While recently escaping the cold north for a touch of sunshine, I took this picture of the pneumatic cement carrier Kondili in the Port of Melbourne. Having been built in 2006, the vessel was converted from a handy size bulk carrier to a pneumatic cement carrier in 2018 and is currently dedicated to serving the Australian coast. She is one of 5 cement carriers in the Montreal headquartered CSL fleet.
In the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s the traditional reefer ship ruled the break bulk and pallet movement of perishables across the globe. The demand for citrus fruits, deciduous fruits, bananas, meat and fish of every description ensured that hundreds of ships were fully deployed for other than a few weeks in the northern summer which was referred to as “slack season”. On their ballast legs, many used their tween decks to ship new and/or used automobiles until the modern auto carrier squeezed them out.
Boka Vanguard is a uniquely designed and capable semi-submersible heavy lift ship capable of loading project cargoes of up to 110,000 tonnes. She was initially designed to move oil and gas facilities across the globe but as can be seen in the picture, she offers additional flexibility as an emergency drydock.
A locally constructed oceanographic research vessel has been commissioned by the Colombian Navy. Design and construction were undertaken in close collaboration with Damen Shipyards Group of The Netherlands. She is the largest vessel ever to be built in Colombia.
Commissioned in June this year for the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, the hybrid electric aluminium catmaran hulled MPA Guardian is designed to fulfill routine patrol, search and rescue, fire fighting, oil spill response and drone operations. The aluminium hulled vessel is a collaboration between the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) of the Singapore Ministry of Defence, local builder Penguin Shipyard International, and UK-based naval architecture specialist BMT.
In March this year, Japan’s NYK Line took delivery of Plumeria Leader, the company’s second Pure Car and Truck Carrier (PCTC) using LNG as the ship’s primary fuel.
Built by Shin Kurushima Dockyard, Shin Kurushima Toyohashi Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.
Owned and operated by NYK Line
Chartered by Toyota Motor Corporation
LOA 199m
Beam 38m
Capacity 7,000 units (standard vehicle equivalent)
Pioneering Spirit is a unique catamaran hull heavy lift crane vessel and the world’s largest vessel by gross tonnage. Since conversion in 2021, she is also the largest floating sheerleg in the world.
Owned and operated by Pacific Basin Shipping of Hong Kong, Oyster Bay is representative of a fleet of 120 Supramax bulk carriers both owned and operated by the company. The Supramax segment is generally accepted to be vessels in the range of 52-58,000 tonnes deadweight.
Currently the world’s largest container ship, Ever Ace is the first of 13 sister ships having a capacity of 23,992 TEU which in the opinion of many is as high as container ships can practically go (famous last words).
In February this year, the newbuild chemical tanker Tern Island performed what is believed to have been the first zero-emissions port operation by a tanker. The vessel relied exclusively on a combination of batteries and shore power provided by the Port of Gothenburg.
