COS Weekly Newsletter - Friday, 10 December 2021

KOTUG Canada Inc., a partnership between KOTUG International B.V. and Canada’s Horizon Maritime Inc., has been awarded a long-term agreement with Trans Mountain. KOTUG Canada was selected for this purpose by shippers on the Trans Mountain Pipeline after a rigorous and competitive process, facilitated by Trans Mountain. Besides the strong technical specifications of these modern vessels, decisive factors for the award included KOTUG Canada’s commitment to a strong and innovative approach to Indigenous involvement and the partnership’s strong foundation in operational excellence in Canada and around the world. This agreement for escort towage to tankers loaded at Westridge Marine Terminal has been established in partnership with the Sc’ianew First Nation, located in Beecher Bay, on Vancouver Island. This strategic location along the Trans Mountain escort route will provide KOTUG Canada with a safe home for a dedicated berthing facility as well as supporting the commercial activities of the Sc’ianew First Nation in Beecher Bay.

KOTUG Canada will provide and operate the two dedicated escort tugs, each approximately 50 metres long, with minimum bollard pull capacity of 110 T BP, which will be flagged in Canada and operated by highly skilled and capable Canadian mariners. Provision of new technologies will assist to reduce underwater radiated noise and greenhouse gases. This includes the application of a revolutionary vessel hull coating developed in Canada by Graphite Innovation & Technologies.

Also, under a separate transaction, KOTUG Canada has an agreement with Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC) for the provision of one dedicated offshore supply vessel (OSV) to support the protection of the Salish Sea/Haro Strait and Juan de Fuca Strait. KOTUG Canada has an agreement with WCMRC to supply and operate a dedicated OSV, suitably equipped for 24/7 oil spill response services. This highly capable vessel also possesses significant bollard pull capacity of 207 T BP and is also capable of vessel towing, if required to do so.

Rio Tinto and LNG Canada have opened a newly extended wharf that will increase the capacity of Rio Tinto’s port facilities in Kitimat and support economic diversification in Northern British Columbia. The new wharf was built for Rio Tinto at its existing Terminal A facility by LNG Canada. It will replace a wharf and land leased to LNG Canada in 2018 for use to start exporting liquefied natural gas to overseas customers.

Rio Tinto will use the new wharf for imports of alumina, anodes and other supplies for its operations, and exports of low-carbon aluminium made at its BC Works smelter. The first ship, BF Caloosa, was berthed on 6 December at the wharf, which can now accommodate larger vessels ranging between 200 and 250 metres in length. Contractors from the Haisla, Kitselas and Kitsumkalum First Nations contributed to the completion of the project by providing a variety of services, including IT support, marine transport, industrial construction and security services.

Shareholders of both companies have voted in favour of the merger between Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd and US railway Kansas City Southern.  The US Surface Transportation Board approved the use of a voting trust for the transaction that allows KCS shareholders to receive payment with shareholders' final approval announced today. CP has said it expects the deal, which also changes its name to Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd., to close on December 14.

The Zim Kingston finally arrived in Nanaimo Harbour last Friday while it waits for a berth at DP World Nanaimo where the damaged containers on board will be removed. The vessel arrived under heavy escort after Transport Canada safety-related concerns were satisfied. Included in the entourage for the transit from Constance Bank included two escort tugs, a Canadian Coast Guard motor lifeboat, a US Coast Guard vessel while in US waters, a marine mammal watch vessel and an environment monitoring vessel. Once the operation is completed in Nanaimo, the Zim Kingston will be taken into the Port of Vancouver for removal of the undamaged containers.

The Competition Bureau has obtained court orders from the Federal Court of Canada to advance an investigation into PSA Canada Ventures Ltd.’s proposed acquisition of Ceres Halifax Inc. PSA and Ceres Halifax are the only two container terminal operators at the Port of Halifax. The Bureau is investigating whether the proposed transaction is likely to result in a substantial lessening or prevention of competition for marine carriers that make port calls at the Port of Halifax. Specifically, the Bureau is investigating whether this potential loss of competition may provide PSA with the ability to impose a material price increase or service level decrease on the services offered to these marine carriers. If the Bureau determines that a merger is likely to substantially lessen or prevent competition, it may apply to the Competition Tribunal for an order under section 92 of the Competition Act to prevent, dissolve or alter the merger.

The Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, announced $8.7M in funding for four new projects under the National Trade Corridors Fund, which will help to improve operational efficiencies at one of Canada’s major export gateways. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority will receive$7.4M for three projects:
1. furthering development and implementation of technology to improve the management of containers selected by CBSA for examination;
2. engineering study for capacity improvements along a segment of rail that links Canadian Pacific’s intermodal and rail yards in Metro Vancouver with grain and container terminals in the Port of Vancouver’s South Shore Trade Area; and
3. Funding to support ongoing work of the Gateway Transportation Collaboration Forum Secretariat, which brings together a number of governmental and private organizations to identify gateway infrastructure priorities in Metro Vancouver.

The Government of Canada is also investing $1.3M the development of a digital platform for sourcing and managing empty shipping containers. This project, to be undertaken by TSC Trakking Software Corporation, will improve container management, reduce costs for Canadian importers and exporters, and reduce greenhouse gases due to congestion in Metro Vancouver and potentially other Canadian cities.

Transport Canada has announced a call for new call for proposals under the National Trade Corridors Fund focussed on increasing the fluidity of Canada's supply chains.  Deadline for expression of interests is March 31, 2022.

Transport Canada is proposing changes to the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations to better define training requirements.  The proposed amendments would remove the term “adequately trained”; incorporate by reference a new training standard developed under the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB); and specify that to be considered competent to handle, offer for transport or transport dangerous goods, a person must receive both general awareness and function-specific training and assessment.  This follows recent findings that of the 409 dangerous goods incidents resulting in injury or death reported between 2014 and 2019, approximately 55 were attributed to improper or insufficient training.

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has been at the forefront of Canada’s COVID-19 response since the beginning of the pandemic. The CBSA has spent a good part of 2021 gradually adapting measures to allow for a safe return of travellers with health always as top priority. Meanwhile, the flow of goods across our border remained steady, and postal and courier shipments rose significantly as more Canadians shopped and did business on line. The CBSA also took this time to move forward on modernizing our border by using technology to facilitate and expedite activities through a more touchless travel experience. The CBSA’s 2021 highlights showcase the Agency’s commitment to facilitate the free flow of commercial goods and services, support a secure and welcoming immigration system, stop dangerous drugs and weapons from entering Canada, and contribute to Canada’s response to COVID-19. While not noted in the highlights, CBSA efforts in processing likely a record number of seafarers arriving and departing as part of much-needed crew changes for international shipping has been very much appreciated since the start of the pandemic.

As part of the Oceans Protection Plan, Canada has increased its leadership and international work to improve marine safety and protect the marine environment. Canada’s role now includes a permanent mission to the International Maritime Organization in London, England to allow for more effective, efficient and coordinated policy-making. It also improves Canada’s ability to influence international maritime agreements, rules, standards and guidelines. The current members of Canada’s permanent mission to the IMO are The Honourable Ralph Goodale, High Commissioner for Canada in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Ms. Stefanie Beck, Deputy High Commissioner for Canada to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ms. Gillian Grant.

The US House of Representatives passed legislation on Wednesday providing for the first major update of US International ocean-shipping laws in more than two decades. The Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 was introduced by US Congressmen John Garamendi (D-CA) and Dusty Johnson (R-SD) to establish reciprocal trade to promote US exports and to address the findings of the investigations conducted by the Federal Maritime Commission on detention and demurrage. The bill was approved by the House with a vote of 364 to 60 and now goes before the Senate for further consideration.

Meanwhile, Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach (LA/LB) have postponed the introduction of a container daily dwell fee of $100 for the fourth week running.   Since the fee was announced by the Biden-Harris Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force on October 25, the ports have seen a 37% reduction in "aging" cargo on the docks.

US Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, announces $12.6 million in grants to the Department's Maritime Administration (MARAD) to support nine marine highway projects across the US to help alleviate supply chain congestion, enhance the movement of goods along navigable waterways, and expand existing waterborne freight services. The added support to America's Marine Highway Program (AMHP) is part of the Biden-Harris Port Action Plan to deliver near-term actions to address supply chain disruptions by helping to increase Federal flexibilities for port grants; accelerate port infrastructure grant awards; initiate new construction projects for coastal navigation, inland waterways, and land ports of entry; and launch the first round of expanded port infrastructure grants funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

A.P. Moller-Maersk this week unveiled images and new design details for its series of eight 16,000 TEU containerships powered by carbon-neutral methanol. The 350-meter-long, 53.5-meter-wide ships will be built to ABS class and have a much different look compared to typical large container vessels. The crew accommodation and bridge will be located at the bow while the funnel will be placed to one side in the aft, both creating extra space for increased container capacity. Maersk's towage arm Svitzer is also working to develop methanol-fueled tugs. Expected delivery from South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries is early 2024 and will feature an innovative dual-fuel engine setup that can operate on methanol and conventional low-sulphur fuel. With 16,000-cubic-meter tanks for green methanol, the vessels will be able to complete an entire round-trip, for example Asia-Europe, on the cleaner-burning fuel, Maersk said.

Synergy Marine Germany GmbH, a subsidiary of the Synergy Group, has signed an agreement to manage part of the bulk carrier fleet owned by Oldendorff Carriers. The contract with Synergy Group commences with the full technical management of 17 Oldendorff bulk carriers comprising nine post-panamax vessels and eight ‘babycapes’.  Synergy Group will provide full technical management services including the deployment of its innovative digital shipping platform, which ensures the real-time deployment of data to maximize operational efficiency, performance optimization, and vessel profitability.

Featured almost 2 years ago as our Ship of the Week, the Suiso Frontiers is now the world’s first liquefied hydrogen (LH2) carrier built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries, a member of the CO2-free Hydrogen Energy Supply-chain Technology Research Association (HySTRA).  After completing the prescribed surveys, ClassNK added this first LH2 vessel to its register on December 3rd.

The A$500 million ($353 million) pilot project, led by Kawasaki and backed by the Japanese and Australian governments, was originally scheduled to ship its first cargo of hydrogen extracted from brown coal in Australia in spring 2021 but suffered delays due to the Covid pandemic. The Suiso Frontier will carry blue hydrogen produced from the vast coal resources of Victoria in south-east Australia. Coal mined from the Latrobe Valley will be used for gasification, a partial oxidation process carried out with steam that yields hydrogen mixed with carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide will be captured, and the hydrogen shipped 100 kilometres to the port of Hastings, on the outskirts of Melbourne in Australia. In Hastings, the hydrogen will be liquefied by cooling and then loaded onto the Suiso Frontier.

LH2 must be stored at a staggeringly low temperature of minus 253°C — far lower than the minus 160°C used for international shipments of liquefied natural gas — with the liquefaction process reducing the volume of hydrogen gas by a factor of 800.

To contribute to the safe seaborne transportation of hydrogen, which needs intensive measures for handling, in 2017 ClassNK published the “Guidelines for Liquefied Hydrogen Carriers” describing the safety requirements based on the IMO’s Interim Recommendations for Carriage of Liquefied.