not only about a Russian strategy. It is about the whole Baltic Sea area, including Finland, Sweden, the Baltic States, Poland and Russia. “There is also a significant potential in shipments outside Russia. One must remember that there are a lot of other loading ports than just Primorsk.”
Developing environmental friendly tonnage, which also is cost efficient and benefits the economy of scale, is one of the ways of developing the activities in the Baltic Sea. “Generally the politicians don’t like oil transports because of the environmental risks”, explains Ulf Ryder. “But we have developed a design called B-Max with capacity for 200,000 tons of oil. Although twice the size of an Aframax, this design is much
»If all parts fit together as planned our aim is to become a major player with a market share of 15 per cent.« Stena bulk Stena Bulk operates some 72 tankers. The company is part of the Stena Group which has 17,000 employees in Sweden and other countries.
safer and has superior manoeuvrability. Now we feel that we have support both from the Finnish and Swedish governments to develop this project, which means safer vessels and considerably less tanker movements.”
According to Ulf Ryder there is each month about a hundred Aframax tankers leaving Primorsk fully loaded with crude oil and as many sailing in ballast in the opposite direction. “The Stena B-Max concept is needed to prevent a traffic infarct in Primorsk, with over long waiting times. We think that this is the name of the game.” Ulf Ryder knows that alliances and a long-term cooperation with key customers are crucial for expansion.
44 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Stena Bulk on the move Photo: pär-henrik sjöström
»We are able to start our operations with this manning« Stena Bulk has for many years been in close cooperation with Neste Oil. They now have three jointly owned tankers, Palva, Stena Poseidon and Stena Arctica, all trading for Neste Oil under Finnish flag with Finnish crews.
“The new management of Neste Oil has a different view and is not willing to take risks in shipping, which is a non-core business. On the other hand, tankers form the core business for Stena Bulk and we are willing to take risks within shipping. I see us as a complement in Neste Oil’s new strategy, where we might be able to invest in new vessels and in return carry some of their cargo.” Ulf Ryder stresses that it is a give and take situation. In return he thinks that Stena is able to develop special vessels for Neste Oil’s shipments, thus removing such items from their balance sheet.
Mrs Marie Ryder, former NHL pro hockey player Christian Ruuttu, CEO Ulf Ryder and General Manager Mauri Harki during open house in the new Helsinki office. “I would not at all be surprised if we would develop a concept with double redundancy for Finnish coastal shipping, perhaps based upon the 15,000 DWT E-Max product tanker. This new design would have between 15 and 30 per cent less fuel consumption than conventional designs of corresponding size.” Mauri Harki says that there are also
a lot of other potential customers in the Baltic Sea area. “I think that the form of cooperation and alliances in the future will be more versatile than traditional joint ventures. Neste Oil is of course not the only potential customer. But we mainly work with oil refiners and oil producers, because, like us, they all have a long-term strategy.”
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No 7 2009 Shipgaz 45
Stena Bulk on the move
Report
The Helsinki-office is responsible for all commercial and cargo operations in the area, while the main office in Gothenburg provides all supporting functions. The organisation is therefore minimized and consists of two persons.
“We are able to start our operations with this manning, but when we reach our aimed market share we are able to house more staff in this office”, Mauri Harki says. The aim for the capacity employed in the Baltic is between five and eight vessels. Mauri Harki underlines that the customers define how long voyages the vessels will do. “They decide where the cargo is carried – to Baltic Sea ports, North Sea ports or even to the United States. The duration of a round trip may therefore vary from a week to a month.” Now most of the cargo is carried from Russia to the refineries in the Nordic area, Neste Oil in Finland, Preem in Sweden and Statoil in Norway. They are followed by the other refineries in Northern Europe, above all Rotterdam. “All of the tonnage we operate will
The B-Max. not be our own. We take vessels on both short-term and long-term time charter. A critical mass is however provided by own vessels”, Mauri Harki informs.
Stena Bulk has long experience from navigation in Arctic waters. The bulk carrier Stena Arctica, which no longer is in the fleet, carried an expe-
dition to the Antarctic in 1988–1989. The tankers employed in the Baltic Sea during the winter are all ice strengthened to Finnish Swedish Ice Class 1A. “We think we have a much stronger know-how about ice navigation than for example Greek, Indian or Japanese owners”, concludes Ulf Ryder.
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46 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Bent Mikkelsen bent@shipgaz.com
Report Danish pilot fee
Photo: bent mikkelsen
Børge Jensen has sailed as captain on the coaster Vest for 37 years.
“Another terminal blow to coaster traffic”
Picture this: You are a captain of 61, sailing the same coaster for 37 years without serious casualties. Then one day you are obliged to have a pilot on board in certain waters. And the pilotage bill just got 430 per cent higher. This is the reality for captain Børge Jensen on the coaster Vest of 450 DWT. The ship has been owned by his wife Else Sørensen since September 1972. A new law for pilotage in Danish waters will raise the price for using a pilot in a large number of smaller ports served by the national pilot association Danpilot. Ships bound for the ports in the Limfjord will have these dramatic rises in pilot fees, while the large ports like Aarhus still “sell” pilot services on a voluntary basis in the sense that only a few ships have to take a pilot.
The idea behind the new legislation and fees is to make the pilot service to the Limfjord cost related instead of subsidised by the much more lucrative pilot service for large ships in transit on route through Danish waters. Traffic with the money from the
large pilot fees for transit sailing is no longer allowed to cross-subsidise the smaller pilot services in Denmark. The crosssubsidising has been scrutinized by the EU Commission and found illegal under the competition laws within the EU.
»It might have cured the problem but the patient died anyway« In the case of the Vest, the fee for passing the Oddesund Bridge in the Limfjord until the end of September was DKK 699. After October 1, the fee was DKK 2,649 and the service compulsory.
“It might be cost efficient, but it will certainly kill the customers and with them the ports that the pilot serves. So it might have cured the problem but the patient died anyway”, says Svend Flyvbjerg, chairman of Rederiforening for Mindre Skibe. There is simply no way a small ship like the Vest will be able to find more money to pay for a pilot. In the case of the Vest, the fee for passing the
Oddesund Bridge in the Limfjord until the end of September was DKK 699. After October 1, the fee was DKK 2,649 and the service compulsory. “The owner of the Vest cannot get DKK 2,649 more for a certain cargo in an open competitive market for seaborne transport”, says Svend Flyvbjerg. “The consequence is very clear for everyone but the Ministry of Defence, where the pilot service belongs. The seaborne traffic will move to lorries and road transport. The same seaborne transport the politicians otherwise talk nicely about when they have to make speeches with a glass of wine in their hands, celebrating something”, says Svend Flyvbjerg. “My own ship the Saxo had a contract lifting gypsum boards from Holland to a central distribution centre at Skive in the middle of the Limfjord
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 47
Danish pilot fee
»Børge Jensen on the Vest has already made more passages of this particular bridge than most pilots will make in their whole career« for some years”, explains Svend Flyv bjerg. “Now it will be too expensive to use ships like the Saxo on a direct sailing, but if the import company uses Aarhus instead, the ship can call the port without using a pilot and transport the gypsum boards by truck on the roads and even save money. Another terminal blow to coaster traf fic”, says Svend Flyvbjerg.
“On top of this silly system with compulsory pilotage passing the bridge at Oddesund is the fact that Børge Jensen on the Vest has already made more passages of this particu lar bridge than most pilots will make in their whole career”, says Svend Flyvbjerg. The story of Børge Jensen and the coaster Vest started in the early 1970s, when he joined a class at Skagen Skip perskole studying to become captain for smaller coasters (sætteskipper). In the same class was a female student named Else Sørensen, who already had a career at sea by sailing with her father Gilbert Sørensen. Børge Jensen and Else Sørensen fell in love and got married shortly before Else Sørensen and her father bought the coaster Vest in September 1972. The first couple of months, Børge sailed on a Marstal registered coaster, but after a while they joined together on board the Vest along with Gilbert, who was the captain. The family lived together on board most of the time, but on several occasions Else was the captain on board. This lasted until the middle of 1976, when Else had to leave the ship to give birth to the couple’s first child.
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“She stayed on board until two weeks before the birth, but both Gil bert and I were concerned that the child might come while we were at sea”, explains Børge Jensen. “Now Else stays at home with our grand children, who by the way love to come on board and sail with their grandfa ther’s ship. Our grandchildren have now grown so much that they begin
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48 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Danish pilot fee Photo: Bent Mikkelsen
Else Sørensen, owner of the Vest. to understand a little more than what is good for them. I used to go around saying that running the Vest is not a good business and I am only happy to earn a couple of hundred kroner to give my grandchildren. It happened again some weeks ago that I gave them 100 kroner each, but the oldest boy, aged six, began to ask me: How much did you earn grandpa? Not much, I replied, but he wanted a figure.” The grandchildren have their own
cabin on board with bunks as usual, but also with a computer loaded with games.
The 1951-built coaster Vest is not the smallest Danish cargo vessel, but almost, with only the Volo being a little smaller (420 DWT) plus the museum cargo ship Caroline S. “We will continue to take another four years, if the market gives us enough money to run the ship. The ship passed another special survey
A LOT OF SPACE TO MANOEUVRE. BUT NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE.
in the early summer of 2009 and can continue until 2012. I think that will be the last year I am sailing as captain of the Vest”, says Børge Jensen. The Vest is normally run by a crew of four persons: Captain, mate and two deckhands. The two deckhands are Polish citizens, and one of them is quite an institution on board. He has been signed on for 19 years and has no plans to leave the ship. “We gave up taking on Danish boys with drug problems years ago. And as we sailed a lot of voyages from Police in Poland 19 years ago, I asked the Harbourmaster Office if there were any Polish sailors wanting a job. There were, and he is still here”, says Børge Jensen. During all the years Børge Jensen has been a hired captain in his wife’s company. Until 1998 in part-ownership with her father Gilbert, who retired that year but still takes care of the vessel when she is lying at her home port of Nørresundby, at the age of 90 years. “I have never felt the need to be an owner of the Vest, I just use the ship every day and earn a living for my wife”, says Børge Jensen.
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50 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Madli Vitismann, madli@shipgaz.com
Report Estonian towing market
Photo: madli vitismann
PKL and Alfons Håkans – main actors on the Estonian towing market.
Declining business, more actors The competition within the towing market in Estonia would become even fiercer if Smit would enter the market. The total cargo turnover in the different harbours of Estonia’s leading port AS Tallinna Sadam (Port of Tallinn) decreased by 19 per cent last year. This has of course also affected the demand for towing services. Despite that the two market leading towing companies PKL and Alfons Håkans expect further competition. The large international towing group Smit is reported to be interested in the Estonian market.
Smit has earlier denied any interest in entering the Estonian market. Now the activities of the company are moving closer and closer. The latest step was to establish a joint venture with the towing company Towmar in Klaipeda, which most likely also will be active in the port of Ventspils. Also PKL and their main competitor Alfons
Håkans have their eyes at the towing market in Klaipeda. PKL’s Chairman of the Supervisory Board Rein Tõntson believes that Smit is not yet quite ready to come to Estonia. When they are, he assures that PKL is not afraid of this new competitor. “We have been able to defend our positions in Estonia, we have also held out against Smit in Ventspils – why should we not hold out now“, he asks. Neither is managing director Arvo Veskimets of OÜ Alfons Håkans particularly worried. He thinks that a third competitor would make the situation even more interesting on the market.
»We have been able to defend our positions in Estonia« Rein Tõntson, the PKL Chairman of the Supervisory Board.
“In the old days it used to be quite common that vessels were waiting in a row for a tug. If someone is pleased with the situation right now, it should be the ports and the port operators, because tugs are nowadays always available.”
The market leader in Estonian towing, the Estonian company AS PKL, was established in 1992 when the tugs of Port of Tallinn were privatised. Towards the end of the millenium PKL launched a fleet renewal program and the first newbuilding was commissioned in 2000. The fleet now include ten newbuildings, of which three are escort tugs with a bollard pull between 45 and 65 tons and six are compact harbour tugs with a bollard pull of 35 tons.
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 51
Estonian towing market
PKL established a subsidiary in Latvia in 2002 and took the place of Amberholdings Latvija already the following year. After the sale of the company the tugs were transferred to St. Petersburg. In December 2005 PKL already had five tugs in Riga and the company also did the harbour’s icebreaking. Then Freeport of Riga decided to order tugs of its own. Employment for the freeport’s
Photo: Pär-Henrik Sjöström
Late delivery of the newbuilding Eridan, a tug designed for assistance of tankers in Muuga harbour, was indirectly to have a dramatic impact on the market situation. Intended for delivery in spring 2004, the delivery dragged on to late autumn 2004. Before she was delivered the Finnish tug owner Alfons Håkans Ltd had entered the market, establishing an Estonian subsidiary. The company’s activities in Estonia started in summer 2004. When PKL projected escort tugs it was expected that escort towing would become compulsory in Estonia. Still today it is not, and because of the new competition PKL had to expand abroad to find employment for all of its tugs.
Report
newbuildings Santa and Stella, both delivered last year, was guaranteed by new port rules. Assistance by two tugs (with a total output that was the same as Santa and Stella together) became compulsory for all vessels with a gross tonnage more than 20,000 or a length over 180 meters. The decision if there was a need for towage was given to the harbour master office, no matter if there were any agreements between shipping companies and the tug owner. The competi-
pkl PKL is specialized in harbour and sea towage in different Estonian, Latvian and Finnish ports. At the present time PKL has a fleet of 16 tugs.
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When PKL turned to the competition authorities, Latvian Competition Council decided that Freeport of Riga had discriminated the other actors by misusing its dominating position on the market. In January this year PKL established a joint venture with the Latvi-
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52 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Estonian towing market Photo: madli vitismann
PKL’s tug Eridan, built in 2004.
»So often we have seamen waiting in line behind the door looking for work« Paldiski, they are moved there from other ports or from Hanko. In addition to the tugs of these two owners there are a further 19 tugs under Estonian flag, owned by 13 different companies, of which seven are ports. These are smaller and older tugs, even the youngest of them is soon 20 years old. PKL is the largest tug owner in the Baltic States. On the domestic market the company faces competition from Finnish Alfons Håkans, that is larger than PKL. However Alfons Håkans’ Estonian subsidiary is much smaller than PKL. PKL operates nine tugs under the Estonian flag while Alfons Håkans now has four tugs in Estonia, of which two under Estonian flag.
AS PKL had a net income of EUR 9
The Finnish-flagged tug Hermes and the Estonian-flagged tug Pallas in Muuga harbour. an tug owner Ostas Flote. In Ventspils the new company PKL Flote use mainly Ostas Flote’s tugs and in Riga PKL’s tugs. In the future Riga will likely see competition between tug owners and not between a tug owner and a port company. PKL Flote’s market share in Ventspils is about 75 percent.
Last year PKL also entered the domestic market of Alfons Håkans by offering towing services with one or two tugs in Kotka and Hamina. This year PKL returned from St. Petersburg, where the activities had been started up by a joint venture in 2007. Now the market has been cut by half and the Russian currency has been devaluated. Compared with year 2007, PKL’s partner Baltic Fleet carried through between 12,000 and 13,000 towing missions, the number has decreased to less than 10,000 lately. The tugs Mars and Arkturus stay in the ownership of PKL St. Petersburg and in the Russian register, but have been bareboat-chartered to Estonia as
alfons håkans Today, Finnish Alfons Håkans has a fleet of more than 30 tugs. The company’s towing business dates back to the years 1910–1915, when the first two tugs – the steam tugs Leo and Tor – were purchased to serve the company founder Johannes Håkans’ sawmill with timber.
PKL has plans for a come back to St. Petersburg in a more suitable time. In the same way as PKL was a victim in Latvia, OÜ Alfons Håkans was of the opinion that they faced unfair competition in Estonia. The company stated last year that PKL did not agree to participate in assistance of large vessels despite being asked by Alfons Håkans. The Estonian Competition Authority decided that PKL cannot demand that the customers hire all the assisting tugs from the same company. For example a large tanker may need assistance from four tugs. PKL estimates that its share of the market in Estonian ports is about 75 percent while OÜ Alfons Håkans estimates their own market share to 30 percent. The true market shares may be about 3:1.
PKL have their tugs based mainly in Muuga and Paldiski, while Alfons Håkans operates from Vanasadam (Old City harbour) and Muuga. When the company need towing capacity in
million last year and recorded a profit of EUR 2,14 million. The Estonian share of the group’s incomes was 61 percent and Latvia’s 34 percent. OÜ Alfons Håkans operates vessels owned by the parent company and the profit EUR 5,700 last year depended on what charter the parent company had decided for its tugs. The Estonian subsidiary had 91 percent of its incomes – EUR 1,84 million in 2008 – from Estonia. The PKL Group has a total of 160 employees in all countries, of these many are seafarers who have been working on the tugs before the privatisation. Alfons Håkans has 25 employees in Estonia, but Estonian seamen are also working on the tugs under Finnish flag. As well Calypso as Pallas have had the same crews during all five years under Estonian flag. Now the labour market in Estonia has declined so much that the Member of the Management Board Iris Raudsepp of OÜ Alfons Håkans feels sad. “So often we have seamen waiting in line behind the door looking for work. Every time I become sad when I listen to their stories.”
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54 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Rolf P Nilsson rolf@shipgaz.com
Report Sustainable ship design
Photo: stX eURoPe
STX has presented a new innovative forebody incorporated in its PSV 09 CD design.
Taking ship design a step further New ship designs are developed as the environmental impact has become an increasingly important factor in the offshore sector. There is at least one close parallel between the development of the offshore industry and air travel. Starting as risky activities with many accidents, injured people and fatalities in the early days, sparked concern for their future. It is hard to develop an industry that keeps on killing people, and safety became an important issue, not least for commercial reasons.
In the offshore industry, a gungho attitude and an almost Wild West approach to the exploration of offshore oil and gas findings were replaced by an ambitious and safety conscious culture. This has led to a situation in which the offshore shipping service sector has left most, if not all, of traditional shipping behind in the development of maritime safety. Add to this the oil companies increasing awareness of the public per-
ception of their activities and you have an arena where much competence, time and not least money are focused on research and development, with a widespread and by all accepted vision that the aim is zero accidents. This way, safety and crew comfort in some of the most demanding geographical areas of the world have become crucial issues for oil companies brand building and for offshore service providers’ ability to recruit new people and to retain experienced professionals.
»Traditionally, there has been no incentive for shipowners to invest in environment optimized hull design« Erik Haakonsholm, vice president of STX Norway Offshore Design AS.
Although environment awareness has been an item for several years, it is now rising on the work agenda. As in all other industries,
energy companies’ concern over not least emissions to air has steadily increased in recent years. “Traditionally, the customers have paid the bunker bill, so there has been no incentive for shipowners to invest in environment optimized hull design”, says Erik Haakonsholm, vice president of STX Norway Offshore Design AS.
Now there is, as oil majors are becoming more and more aware of emissions when chartering in vessels. Less consumption, and thereby reduced emissions, is becoming an increasingly important argument in a charter negotiation, although this could also be seen as somewhat of a paradox. By being its worst customer as a consumer, you can actually also be an oil company’s best offshore service provider. STX has recently launched a hull
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 55
Sustainable ship design
Report Photo: Rolf P Nilsson
Ulstein’s newbuilding the Olympic Hera has powerful towing resources.
Based on this and with an ambition to optimize a ship’s hull from a fuel efficiency perspective, STX has developed a new bow to minimize the resistance of waves irrespective of their height. The underwater hull and its bulb have been optimized for calm water sailings. Inspired by America’s cup yacht designs, the area above the bulb has been designed to meet smaller waves, and the reduced flare in the upper part of the bow is designed to handle cutting through large waves.
Photo: Rolf P Nilsson
design that is used in its new PSV 09 CD design. When you see the pictures of supply ships riding out storms with tremendous waves, it is easy to believe that this is normal conditions in the North Sea, but it is not. It is true that when the waves are high in this area of the world, they are really high, but this is actually, if not rare, at least not common. Studies by STX show that wave heights in the North Sea are less than 1.5 meters between 65 and 95 days per year. In roughly 250 to 265 days per year they might reach a significant height of between 1.5 and 5.5 metres. Waves above that occur only a few days per year.
The Olympic Hera and her sister the Olympic Zeus are the largest AHTSs ever delivered by Ulstein. This together with a calm water optimization program, improved propulsion efficiency through hull and propeller interaction development and a moonpool optimization program will significantly reduce fuel consumption, STX claims. In Ulsteinvik, STX Offshore De-
sign’s competitor, but also partner in the Møre maritime cluster, RollsRoyce has found another approach to hull design that the company claims will improve fuel efficiency, while at the same time supporting exploration and production further. The company is introducing the wave-piercing con-
56 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Report Sustainable ship design Photo: Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce has taken the wave-piercing technology to the offshore industry. cept used for catamarans and trimarans to the offshore supply industry, that together with other features will increase fuel efficiency by 5 – 30 per cent, according to Yrjar Garshol, general manager commercial at RR Ship Technology Offshore. “It will improve overall performance in all weather conditions”, he says, and also claims that the hull is cheaper, or equally costly, to build as a conventional one.
The wave-piercing design is incorporated in the company’s UT 790 CD deep-water anchor-handling vessel design. The advantage is that it pierces through the water rather than riding on top of the waves. This eliminates slamming and according to Rolls-Royce allows for a smooth ride and improved crew comfort also in rather extreme conditions. Tank test have shown no water above the forecastle level even at a speed of 14 knots and a significant wave height of 9 metres. The design also incorporates a hybrid propulsion system. This allows utilization of maximum power when operating in anchor handling mode when both mechanical and electrical
power is engaged. In DP, dynamic positioning, mode, electrical power is sufficient and mechanical power can be used in transit between operation areas. At present, the Rolls-Royce neighbour in Ulsteinvik, Ulstein Group is soon, or has already when you read this, delivered the Olympic Hera, the second of two large anchor handlers, built to it’s A 122 design and with very high environment standards. “This is the most advanced AHTS vessels from us so far”, says Tore Ulstein, deputy CEO of the group. The 98-metre long vessel is equipped with one 500-ton and two 400-tons Rolls-Royce drums, giving the vessel an enormous capacity. In addition, it is prepared for a 250-ton offshore crane for construction work and two A-frames.
»It is a very environmentally friendly solution«
Roar Riise, project manager for the Olympic Hera.
The shipbuilders at Ulstein have also embraced the hybrid propulsion philosophy and the Olympic Hera and its sister Olympic Zeus are equipped with a system developed in-house.
“It is a very environmentally friendly solution”, says Roar Riise, project manager for the Olympic Hera. “From our experiences with the Olympic Zeus in the North Sea, we see that the vessel runs diesel-electric 80 per cent of the time”, says Runar Stave, vice president of the owner Olympic Shipping. According to Stave, fuel consumption in this mode is about 50 per cent less than for competing vessels without the hybrid system.
In addition, the vessels are equipped with catalytic converters for reduction of NOx and particulate matters, they have Green Passports and are built to DNV’s class notation Clean Design. There is still much to do in the field of a vessel’s environmental impact. Ulstein, Rolls-Royce, STX and the others in the maritime cluster in and around Ålesund are running out of orders and are once again facing a challenging market situation. That this also is a time for development and innovation is something they have proven before.
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58 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Peter Hellberg, info@shipgaz.com
Report WMU seminars
Photo: Anna Lundberg
Professor Jan Horck organised this years’ Maritime Policy Seminar at the World Maritime University.
Working toward a common goal In late September, the yearly Maritime Policy Seminar was held at the World Maritime University in Malmö, Sweden. WMU student Peter Hellberg gives an account of the seminar week for Shipgaz. Five visiting professors gave the lectures during the event, which was organised by WMU Professor Jan Horck. The week concluded the 4th semester seminars, a tradition upheld since the start of WMU 25 years ago. The major lesson learned from the seminar is that WMU and the large continents Africa, Asia, Europe and America are working towards the same goal: to make the maritime community a more efficient and safe environment for the supply chain of maritime transport.
The first topic was presented by former USCG Admiral Paul J Pluta and was about maritime security and how to combat the growing occurrence of armed robbery and piracy in the shipping industry. “Is piracy a threat to shipping today?” was the question, and how this issue can be solved from a global perspective. In one way, the enforcement of
the International Security of Ship and Port Facility (ISPS) Code has reduced the number of piracy attacks, but there are still a large number of attacks costing the shipping industry a lot of money both in ransom and loss of valuable time in the transport of goods. The most vulnerable area for maritime piracy attacks is the Somalia coast lines, where the number of attacks has increased in the last couple of years. This has so far encouraged the deployment of fleets of combat naval vessels to patrol the troubled area by many maritime nations engaged in shipping trade. One of the solutions discussed in the seminar was the possibility of assisting the Somalian
»… to make the maritime community a more efficient and safe environment for the supply chain of maritime transport« WMU was established in July 1983 by an IMO Assembly Resolution. Its basic aim is to further enhance the objectives and goals of IMO and IMO member states around the world.
government ashore and to rebuild the navy and coast guard infrastructure within the country. The second topic was about an international fund for greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from ships and the energy efficiency design index. This topic was introduced by Deputy Director-General of the Danish Maritime Administration (DMA), Mr Christian Breinholt.
The principle of the GHG fund is based upon the legal structure of the IOPC Funds and the key elements in the fund are mandatory registration of bunker fuel suppliers, collection by the register of bunker fuel suppliers with the fees directly transferred to the International GHG Fund. All ships in international trade and all marine fuels should be included in the new GHG fund system. The revenues of the GHG Fund should go back to the shipping community to mitigate the adoption of GHG activities, for re-
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 59
WMU seminars
Report
The fourth topic was about maritime security strategy for Africa, and was introduced by the Secretary-General of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa (MOWCA), Mr Magnus Addico. To address this issue, the West and Central African governments have provided surveillance in territorial waters; enforcement of Maritime codes; presence in EEZ; the establishment of a MRCC in capital of Liberia, Monrovia, and in Lagos in Nigeria; the implementation of the ISPS Code in 18 of 20 coastal member states that are MOWCA-compliant; implementation of the SUA Convention; PSC according to Abuja MOU; and sea-basing the African partnership station, which is a US Naval Forces Europe initiative providing maritime training to partner nations in West and Central Africa aboard Navy ships operating in the region. The final topic was about EU maritime policy and it was introduced by former Director General for Transport, London UK, Sir Robert Coleman. The EU addressed the issues of maritime transport in two directions. The first was from an economic perspective and the second was how to enhance the safety and security within the EU shipping industry. The multimodal transport system within the Union is one of the key elements in promoting an efficient supply chain of transport within the EU. To enhance ships’ safety and security, the EU has built up the EMSA as an agency whose main purpose is to harmonize PSC control and other safety regula-
Photo: Pefok Dingana Collins, Cameroon
search and developing GHG projects, and for technical cooperation with IMO. In addition, the DMA also has developed a method that calculates a value of the energy efficiency of newly-built ships. The third topic was about the shipping industry in the Asian countries of Korea, Japan and China. The lecture was given by the Secretary-General of the Korean Shipowners’ Association, Mr Kim Young Moo. Since 2003, these three countries are the world leaders of the bulk market, and the countries together are a holder of 29.6 per cent of the world merchant fleet. All three countries have introduced the tonnage tax scheme on ships flying their flag to promote competition in the global shipping market.
WMU students M’hamed Aimeur, Algeria, and Raed B Albasseet, Saudi Arabia, with former US Coast Guard Admiral Paul J Pluta, who presented the first topic of the seminar week.
»The revenues of the GHG Fund should go back to the shipping community to mitigate the adoption of GHG activities« tions within EU. EU has also built up a ship reporting system (SRS) which gives the EU maritime authority the right to supervise all ship movements within the Union. In general all ships entering EU waters or moving within the Union have to report at least 24 hours in advance to the SRS system.
After each topic there was a debate forum, which was organised by the students themselves. Each debate forum had two groups: one group was in favour of the topic and the other group debated against the topic. The first debate was if commercial ships should be armed to defend themselves against the growing piracy threat. The questions discussed were if there is a legal right to arm the ship and what are the consequences of this. Is the ship to be interpreted as a war ship if it is armed, and are there other ways to protect the ship’s crew and its cargo?
In summary, the debate was about how the ship, its cargo and crew have to be protected in some way, and how it is important to assist Somalia with aid to combat piracy attacks. The second debate dealt with GHG and if the shipping industry should
Maritime Policy seminar The purpose of the seminars is to provide a forum and to stimulate the students to discuss and exchange ideas of the presented topics, which are connected to the topics that the WMU students have been studying during their time in their respective specialisation.
take an active part in solving the climate change challenge. The debate was about different cost implications and the technical solutions already available on the market, such as air emission scrubbers to reduce NOx and SOx, and the availability of low-sulphur marine fuels in the future. The third debate was about domestic shipping and its contribution to the global shipping industry. The debate focused on the issues concerning the need for domestic development and how this may or may not benefit the global shipping industry.
During the debate it was noted that all large shipping companies today originated in the domestic trade. The fourth debate was if African countries have more urgent issues to focus on than maritime security. Security is only one of many issues that African countries have to deal with, and it should be included in a holistic package to enhance the safety and security of maritime transport within African countries. The last debate was whether the current use of criminal procedures and penalties to sanction seafarers for incidents related to marine pollution in desirable. The question is indeed of great concern in the shipping industry, highlighted by a number of recent incidents. The debate concerned the establishment of a balance between the use of legislation and the damage caused by pollution.
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60 SHIPGAZ NO 7 2009
By Rolf P Nilsson, rolf@shipgaz.com
Spotlight IMO
IMO boosted by EU and USA IMO: Rolf P Nilsson Rolf P Nilsson, Editor-in-Chief of Shipgaz, points the spotlight at IMO in each issue. Check this column to get the latest updates on what’s up in the IMO chambers.
op 15, the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference is to be opened in Copenhagen on December 7. The scope is to find a replacement to the Kyoto protocol and this time shipping and aviation will be included. There has been a wide degree of concern within world shipping over what the conference will impose on maritime transport, and what the reactions will be from USA and EU, if they are not satisfied with the outcome. As the summit closes in, it actually looks as the important thing is not what the shipping industry will get, but what it can be excluded from. The European Union has used a rather cocky attitude against the IMO. It has been described as a lame, inefficient organisation without enough power to carry through concrete and sustainable solutions of enough weight. Critics have almost put an equals sign between IMO and watered-down solutions.
C
The EU Commission has declared
COP 15 The UN Climate Change Conference will take place at the Bella Center in Copenhagen, Denmark, between December 7 and December 18, 2009. According to the Bali Road Map, a framework for climate change mitigation beyond 2012 is to be agreed there.
This change in attitude is a result of intense negotiations, some publicly held but many in corridors and closed meeting rooms to find a compromise that Greece, Malta and Cy-
All eyes will be on Copenhagen on November 7.
The status of the IMO as the world regulator of shipping has also been boosted by USA. Officials of the US Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, recently told a conference in New York that the US delegation at COP 15 will put its full backing to the IMO. To underline this, the EPA also threw in an award to IMO’s secretary-general Efthimios Mitropoulos, which was presented at the World Maritime Day in USA.
The problem for IMO at the COP 15 remains the CBDR (Common but differentiated responsibility) approach by the Kyoto protocol, and this IMO wants to see removed. CBDR means that although greenhouse gases are a problem for all, rich states have a larger technical and economical responsibility than developing nations to solve the problem. If a solution is limited to vessels flagged in the so called Annex I countries of the Kyoto protocol, that is developed countries and countries with economy in transition, only a quarter of the world merchant fleet would be regulated an approach that might be severely counter-productive, with massive reflagging as the result.
*
PHOTO: WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN
that if IMO doesn’t come up with a solution to bring down CO2 emissions from maritime transport that satisfies EU ahead of the COP 15, Europe would press ahead with a regional solution. Different rules in different parts of the world that affects global shipping have never been a good idea. When it comes to CO2 emissions that definitely not feel any borders, it might be directly counter-productive to its aim. What’s a bit fascinating is that EU officials have acknowledged this on several occasions. That they despite this continue to threaten with regional solutions shows the amount of pressure they feel from a concerned general public demanding action. Now, the EU is willing to give IMO
some leeway. At the latest Environment Minister Council meeting, the ministers adopted a position that negotiations at COP 15 should aim at a reduction of greenhouse gases from shipping by 20 per cent below the 2005 levels by 2020. At the same time, EU ministers stress that this has to be implemented globally in a manner that ensures a level playing field. EU supports that parties at the COP 15 should commit to work through IMO, not least to restrict ‘carbon leakage’, i.e. that CO2 exhaust increases somewhere else when emissions are restricted in another part of the world. The aim is to have an agreement in place next year for adoption in 2011.
»The important thing is not what the shipping industry will get, but what it can be excluded from«
prus could accept. Those small-sized, but oh so maritime, member states were not willing to sign and combated fiercely against previous proposals. For EU, it was crucial to enter the COP 15 negotiations with a unanimous position.
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Brand new magazine
Shipgaz visits the Orasund alongside:
Fixing up a Dane The front page picture is sponsored by Berg Propulsion AB
Anchor handling on the North Sea:
Waiting for a weather window Officer labour market untouched
Grimaldi – an A ragged beauty Italian conqueror An ST Army Tug with the
Despite alarming headlines on lay-offs and lay-ups, ship officers in the Nordic countries keep their employments, according to a Shipgaz survey. page 50
Despite the strong traditions of the family, Dr Emanuele Grimaldi has never taken his position in the Group for granted. page 20
Special:
paint falling off in flakes caught the eye of Bengt Fredriksson. Now he is determined to make her better than new. page 78
Shipgaz signs on to Immingham:
Onboard insight »Although Shipgaz Long way back is a new magazine, In March 2007, the tug Bohus was smashed to it stands on solid splinters on the rocks off ground with a more Härmanö. Captain Ole than centuryKristiansen tells his story long heritage« of his way back to work EDITORIAL, PAGE 4
after the trauma. PAGE 22
In the land of the polar bear The engine department – a poor workplace?
Too many sea engineers crawl and squeeze their way through work. Monica Lundh at Chalmers checks out why. PAGE 16
Always leave the ship together as a group. Never go ashore without a weapon. Cruising at Svalbard offers astonishing nature and animal life, but you need to move with care. PAGE 27
Custom-made for The adventures the Western Channel of seaman Pålle
Yearbook of Maritime Technology
Built in Bangladesh
Struggling for a sick sea
“It was a long and tedious journey. But it was worth it”, says Jan Fabricius, pioneering by building the Stella Maris in Bangladesh. PAGE 18
Anne Christine Brusendorff of HELCOM thinks that the Baltic Sea still has a future, but only if we act now. PAGE 14
Brittany Ferries introduces the ro-pax Armorique, their largest ever purpose built vessel for the Plymouth–Roscoff service. PAGE 36
A day on the Hansa route Shipgaz signed on the Finnstar in Helsinki and followed captain Jukka Tapiovaara and his crew to Travemünde. page 24
Hushed up grounding Survival technique An anonymous e-mail to the for female seafarers shipowner’s head office revealed that one of their bulkers had been grounded – but sailed on with damages to the hull. The crew had said nothing. page 20
Negotiator, constructor, maintainer or reproducer – which one are you? PhD student Momoko Kitada has identified four strategic roles for women on board. page 16
Shipgaz is a modern shipping magazine for operative personell. Every issue contains current events, newbuildings, onboard stories, technical innovations, safety related information, in-depth features and much more, crucial information as well as entertainment. A weekly e-mailed newsletter is included in the subscription.
www.shipgaz.com/subscribe
The story of Nils-Arne Pålsson begins on the steamer Moldavia in 1950 and winds through rat wars and cholera to his electronic inventions for the maritime industry. PAGE 58
Set on finding the right stuff In the brown leather chairs of Maritime Psychologist Bengt Schager’s office, the sheep are divided from the goats. PAGE 44
62 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Technical Review Photo: Oddgeir Refvik
Photo: Wärtsilä
Bilge water treatment from Wärtsilä equipment Wärtsilä becomes the exclusive supplier of bilge water treatment units to Stolt Tankers B.V. The partners have agreed that all newbuildings and retrofits will be equipped with Wärtsilä Senitec M-series bilge water treatment units and Wärtsilä Senitec BilgeGuard bilge discharge monitoring systems. The units are certified according to the latest IMO and US Coast Guard regulations.
The treatment capacity of the Wärtsilä Senitec M-series (M500, M1000 and M2500) bilge water treatment units range from 0.5 to 2.5 cbm of oily water per hour. The oil content in the treated water is no more than 15 ppm (parts per million), with real case levels below 1 ppm during continuous operation. Together with Wärtsilä’s Solidpac add-on, the units can reduce the amount of bilge water for disposal ashore by as much as 95 per cent. The Wärtsilä Senitec BilgeGuard is a bilge discharge monitoring system that constantly monitors and records the quantity of water being discharged overboard, as well as its oil content, as well as the position of the vessel. Should the effluent, for any reason, contain an oil level exceeding the set limit, the flow is rerouted to the sludge tank. All equipment from Wärtsilä’s water treatment product line is designed and built by Wärtsilä in Göteborg, Sweden.
For more information:
Marit Holmlund-Sund, PR and Marketing Communications, Tel: +358 10 709 1439, E-mail: marit.holmlund-sund@wartsila.com
The BBC Konan.
BBC Chartering in new solution for towing Method Wind turbine towers destined for the world’s biggest offshore wind park are being transported upright on board a BBC Chartering and Logistic ship in an innovative project aimed at improving on similar methodology used when the towers are shipped by barge. One hundred and forty turbines, destined for the Greater Gabbard Wind Turbine Park, off the east coast of England, are being transported in 36 shipments on board BBC Konan.
Fluor, the EPC that is responsible for the development of the wind park, requested that the nacelles be mounted with hubs, and the bottom tower sections be shipped with the electronics installed prior to the shipment. This meant that the tower sections could not be shipped lying down, but had to be transported upright on custom-made transport foundations. “Up until now, this has only been done on a barge in this way,” said Christine Schou Jensen, logistics manager in BBC’s windmill office in Aarhus, adding, “there will be some restrictions to this application to do with the weather and sailings. “The customer can save time in the port of discharge as the tower sections arrive with the electronics already in them. “Our port captains, windmill depart-
ment, and naval architects worked in close co-operation with the manufacturer of the transport platform to produce the appropriate equipment for the move.” Each bottom tower section, which is on deck in an upright position, weighs 90 tonnes and is 25 m high. The forward position of the BBC Konan’s bridge means that the upright towers do not obstruct the crew’s view. The wind turbine blades measure 52 m in length, and the nacelles with the premounted hubs are the heaviest pieces, weighing 177 tonnes each. BBC Konan, which can handle cargoes up to 300 tonnes in weight using its onboard cranes, will be sailing in a shuttle service between Esbjerg, Denmark, and Harwich, UK, until November, and then again from February/March until September 2010. But Ms Schou Jensen points out that companies might consider using the new transport solution to move wind turbine units over much longer distances.
For more information:
Impress Communications Ltd, DMR House e-mail: info@impresscommunications.org
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 63
Technical Review Photo: Oddgeir Refvik
The Viking Lady – designed and equipped by Wärtsilä.
Wärtsilä the system integrator of FellowSHIP innovation Wärtsilä has been assigned overall responsibility for systems integration in the pioneering FellowSHIP project. Wärtsilä’s specially designed equipment is being used to integrate and create synergies between leading marine technology and fuel cell technology. The equipment has been installed on board the platform supply vessel Viking Lady for extensive sea tests.
The FellowSHIP project is a joint industry research and development project managed by Det Norske Veritas. It aims to develop and demonstrate hybrid fuel cell power packs, especially suited for marine and offshore use. The power pack will be used as an auxililiary power source on the Viking Lady, which is owned by Eidesvik Offshore, Norway. The ship has been designed by Wärtsilä Ship Design, and its main engines and power drives have also been supplied by Wärtsilä. Wärtsilä’s electrical and automation business unit in Norway has custom developed the power electronics needed to connect the fuel cell to the ship’s electrical network, and Wärtsilä has, therefore, the important role of being the systems integrator for the FellowSHIP project.
ing energy from the fuel cell to the electrical network. We have also delivered the distribution and control systems”, says Ingve Sørfonn, Project Manager and Director R&D, Wärtsilä Ship Power Technology. In May, the 320 kW fuel cell arrived at Stord in Norway and was integrated with Wärtsilä’s technology, and tested. During this land testing all operational modes, shut down conditions, and dynamical behaviour have been tested and verified in accordance with the specifications. The fuel cell technology is designed to increase efficiency and leads to a considerable reduction in emissions. Fuel cell technology of this power size has never before been installed in merchant vessels, and the highly innovative project is unique on a world scale. Wärtsilä has been involved in fuel cell technology since the mid-1990s and specializes in systems integration. The partners in the FellowSHIP project include Wärtsilä, Eidesvik, Det Norske Veritas and MTU Onsite Energy GmbH. The project is supported by the Norwegian Research Council, Innovation Norway, and the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. For more information:
“For the FellowSHIP project, Wärtsilä has developed the power electronics, and the systems for regulating and distribut-
Marit Holmlund-Sund, PR and Marketing Communications, Tel: +358 10 709 1439, E-mail: marit.holmlund-sund@wartsila.com
Better control in drilling projects equipment Kongsberg Maritime has developed a new system for measuring sea current speed and direction at given points on a drilling riser, which can be integrated with its sophisticated High Precision Acoustic Positioning and underwater navigation system, HiPAP. The new Sea Current Meter and HiPAP package is designed to improve control of drilling operations and has already been delivered to the first user. The Sea Current Meter package consists of a Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) interfaced to a telemetry transponder, which sends the 3D sea current data via acoustics to the onboard HiPAP system.
For more information:
Christina Fjellstad, Kongsberg Maritime Tel: +47 3303 2411 christina.fjellstad@kongsberg.com www.kongsberg.com
New steel transportation units equipment Langh Ship Cargo Solutions have developed new steel shipments products, including a 40 ft Hard Open Top Container with supporting stanchions for long steel products, 20 ft Cradle Containers suitable for big steel coils and 40 ft Cradle Containers with a carrying capacity of up to 160 tons. Langh Ship, which recently got a confirmation for its Cradle Tween Deck patent, as the Finnish Supreme Administrative Court rejected the appeals of two competing Dutch shipping companies, has set as its goal to be “Superior in steel transport”.
For more information:
Linda Langh, Partner and Member of the Board, Tel: +358 40 5797783 E-mail: linda.langh@langh.fi
64 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Technical Review Photo: CargoTec
New DPS sensors for Global SBAS communication Kongsberg Seatex, a specialist in position reference systems, has added two additions to its Differential Position Sensor (DPS) product portfolio. The DPS 110 and the DPS 112 have been developed to utilise the new Global Satellite Based Augmentation System (Global SBAS) introduced by the navigation specialist Fugro SeaSTAR AS, the SeaSTAR SGG service.
This new navigation service offers corrections to both GPS and GLONASS that enables sub-metre accuracy with worldwide reach. Unlike regional SBAS services such as WAAS, EGNOS and MSAS, and local DGPS services such as IALA DGPS, SeaSTAR SGG utilises Fugro’s own network of dual system reference stations to calculate ‘orbit and clock’ corrections. The service provides consistent sub-metre level accuracy positioning with global validity. The DPS 110 and DPS 112 are even capable of supplementing SeaSTAR SGG corrections with regional SBAS and local DGPS corrections. For more information:
Vidar Bjørkedal, Kongsberg Seatex AS. Tel: +47 7354 5500 www.kongsberg.com
Two high-performing Siwertell unloaders can unload a Panamax-size ship in three days.
Reduced panamax discharge from 12 days to 3 Equipment Overhauling two Siwertell ship unloaders at a power plant in the Philippines has had an immediate and dramatic impact on turnaround times. When power company AES bought the Masinloc Power Plant in the Philippines a project started to ovehaul the two existing Siwertell ship unloaders at the plant. This project started in 2008 and is now complete.
“The owner now has two high-performing Siwertell unloaders, upgraded to the latest Siwertell design”, says Cargotec supervisor Stefan Lundqvist, who has been stationed in the Philippines during the project and has worked closely alongside colleagues in Sweden and Thailand. “Basic training for maintenance personnel and operational training for the operator was also provided. The training, in combi-
Landskrona Stål AB
nation with the two newly-renovated Siwertell unloaders, has meant that the time taken by the plant to unload a panamax-size ship has been cut from 12 days to little over three days.” “Much work has been done: all of the conveyers have been replaced and the latest screw design, with a long life expectancy, has been delivered. Also, all the old gears on the horizontal arm, vertical arm and feeder system have been replaced with new ones. Hydraulic cylinders have been upgraded to the new design with heavily polished stainless steel to prevent corrosion.” For more information:
Mikael Florén, Director, Bulk Terminal Services, Cargotec. Tel: +46 42 85872 E-mail: mikael.floren@cargotec.com
REPAIR SHIPYARD IN HELSINGBORG SWEDEN ”The shipyard in the heart of Oresund Strait”
~24 hrs service ~ Dry dock: Crane cap: Phone: Fax:
112 x 16 meters 40 and 5 tons +46 42 12 02 95 +46 42 18 09 16
E-Mail:
landskronastal@landskronastal.se
Helsingborgs Shipyard with a rich history in shipbuilding and repairs since 1876, is now run by Landskrona Stål AB. We can perform repairs both in our drydock, as well as on board ship.
www.landskronastal.se
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 65
Technical Review
Artist’s impression of MOL’s ISHIN-I.
Environmentally friendly car carrier concept concept Mitsui OSK Lines, MOL, has It will have a contra-rotating propeller formed the concept for its next-generation drive system that greatly increases efficiency. vessels.The first is a next-generation, The concept carrier will also have the most environment-friendly car carrier, named advanced model of propeller boss cap fins, ISHIN-I, which stands for “Innovations in an energy-saving device already adopted Sustainability backed by Historically on many vessels. The hull shape has been proven, INtegrated technologies”. refined to reduce wind pressure from the The two ISHIN-I main features are achiev- bow and sides. The shape of the stern also ing zero CO2 emissions while in port and smoothes the flow of the wind. Other feaduring loading/unloading and a 50 per cent tures of the concept are: use ultra-low fricreduction of emissions under way. tion ship bottom paint, an optimum voyage A zero emissions goal while in port and support system for calculation of the most during loading and unloading is reached by fuel efficient route and electronically controlinstalling large-capacity rechargeable batled fuel supply to the engine so that the vessel teries (lithium ion) and combining them operates with the optimum fuel supply. -ensuring the safety of life and property at sea with an electric propulsion system. CO2 emissions are reduced by 50 per cent For more information: under way by adopting multiple new techAnderson, PR Manager, Image Line ComGet an expert opinion. GL Toby offer classification nologies to greatly reduce the vessel’s burmunications Ltd. Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7689 9009 services for newbuildings, toby@imageline.co.uk ships in operation, den on the environment.
Germanischer Lloyd (GL) maritime materials and components.
Ku-band coverage expanded to North Sea communication Marlink, the world’s largest provider of maritime satellite communications has expanded its Ku-band coverage to the North Sea. The coverage expansion will enable Marlink to offer WaveCall to customers operating in the region. The introduction of WaveCall in the Northern Europe region will provide significant cost savings to companies requiring VSAT with lower bandwidth.
Marlink’s WaveCall Ku-band VSAT provides data rates from 128 kbps to 1024 kbps for shore-to-vessel communications and 128 kbps to 256 kbps for vessel-to-shore communications. Customers operating only in the North Sea can benefit from low cost communications as pooled bandwidth is used to minimize costs and capacity can be reduced during low seasons. For more information:
Knut Natvig, Marlink Tel: +47 48 030 911 knut.natvig@marlink.com
Be on the safe side.
Germanischer Lloyd (GL) Germanischer Lloyd (GL) - ensuring the safety of life -ensuring and property at sea the safety of life and property at sea
Get an expert opinion. GL offer classification Check out new GL Academy Seminars: for Labour newbuildings, ships in operation, Implementation Workshop ILOservices Maritime Convention maritime materials and components. 09. - 10. February 2010, Stockholm, Sweden Be on the safe side. Send application to: gl-stockholm@gl-group.com Get the expert opinion and become the expert.
www.gl-group.com www.gl-group.com
www.gl-group.com
66 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Fleet Review Photo: J & H Soinila
The VLCC Front Vanadis was built in 1991 in South Korea.
Ex Swedish VLCC to scrap in Bangladesh recycling The single hull VLCC Front Vanadis has been sold to be broken up in Bangladesh. This means the end of one of the last large tankers, once sailing under Swedish flag.
The 280,000 dwt VLCC was built in 1991 by Daewoo in Okpo, South Korea as the Vanadis for ICB in Stockholm. She was registered in Sweden until the end of the 1990’s, when ICB was taken over by Frontline. She changed to Singapore-flag and was renamed Front Vanadis. In 2007 she was sold to the Taiwan owner TMT Co Ltd for a reported sum of USD 42 million. According to Fearnleys the scrap price for the Front Vanadis was USD 325 per light displacement ton, corresponding to a total of approximately USD 10.6 millions.
TransHawk – the former Sandön – discharging china clay in the port of Rauma.
Transatlantic renaming ships New names Rederi AB Transatlantic has during the last years renamed several vessels. Common for the new names is that they include the prefix “Trans”. The forest product carriers of the TransPaper-class were named in this way when delivered in 2006 and 2007, and about the same time container vessels were named in a similar way.
After that also other vessels in the fleet have been renamed, including those carrying the traditional Skärhamn-names Nordön and Sandön, which are now TransEagle and TransHawk respectively. Also Gorthon’s traditional ship names are soon history, in August 2009 the Viola Gorthon became the TransReel. The Finnfighter-class vessels, of which
the names originated from a long ago terminated Swedish-Finnish co-operation within the F-Ships pool, are also among those vessels already renamed. Mårten Carlquist, Business Area Manager of Industrial Shipping at Transatlantic, confirms that a renaming process is going on in Transatlantic. “This started soon after the merger of B&N Nordsjöfrakt AB and Gorthon Lines AB into Rederi AB Transatlantic in 2005. For us it is quite natural to have a type of names that are easy to identify with Transatlantic.” The idea is that all names of the ships in the fleet will be Trans-related in the future. “We change the names subsequently when the time is suitable, Mårten Carlquist says. Photo: Pär-Henrik Sjöström
Wisby Wave delivered Newbuilding Wisby Tankers have taken delivery of the newbuilding Wisby Wave from the Ferus Smit shipyard. The 7,500 DWT Wisby Wave has been time-chartered by Preem and will fly the Swedish flag. She is a sister vessel to the Wisby Verity, delivered in 2004. Gotlandsbolaget is part-owner of the vessels.
Viola Gorthon shortly before she was renamed TransReel.
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 67
The editor of the Fleet review section is Pär-Henrik Sjöström, contact him at par-henrik@shipgaz.com
Fleet Review Photo: Stena Bulk
Photo: Pär-Henrik Sjöström
The P-MAX Stena Progress was built at Brodosplit Shipyard.
Seventh P-MAX delivered to Concordia Newbuilding On September 23, 2009, Concordia Maritime took delivery of the product carrier Stena Progress from Brodosplit Shipyard, Croatia. The newbuilding has been signed to a five year time charter with the French oil and energy company Total, carrying refined products. Also the sister vessels Stena Paris, Stena Provence and Stena Perros are employed with long time charters to Total.
The tug Tyr moored in Turku, Finland.
Tug transactions in Finland New owners There has recently occurred one addition and one change of ownership in the Finnish tug fleet. Alfons Håkans Oy Ab has sold the tug Tyr to Anttoni and Joonas Kiukkonen. The owners are based in Kotka and Mariehamn and the home port of the tug is Turku. Tyr was built in 1959 by AB Åsiverklen in Åmål, Sweden, for Rederi AB Tyr in Uddevalla. After several changes of ownership she was bought to Finland by Hangon Hinaus in 1980. She came to the Håkans-fleet when Hangon Hinaus was taken over by Alfons Håkans in 1988.
Anttoni Kiukkonen told Shipgaz that the tug is now in Turku for maintenance and repairs before entering service. “Tyr will probably be employed mainly with towing in connection to energy wood
shipments. It is also possible that she will do some harbour icebreaking and participate in dredging projects. But we have made no agreements yet.” Mr Kiukkonen informs that the company is searching for a suitable barge too. The fleet also consist of two fishing vessels. The Kalajoki-based company R-Towing Oy has bought the tug Smit Denemarken, which for many years has served in the port of Rotterdam. Renamed Jacob, her new homeport is Kalajoki. This conventional, twin screw tug was built in 1979 in the Netherlands. With a bollard pull of 28 tonnes she is the most powerful unit in the four tug fleet of R-Towing. According to managing director Pekka Rahja the tug will be employed with harbour towing and fairway maintenance.
Operated by Stena Bulk, the Stena Progress is the seventh tanker of the socalled P-MAX design. A total of ten units have been ordered. They are designed for carrying crude oil as well as clean or dirty products. Stena’s versatile MAX concepts covers different tanker sizes, all designed for maximum loading capacity in shallow waters. They have been designed for maximum redundancy with double main engines in two completely separate engine rooms, double rudders and steering gear, two propellers and double control systems. This also provide excellent manoeuvrability.
Photo: Pär-Henrik Sjöström
Jacob, here in the port of Rotterdam under her former name Smit Denemarken.
Having a wider beam than a standard MR (medium range) tanker the Stena PMAX is able to load some 30 per cent more on their design draught of 11.3 m. On full draught 13.0 m, the P-MAX can take 45 per cent more crude oil than a conventional tanker of the same size. With a cargo tank capacity of 70,300 cubic metres, the P-MAX is able to compete with the larger ship segment Panamax and thereby operate in both the MR and Panamax segments. The machinery consists of two B&W 6S46MC-C slow speed main engines with an output of 7,860 kW each at 129 rpm. Design speed at design draft, CSR and 15 per cent sea margin is 14.5 knots. The P-MAX tanker is certified with a Green Passport by DNV.
68 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Fleet Review Newbuilding contracts in the Nordic market Month
Owner
Nat
Sept
Stena Line
Sw
62,000*
Dwt
Stena Line
Sw
62,000*
Oct
Deep Sea Supply
No
4,700
Type
Shipyard
Delivery
Value
ropax
Nordic Yards
2.10
EUR 200 m
prev Wadan Yards
EUR 200 m
prev Wadan Yards
ropax
Nordic Yards
10.10
psv
STX Brazil
beg 12
Remarks
PSV09CD
Secondhand transactions in the Nordic market Month Name
Dwt
Built
Type
From
Price
Buyer
Aug
19,900
2006
tanker
Eitzen Chemicals, Oslo
USD 34 m
undisclosed, bb back
Sichem Pace
Clipper Helle
Nord Emphathy
3,200
1991
tanker
Clipper, Copenhagen
Russian
55,803
2006
bulk
DS Norden, Copenhagen
IDC
USD 31.0 m
Remarks/New name
Sigloo Norse
11,605
1982
LPG/et
C Eitzen & Co, Oslo
USD 1.5 m
breaking
Hekabe
41,683
1977
LPG
BW Gas, Oslo
USD 5.0 m
breaking Bangladesh
Golden Joy
70,044
1994
bulk
Golden Ocean, Oslo
USD 16.5 m
undisclosed
Bauta
41,700
1987
bulk
T Klaveness, Oslo
USD 9.0 m
undisclosed
Ballangen
41,300
1987
bulk
T Klaveness, Oslo
USD 9.0 m
Jo Brevik
33,190
1986
tanker
JO Tankers, Bergen
undisclosed Odfjell SE, Bergen
Bow Pioneer
23,016
1982
tanker
Odfjell SE, Bergen
Star Tankers, Haugesund
Bow Hunter
23,002
1983
tanker
Odfjell SE, Bergen
Star Tankers, Haugesund
Cedar 1
70,000
1994
bulk
Viken/Woodstreet, Bergen
USD 21 m
Invest Danmark, Copenhagen
Cedar 2
70,000
1994
bulk
Viken/Woodstreet, Bergen
USD 21 m
Invest Danmark, Copenhagen
Cedar 3
69,000
1998
bulk
Viken/Woodstreet, Bergen
USD 21 m
Invest Danmark, Copenhagen
Cedar 4
43,000
1995
bulk
Viken/Woodstreet, Bergen
USD 15 m
Invest Danmark, Copenhagen
Cedar 5
43,000
1995
bulk
Viken/Woodstreet, Bergen
USD 15 m
Union Mars
3,330
2001
dry cargo
Union Transport, London
Enabler
4,400
2009
subsea
Aquanos, Arendal
Josefine
1,280
1986
dry cargo
Wega Shipping, Mariehamn
Invest Danmark, Copenhagen Kopervik Shipping, Kopervik
USD 65 m
Tidewater, US Dennis Maritime, Borgå
Nathalie
1,260
1989
dry cargo
Wega Shipping, Mariehamn
Rederi Ab Nathalie, Mariehamn
Sept
Norden
56,000
2005
bulk
DS Norden, Copenhagen
undisclosed
Bow Asir
23,000
Sical Torino
3,570
USD 31.5 m
1982
tanker
Star Tankers, Haugesund
USD 5.8 m
breaking India
2006
psv
Sical Logistics, India
NOK 150 m
Farstad Shipping, Ålesund
Freire resale
110.6m
2010
subsea
Sea4, Arendal
NOK 400 m
G C Rieber Shipping, Bergen
Freire resale
110.6m
2010
subsea
Sea4, Arendal
NOK 400 m
G C Rieber Shipping, Bergen
Marietje Benita
Northern Challenger 2,751
Northern Clipper
Julia
Wilja
Oct
Searacer
3,200
2006
dry cargo
Wagenborg Shipping, Delfzijl
Eidsvaag AS, Frøya
1993
ahts
Trico Shipping, Ålesund
Huawei Offshore, HK
USD 40 m
4,569
1994
psv
Trico Shipping, Ålesund
en bloc
Huawei Offshore, HK
22,161*
1982
ferry
Stella Naves Russia Oy Ltd
EUR 7.8 m
Fastnet Line, Ireland
1,970 149,830
1977
dry cargo
Rederi Ab Lillgaard
Greece
2002
tanker
Thenamaris, Piraeus
NATS, Sandefjord
USD 51.5 m
Berge Racine
63,254
1985
LPG
BW Gas, Oslo
USD 12.0 m
China
Regulus
10,520
1993
reefer
Santoku Senpaka, Osaka
USD 11.8 m
Holy House, Stockholm
Hanne Christine
4,100
1984
container
Jenset Rederi, Molde
USD 0.2 m
Ervik, Egersund
Believer
6,620
1992
container
Jenset Rederi, Molde
USD 1.5 m
Vestland. Marine, Gdynia
Marina
4,757
1985
container
Jenset Rederi, Molde
Syria
Eline
4,570
1985
container
Jenset Rederi, Molde
Syria
Enforcer
120 m
2010
subsea
Aquanos, Arendal
Island Offshore, Ulsteinvik
* gross tons
Cancellations in the nordic market Month Company
Dwt
Type
Delivery
Shipyard
Ordered
6 x 24,500
bulk
10-11
Vinashin
3.08
Price per unit
Feb
Jebsens
Deep Sea Supply
ahts
09
Jaya-875
Utkilen
3 x 8,000
tanker
08/09
de Poli
4.06
Stolt Tankers
44,000
tanker
08
SLS -473
10.06
SRAB
tanker
09
Eregli SY
Clipper
10 x 4,600
2 x 8,400
mpp
08-10
Ben Kien SY
2.06
Solstad
2 x 90m
ahts
09
Karmsund
9.06
Remarks J/V, put on hold Sea Hawk delayed
USD 85 m
NOK 550 m
VS490
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 69
Fleet Review Photo: bent mikkelsen
Clipper has sold the Clipper Helle to Russian buyers.
Month Company
Dwt
Type
Delivery
Shipyard
Ordered
Price per unit
Remarks
Lewek
2 x 90m
ahts
10
Karmsund
9.07
NOK 620 m
VS 490
Clipper
6+6 x 37,000
bulk
10
Tsuji
06
Clipper
18 x 30,800
bulk
11-12
Tsuji
4.07
USD 26 m
March
Siem Offshore
2 x 91 m
ahts
09
Kleven -328
10.06
NOK 530 m
PGS
seismic
07
Fac Vulcano
11.05
NOK 1.225 m
C Eitzen & Co
6 x 2,500c
10,000*
lpg
11
Sasaki SB
7.07
USD 14.2 m each
C Eitzen & Co
5 x 12,000c
lpg
11
Sasaki SB
08
April
Herning
tanker
05
ASL Marine
USD 18.8 m
Höegh Autoliners 2 x 20,000*
pctc
10
Xiamen SY
USD 58 m
11,000
Scan-Trans
May
Frontline
4 x 156,000
2 x 11,000 4 x 320,000 9,000
Frontline
June
Brøvig
DOF ASA
4,100
Thor Dahl
4 x 37,000
Stolt-Nielsen
G C Rieber
July
PGS
Aug
A P Møller
Supply Service
Supply Service
Sept
DS Norden
44,000
2.07
mpp
2h10
Huanghai
4.08
USD 25 m
tanker
10
Jiangsu
8.06
USD 71 m
tanker
11-12
Zhoushan
4.08
USD 136 m
tanker
09
Dong Fang
07
USD 18 m
mpsv
09
Tebma SY-143
9.06
bulk
09
Eastern SY
07
USD 35 m
tanker
08
SLS Shipyard
10.06
USD 85 m
mpsv
09
Batamec
5.08
NOK 300 m
seismic
08
Factorias Vulcano
11.05
bulk
09
Daewoo
07
USD 107 m
80 m
psv
09
Fjellstrand
7.07
NOK 240 m
80 m
psv
09
Havyard
1.07
NOK 210 m
bulk
10
Japan
07
80 m 10,000* 2 x 180,000
4 x 82,000
Trico Shipping
4 x 3,500
psv
08/09
Tebma SY
11.07
Blystad
3 x 92,000
bulk
10
Sundong SB
5.07
Blystad
170,000
bulk
10
Sundong SB
4.07
Höegh Autoliners 2 x 25,000
pctc
11
Vinashin
11.06
USD 65 m
Oct
Stolt-Nielsen
44,000
tanker
09
SLS Shipyard
10.06
USD 85 m
ESL Shipping
18,800
bulk
09
ABG Shipyard
06
USD 30.8 m
c = capacity in cubic metres
MT6009L ST-321 Havyard 832 Havyard 832 post-panamax
* = gross tons
VS485 10 yrs bbtc Kristen
VS470 light constr vsl
70 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Pär-Henrik Sjöström par-henrik@shipgaz.com
Retro Finnish-built cruise vessels
Photo: Wärtsilä Helsinki Shipyard
Delivery photo of Song of Norway.
The modern cruise vessel was born in Finland The history of Royal Caribbean Cruises is very much the same as the history of building cruise vessels in Finland. Royal Caribbean Cruise’s latest addition to the fleet, the enormous Oasis of the Seas, is the ultimate masterpiece for Finnish shipbuilding. However, the Oasis is by no means an isolated phenomenon, created here and now. She is the result of a long evolution and a unique co-operation between Finnish naval architects and shipbuilders and one of the leading cruise ship owners in the world. designed and purpose-built for leisure cruises in warm waters, was born in
The modern cruise vessel,
The Bohème was the very first cruise vessel built in Finland, but her design originated from the car and passenger ferries of Finnhansa-type.
and as a result of the fast growing ferry business the shipyard received several more ferry orders from shipping companies both in Finland and Sweden.
The completion of the ferries Finnhansa and Finnpartner for Finnlines’ service between Helsinki and Travemünde resulted in two orders of similar vessels from the Swedish company Lion Ferry AB. Of these the Prins Hamlet was delivered to the owner as planned, while the second ship was cancelled and the contract
1972: Royal Viking Star 21,800 GT, Det Bergenske DS. Sun Viking 18,600 GT, Royal Caribbean. Royal Viking Sky 21,900 GT, Det Nordenfjeldske DS
Photo: Wärtsilä
1968 Bohème 10,300 GT, Wallenius. 1970 Song of Norway 18,400 GT, Royal Caribbean. 1971 Nordic Prince 18,400 GT, Royal Caribbean.
Photo: Wärtsilä
Cruise ships built in Finland
the late 1960s as a result of a Norwegian project at a Finnish shipyard. In those days Finnish shipbuilding was rather unknown in most of the world, having only a handful of passenger vessels on the reference list. In the beginning of the 1960s Wärtsilä’s Hietalahti shipyard in Helsinki built the ferries Skandia and Nordia for Silja Line. With these vessels the shipyard got important references
»Lucky for us there were two more vessels in the contract«
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 71
Finnish-built cruise vessels
Retro Photo: Wärtsilä Helsinki Shipyard
Dining room of the Song of Norway. was transferred to Wallenius Bremen GmbH, a subsidiary of Wallenius Lines. The design was modified into a cruise vessel – cabins were built on the car deck– and she was delivered as the Bohème in 1968.
The breakthrough for Wärtsilä as a builder of cruise vessels came with an ambitious order for the rapidly expanding Caribbean cruise market. The order also materialized the dream of Edwin W Stephan, an American who first came up with the idea of a cruise line, operating a fleet of highclass, purpose-built newbuildings instead of old ocean liners, which was the common case in those days. He already knew the business, as he in the 1960s had joined Yarmouth Steamship Company, which operated old liners in cruise traffic from Miami. In 1968 Stephan travelled to Oslo to meet with Norwegian owners. He
Naval Architect Kai Levander, who has held different leading positions in the development of cruise vessels in Finnish shipbuilding since the early 1970s, came to Wärtsilä when the Song of Norway was under construction. “Lucky for us there were two more
1984 Sea Goddess I
4,250 GT, Norske Cruise. Royal Princess 44,350 GT, P&O. Sea Goddess II 4,260 GT, Norske Cruise.
The founder Royal Caribbean’s founder Edwin W. Stephan retired in 2003 at an age of 71. He had been President of the company until 1996 and thereafter vice chairman of the board of directors.
vessels in the contract. It is always difficult to make profit with the first vessel”, he says. The Song of Norway made her maiden voyage from Miami on November 7, 1970. Introducing many interesting features, she drew much attention around the world. The vessel had an expansive pool deck and was the first ship in the world designed specifically for warm-weather cruising. It is not an understatement that she revolutionized the cruise industry as previous ships usually were built with far less open space.
Stephan’s vision also included what was to become a distinctive feature on all Royal Caribbean ships – the glass-walled cocktail lounge cantilevered from the funnel. Had he not been quite headstrong this might not have been the fact today. When he first told the naval architects he wanted something like the Space NeePhoto: STX Europe
Photo: Wärtsilä
1973 Royal Viking Sea 21,900 GT, Klaveness. 1982 Song of America 37,600 GT, Royal Caribbean.
presented his idea and finally he enlisted the support of I M Skaugen and Anders Wilhelmsen. Together with a third partner, Gotaas-Larsen, they established Royal Caribbean Cruise Line A/S in 1969. A total of three sister vessels were ordered from Wärtsilä by the new company. They were to be named Song of Norway, Nordic Prince and Sun Viking. Back then, the salaries in Finland were still rather low. The cost of the first ship Song of Norway was USD 14.3 million, which was considered quite a bargain by the owner.
1988 Seaward 42,300 GT,
Norwegian Cruise Line. Royal Viking Sun 37,800 GT, Kloster. 1990 Fantasy 70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines.
72 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Retro Finnish-built cruise vessels Photo: Pär-Henrik Sjöström
Song of America, built in 1982, is still going strong. Today she is cruising as the Thomson Destiny.
dle in Seattle, they were sceptical. A rival cruise line even predicted such a construction would shake right off the funnel.
»Song of America was a cruise vessel of the second generation«
The designing of the Song of Norway started more or less from scratch. Before her all passenger vessels employed in cruise traffic had originally been built at least partially for transport of passengers over the oceans. Kai Levander, recently retired from STX Europe, where he was responsible for R&D, concept development, feasibility studies and new building projects in the Cruise and Ferries Business Area, stresses that many of the basic cruise ship solutions , which are still valid today, were introduced already with the Song of Norway. “For example the concept with two seatings in the dining room was introduced. When half of the guests were in the dining room the other half were entertained in the show
1992 Royal Majesty 32,000 GT, Majesty Cruise Line. Radisson Diamond 18,400 GT, Diamond Cruise.
A competing group of Norwegian owners – Bergenske Dampskibsselskab, Nordenfjeldske Dampskibsselskab and A F Klaveness – ordered one vessel each to be operated under their newly founded upscale Royal Viking Line brand. The man behind this company was another cruise industry legend, Warren Titus, who in the 1960s was president of P&O North America. When P&O joined Princess Cruises Warren Titus became the founding president of Royal Viking Line. 1993 Sensation
70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines. 1994 Fascination 70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines.
“Royal Viking Lines concept is indeed still in use in the most luxurious market segments while two seatings became standard in the huge segment that today is referred to as the contemporary market”, Kai Levander points out. Photo: STX Europe
Cruise Lines. Society Adventurer 8,400 GT.
lounge. In this way the most important and largest spaces onboard were used two times a day, doubling their capacity.”
Photo: STX Europe
1991 Ecstasy 70,400 GT, Carnival
Most of the cruise vessels built in Finland are still in service. The oldest are naturally trading for other owners, but despite their age they are attractive ships.
The Royal Viking Line vessels Royal Viking Star, Royal Viking Sky and Royal Viking Sea were slightly larger than the Royal Caribbean sisters although their hull lines and machinery solutions were quite similar. However the Royal Viking Line ships were more luxurious. The dining rooms were for example dimensioned so that all passengers could eat during the same seating. But it was Royal Caribbean’s concept with two seatings that became extremely successful and efficient. Virtually all later generations of cruise vessels are based upon this – including the Oasis of the Seas.
1995 Crystal Symphony
50,000 GT, Crystal Cruises. Imagination 70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines. 1996 Inspiration 70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 73
Finnish-built cruise vessels
Retro Photo: Wärtsilä
»Still most of the large cruise vessels in the world are of monohull design« The cruise market grew steadily in the 1970s and a new milestone as well in Finnish shipbuilding as for Royal Caribbean was the Song of America, delivered by Wärtsilä Helsinki shipyard in 1982. With a gross tonnage of 31,000 and a contract price of FIM 400 million the Song of America was the most expensive single order for a ship ever received by a Finnish shipyard.
“Song of Norwas was still kind of a conventional vessel. She had for example a typical car ferry machinery with four main engines and two shaft lines. Song of America was a cruise vessel of the second generation and in this project a lot of evaluation was made about what was right and what was wrong in the previous generation.” Many different machinery alternatives were studied, especially the benefit of a diesel-electric power plant. Wärtsilä had good experience from this type of machinery from many icebreakers built at the Helsinki shipyard. But it was still decided to equip the Song of America with a traditional, well proven diesel-mechanical machinery. The power station type machinery, where propulsion and all other electrical systems on board were fed with power from the same generators, became the standard solution in the cruise vessels to follow. There are indeed alternative solutions for electric propulsion, including azimuth pods and conventional shaftlines and rudders with electrical propeller motors inside the vessel.
According to Kai Levander, the seamless co-operation between Wärtsilä and Royal Caribbean proved to be successful for both parts. The unique thing was that it combined the mar-
Designers Kai Levander and his design team are wellknown in the cruise and ferry business for their innovative and futuristic designs, often foreseeing coming trends on the market.
1998 Elation 70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines Paradise 70,400 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines.
They include projects where the orders finally went to other shipyards, but also many new ideas and solutions never realised in that form. The design work often resulted in quite futuristic designs, presented to potential customers during exhibitions and conferences.
“We have shown the owners that it would be possible to build such ships. Usually owners say that the next ship should be like the previous one but just a little bit larger. Extreme ideas are usually adapted by an entrepreneur entering a new niche market.” As examples he mentions sailing cruise ships or catamaran-type SWATH-designs like Radisson Diamond. “At Royal Caribbean they know that we are able to present new and also radical designs and ideas. It also shows what a competitor could get if
Photo: P-H Sjöström
Deutsche Seereederei. Grandeur of the Seas 74,000 GT, Royal Caribbean. 1997 Enchantment of the Seas 74,000 GT, Royal Caribbean.
ket knowledge of the owner with the shipbuilding know how of the builder. “Royal Caribbean has always carried through very well structured newbuilding projects. They have put a great effort in developing vessels that are suitable for both their operating philosophy and their market. A strength of STX Europe and all its predecessors in Finland is that they have participated in the projects from the very beginning. It is a very long processes to develop a new generation of cruise vessels, spanning through several years.” “We have learnt a lot during this voyage and I think the owner has learnt something from us too, because we have been able to show what is technically possible to do.” Kai Levander says that as a matter of fact the number of vessels designed is many times larger than the number of vessels actually built.
Photo: P-H Sjöström
1996 Aida 38,600 GT,
Kai Levander (far right) and his design team at Wärtsilä Helsinki shipyard in the mid 1980s.
1999 Europa 28,400 GT, Hapag-Lloyd. Voyager of the Seas 137,300 GT, Royal Caribbean
74 Shipgaz No 7 2009
Retro Finnish-built cruise vessels Photo: Pär-Henrik Sjöström
Royal Princess was the first vessel where most of the cabins were fitted with windows and balconies. She was completed in 1984. they don’t order such a vessel themselves.” Still most of the large cruise vessels in the world are of monohull design and they all tend to look the same. “It has simply turned out by experience that this is the most profitable solution. The larger the vessel is, the less advantages are offered by for example a catamaran design.”
AOC-Concept With Royal Princess Wärtsilä introduced the AOC-Concept, meaning “All Outside Cabins”. Today this is de facto standard in most new cruise vessels.
According to Kai Levander one of the most important things in a cruise vessels project is a well-functioning arrangement of all spaces on board. “We talk about flow, and that means which routes the passengers use when they walk around in the vessel and how all service functions are arranged. In the beginning there were quite a lot of opinions about these matters. The arrangements of the first vessels were perhaps not as clear as in the newer ones. But there is no right
2001 Carnival Spirit 85,700
GT, Carnival Cruise Lines. Adventure of the Seas 137,300 GT, Royal Caribbean. Carnival Pride 85,700 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines.
the vessel did not have to be water-tight and balcony doors could be introduced.” The first vessel in the world to include these new innovations was the Royal Princess, delivered by Wärtsilä Helsinki shipyard in 1984. After that virtually all cruise vessel newbuildings have featured cabins with balconies.
An important factor behind designing so many trendsetting inventions is knowledge about passenger preferences. “We have been very active in this field since the 1980s and we have learned a lot during this period.” Although a rapidly expanding business, there were still only a limited number of new and purpose-built cruise vessels on the market in the early 1980s. There were several new projects being developed and the operators car-
2002 Carnival
Legend 85,700 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines. Navigator of the Seas 137,300 GT, Royal Caribbean.
Photo: STX Europe
GT, Costa Crociere. Explorer of the Seas 137,300 GT, Royal Caribbean.
Photo: STX Europa
2000 Costa Atlantica 85,700
or wrong, just different opinions.” In the first cruise vessels there were also a lot of passenger cabins situated in the hull. When the vessels grew larger and wider the share of inside cabins increased, as most of the new space was won inside the hull. However the owners wanted as many outside cabins as possible, because they got a better price for these. “We worked with this problem for quite a long time and finally solved it by moving most of the cabins up to the superstructure. To avoid stability problems with higher superstructures they were built narrower than the hull instead. We were able to get a row of outside cabins on each side and in the centre between them technical spaces such as air conditioning.” This also enabled the construction of balconies in the outside cabins. “In the hull we must use water-tight cabin windows but in superstructure
No 7 2009 Shipgaz 75
Finnish-built cruise vessels
Retro Photo: STX Europe
»Finally we realised that we should not ask the passengers at all« ried through extensive surveys of the customers’ preferences and wishes to know what to go for. Kai Levander says that the very popular passenger reference groups sometimes turned out to be unrealistic. “The passengers asked could come up with almost any wishes. From this we learned a very important lesson. It was no idea to ask the passengers what they wanted from a cruise. A far more important question was how much they should be willing to pay for this.” “Finally we realised that we should not ask the passengers at all. Instead we asked the travel agents, handling customer service. It turned out that they knew better what the customers wanted but also what they were willing to pay for this. Value for money was the key word, and still is in the cruise business.”
After the 1980s the cruise market simply exploded. The following ship development was to a great extent limited by the owners’ demand that the vessels should be able to sail through the Panama Canal. Now an expansion of the Canal is due for completion in 2014, but until that the largest breadth is fixed to 32 metres. “The breadth is of course crucial for the ship stability and the next issue was to figure out how to include the largest possible number of cabins in the superstructure with this fixed hull breadth.” The result was the ultimate Panamax cruise vessel, with a gross tonnage close to 100,000. An example of such vessels is the Costa Atlantica class, built for Carnival Corporation’s brands Costa Crociere and Carnival Cruise Line. The following step was the PostPanamax vessel. The ship owner gave
ranea 85,700 GT, Costa Crociere. Mariner of the Seas 137,300 GT, Royal Caribbean.
the naval architects free hands to present a solution, where the breadth of the hull no longer was the limiting factor. The first Post-Panamax cruise vessels were of the Voyager-class, built for Royal Caribbean by Wärtsilä’s successor Kvaerner Masa-Yards, later Aker Yards, in Turku. “We came up with a design with two parallel superstructures and an indoor promenade between them to obtain as many window cabins as possible despite the large breadth of the vessels. This concept was originally introduced in Silja Serenade and Silja Symphony.”
Size matters The PostPanamax size has made it possible to include all thinkable activities in the one and same vessel and take full advantage of the economy of scale.
During the new millennium the trend towards a lower average age of the cruise passengers has accelerated. A new market is formed by families travelling with children. The newest generations of cruise vessels are designed to fit the expecta-
2004 Carnival Miracle
85,700 GT, Carnival Cruise Lines. 2006 Freedom of the Seas 154,000 GT, Royal Caribbean.
tions of a much more heterogeneous market than forty years ago when the Song of Norway was projected. Now there are cruise passengers of all ages and with many different social backgrounds. “There are much more active people on board today and they want to decide themselves what to do during the cruise”, Kai Levander points out. Instead of a standard programme the cruise passengers of today want multiple options. “There must be different alternatives for dining and entertainment. In addition the passengers want a lot of other activities. A chapter of it own forms all the facilities for children of different ages. On a cruise with a vessel of the Voyager-class there may be 1,000 children on board. The cruise vessels are more and more becoming destinations themselves”, Kai Levander summarizes.
*
Photo: Royal CaribBean
2003 Costa Mediter-
The Post-Panamax ship Freedom of the Seas after being floated out from the dock at Turku Shipyard.
2007 Liberty of the Seas 154,000 GT, Royal Caribbean. 2008 Independence of the Seas 154,000 GT, Royal Caribbean.
2009 Oasis of the Seas
225,000 GT, Royal Caribbean. 2010 Allure of the Seas 225,000 GT, Royal Caribbean.
In 1966 …
… this picture was taken on the River Avon near Bristol in the UK of the Finnish cargo steamer Eira. Only three years later, almost exactly 40 years ago, on December 9, 1969, she ran aground off Hanko (Hangö) and subsequently became a total loss. The vessel was en route from Storungs on Gotland to the Koverhar steel works near Hanko. Built in 1953 by a French shipyard as the Thèodore Laurent, the 5,861 dwt freighter was acquired by Etelä-Suomen Laiva Oy in 1965. With her also the age of steam came to an end in the company. The photo is from William Schell’s collection.
78 Shipgaz No 7 2009
By Pär-Henrik Sjöström par-henrik@shipgaz.com
Retro Gotland
Picture: Håkan Sjöström
Cruiser and aircraft carrier Warship design was definitely in a transition period when Sweden in the 1920’s was studying the possibilities to build an aircraft carrier. Although some admirals of the old school still had some difficulties to face the fact that warfare at sea had entered a new stage after World War I, it became quite obvious that a strong air force would become the main asset if there ever would be a new conflict at sea. In the early 1920’s it seemed unlikely. Europe was deeply traumatised and split after the “War to End All Wars”. The great naval powers even agreed to limited their naval strength in the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922. Still the world went into another, even more disastrous war less than 20 years later.
The potential of a naval air force was fully understood also in Sweden when a naval committee was formed in 1925 to draw up strategic plans for future development of the navy. The committee proposed the building of a carrier with capacity for 12 aircrafts. It was soon realized, that it would not be an option for Sweden to build an aircraft carrier of international standards – not even a small one. Instead a multi-purpose concept for a vessel combining the tasks of a cruiser and
an aircraft carrier was being developed. The design was modified many times and eventually resulted in the order of an “aircraft cruiser”, displacing 4,600 tons, from the Götaverken shipyard in 1930. Named Gotland, the vessel was handed over to the Swedish navy in 1934.
»The German attempt to sneak out into the Atlantic was revealed« In World War II the era of the big guns had ended at sea. Even if some real gigantic battleship saw some action – several of them were sunk in dramatical actions – it was the aircraft carrier and its wings of fighters and torpedo bombers that really ruled the seas.
The Gotland had the typical armament of a light cruiser, six 15.2 cm guns, but the aft part of the vessel was designed for aircraft operations. Eight seaplanes of the British type Hawker Osprey could be carried on deck, but only six were acquired. They were launched by catapult and after the mission the planes had to land on the water. On aft deck there was a crane for handling the planes. During the last years of peace in the 1930’s the Gotland did several long voyages before the neutrality patrol service began in World War II. During gunnery practice off Vinga on May 20, 1941, lookouts on the
Gotland sighted the German battleship Bismarck and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen steaming northward with high speed. This was reported to the marine headquarters and already the same evening the British had received the same information. The German task force’s attempt to sneak out into the Atlantic was revealed and on May 27 the Bismarck was sunk by superior British forces.
The extremely rapid development within aviation made Gotland’s biplanes obsolete before the war was over. It turned out to be impossible to replace them with modern aircrafts. Instead Gotland was converted into a anti-aircraft cruiser by removing the catapult and the equipment for flight operations and installing additional anti-aircraft armament instead. After World War II the Gotland again made voyages around the world. In 1955 she was equipped with state-of-the-art radar equipment, but only a couple of years later she was transferred to the reserve. After being laid up for five years she was broken up in Ystad in 1963.
*
POSTTIDNING
B