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TODAY’S BULLETIN OF MARITIME NEWS

These news reports are updated on an ongoing basis. Check back regularly for the latest news as it develops – where necessary refresh your page at www.africaports.co.za

Week commencing 13 February 2023.  Click on headline to go direct to story : use the BACK key to return 

FIRST VIEW:  MSC JUDITH

• Three navies in port & conflated exercises
• Hutchison Ports (TICTS) out as Tanzania Ports Authority takes back container terminal
• WHARF TALK: MR2 product tanker HANSA SEALIFTER
• Africa as green jobs leader: Shipping undergoes low carbon revolution
• Xeneta Container Update: Week 7
• Nigerian Chamber of Shipping has new president
• Kpler Acquires MarineTraffic and FleetMon for maritime sector expansion
• Admiral Gorshkov departs from Cape Town for Durban
• Dangote Refinery will bring a transformational shift in both crude and product tanker flows to West Africa
• IN CONVERSATION: When two elephants fight: how the global south uses non-alignment to avoid great power rivalries
• South Africa aims to generate R2 trillion in trade by 2028, with emphasis on intra-Africa
• The new Mercy Ships’ hospital ship, Global Mercy™ arrives in Dakar
• Le nouveau navire-hôpital, le Global Mercy™ arrive à Dakar
• Lake Victoria’s newest and largest ship mv Hapa Kazi Tu, is launched
• WHARF TALK: Cape Town bunkering – LIPUMA & others
• Cape Town mayor says Russian warship not welcome
• No rush for TotalEnergies to restart LNG operations in Mozambique
• South Africa has new State of Disaster declared over flooding
• Transnet seeks to shrink rail network and reduce costs
• WHARF TALK: Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Navy Gorshkov (454)
• Six crew dead after tank cleaning onboard tanker off Lagos
• Russian missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov arrives in Cape Town  LATEST
• Heavy rains disrupt Transnet rail networks
• WHARF TALK: Greek-owned Supramax bulk carrier LIA
• Suez Canal ‘not for sale’ as revenue increases 47 per cent
• A.P. Moller-Maersk reports extraordinary results for 2022
• Just in Time arrival concept: New portal launched to support implementation
• Hapag-Lloyd ships to be retrofitted with new propellers and bulbous bows
• Angola plans a three-year ban on exports of unworked wood
• Xeneta ‘Green Shipping’ report: Far East to South America East Coast container corridor

• EARLIER NEWS CAN BE FOUND UNDER NEWS CATEGORIES…….

Masthead:  PORT OF CAPE TOWN

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FIRST VIEW:  MSC JUDITH

Making an impressive entrance to Durban is the 8,034-TEU capacity container ship, MSC JUDITH (IMO 9299549) earlier in February. The 324 metre long, 43m wide ship of 105,082-dwt was arriving from Port Louis and prior to that from China (Qingdao and Shanghai, via Singapore, Jawaharlal Nehru and Mundra (both Indian ports).

MSC Judith, owned and operated by Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), was built in 2006 at the Hanjin Heavy Industries Co.Ltd shipyard in Busan, South Korea, and flies the flag of Panama.

The container ship is powered by a single Wartsila type 12rta96c main engine.

After completing her cargo working at the Durban Container Terminal, MSC Judith headed for the Eastern Cape port of Ngqura where the ship is currently in port working cargo.

MSC operates a fleet of nine sister ships in this type, the others being MSC Rita, MSC Maeva, MSC Lucy (owned vessels), MSC Beijing, MSC Busan, MSC Toronto, MSC Charleston, MSC Vittoria (chartered vessels).

Of interest are the following details of her current voyage from the Far East to South Africa and her time in each port.

Qingdao 1 day; Shanghai 23 hours; Singapore 1 day; Jawaharlal Nehru 12 hours; Mundra 1 day 15 hours; Port Louis 1 day 7 hours day; Durban 5 days 10 hours; Ngqura 2 days and currently in port (Sunday 12 February).

From Ngqura MSC Judith will head for Port Louis where she is due on 20 February 2023.

Picture by Trevor Jones

 

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Three navies in port & conflated exercises

The Russian Navy frigate ADMIRAL GORSHKOV (454) entered port at Durban at 09h30 yesterday (Friday 17 February 2023) to berth at N Shed, the former passenger terminal on the T-Jetty. The frigate is in South Africa to participate in this year’s Mosi II naval exercise being held off the KZN coast and at the port of Richards Bay.

The exercise coincides with this year’s Armed Forces Day, a fairly recent innovation by the cash-strapped South African National Defence Force (SANDF) which is held annually at different centres around the country to showcase the supposed capabilities of the armed forces. We say ‘supposed’ due to the general lack of finance from which an other capable military can perform.

Armed Forces Day more like 10 days) culminates with the anniversary of the sinking of the troopship ss Mendi off the Isle of Wight on 21 February 1917. Over 600 predominantly black South African soldiers perished in the cold seas that day after the Mendi was struck by another ship.

As Baroness Lola Young has written, in South Africa the SS Mendi evokes a mixture of grief and pride. Yet in Britain, she wrote, few are familiar with the ship or the fate of those who sailed in it.

Armed Forces Day

Due to heavy rains along the KZN coast which has caused Naval Island in Richards Bay harbour to be swamped, the planned public demonstration this weekend involving anti-piracy measures has been called off. Further events remain on the agenda for the remaining days, with ship visits up to and including Sunday 20th.

The ships open to the public are the SA Navy ships SAS Mendi (F148), SAS King Sekhukhune I (P1571), SAS Protea (AS324), and SAS Tekwane (P1554).

Late in January a spokesperson for the Minister of Defence said the SANDF was concened with the media “conflating” Armed Forces Day with the maritime exercise Mosi II, which it was said are two distinct and different activities whose “only apparent similarities are the coincidence of geography and timing”.

Instead of accusing the public and media, perhaps the SANDF and other political organisers should not have ‘conflated’ the two separate events by staging them together at the same time and in the same place.

Had this not been done the political fallout and adverse publicity that has extended beyond South Africa’s borders, might have been slightly less condemning.

As from this Monday the various ships of the three navies will al be together in Richards Bay and on ‘display’ to the general public. Is that not a natural suggestion that the two events are connected?

Chinese and Russian Navy participants

On Monday three Chinese Navy ships are expected to arrive in Richards Bay for the controversial exercise. These are the guided missile destroyer HUAINAN (CNS 123), commissioned in 2021, the guided-missile frigate RIZHAO (598), commissioned in January 2018, and the impressive type 903A Fuchi-class replenishment supply ship KEKEXILIHU (968), all arriving from the Gulf of Aden.

Meanwhile the Russian frigate arrived in Durban on Friday 17th where it was met by and escorted into port by the SA Navy Inshore Multipurpose Vessel (MMIPV), SAS KING SEKHUKHUNE I, which is normally based in Durban but which returned from Richards Bay to her Durban naval base to meet and escort the frigate into port.

Also on Friday a second Russian ‘naval’ vessel, the replenishment tanker KAMA arrived in Cape Town from the South Atlantic. The tanker will be joining the naval exercise on the KZN coast in the new week.

Africa Ports & Ships will feature details of the tanker in one of our next editions.

Full details of the frigate Admiral Gorshkov featured on 14 February and can be FOUND HERE

Details of the replenishment ship Kama will be available here this coming week.

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Added 18 February 2023

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Hutchison Ports (TICTS) out as Tanzania Ports Authority takes back container terminal

Hutchison Ports, which managed and operated the Dar es Salaam Container Terminal since before 2010, has vacated the port after failing to reach agreement with the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA).

According to reports, negotiations continued between the two parties up and into December 2022, but after failing to find common ground, the TPA took possession of the terminal as from 1 January this year.

To manage the terminal on berths 8 – 11 in the interim, Adani Ports has been appointed as a service contractor to operate the terminal on a monthly basis.

The relationship between the TPA and Hutchison, which operated the terminal as Tanzania International Container Terminal Services Ltd (TICTS), became strained in recent years. In 2017 the former and now late President John Magufuli instructed the TPA to review the contract held by TICTS.

This resulted in the annual concession fees being doubled from US$ 7 million to $14 million.

There were also complaints by shipping companies of delays to berthing container ships varying from 8 to 10 days and even rising to almost three weeks at one time in 2020.

The World Bank also complained about the port’s poor performance

While container handling isn’t confined to the former TICTS operation at Dar es Salaam – TPA inaugurated a separate container handling terminal on berths 5 – 7 partly in an effort of improving Dar es Salaam’s reputation, the poor performance levels of the port impacted on efforts to attract business from neighouring landlocked countries including Malawi, Zambia, the eastern DRC, Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda.

This has become increasingly important in connection with the standard gauge railway (SGR) now under construction and reaching inland to reach Lakes Victoria and Tanganyika.

It is not yet known when or if TPA will issue a tender for a new terminal operator – the arrangement with Adani Ports, India’s largest private terminal operator, is monthly at present.

The port has complete reconstruction of berths 1 – 7 with a depth alongside of -14.5 metres, and plans to continue the reconstruction of the remaining berths 8 – 11, currently the former TICTS’ managed Dar es Salaam Container Terminal.

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Added 17 February 2023

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WHARF TALK: MR2 product tanker HANSA SEALIFTER

The MR2 product tanker Hansa Sealifter at the Cape Town tanker basin. Picture by ‘Dockrat’

Pictures by ‘Dockrat’
Story by Jay Gates

In the good old days of shipowning, it was a case that the ships were the property of the owner, hence a shipowner. Then in more recent times, banks, and Chinese banks especially, were becoming so awash with spare cash, that they entered the shipowning business, operating a hire purchase option to interested ship operators, a bit like buying a new, or second hand car.

More recently, another option seems to gaining popularity once more, which is having one shipowner sell one of their own vessels to another shipowner, and then leasing it straight back again, so they keep it in their operating fleet, but no longer have the costs of owning it.

On 11th February, at 08h00 in the morning, the MR2 product tanker HANSA SEALIFTER (IMO 9367700), arrived off Cape Town, from the Durban anchorage, and immediately entered Cape Town harbour, going straight to the Tanker Basin in the Duncan Dock, to begin a discharge of a parcel of products for the Mother City.

Her arrival from the Durban anchorage was slightly strange. She had arrived off Durban at 2200 in the late evening on 7th February, from her loading port of Sohar, in Oman. On arrival, ‘Hansa Sealifter’ proceeded straight to the Durban anchorage, presumably to await her berth at the Island View terminal in Durban Harbour.

However, just over 12 hours later, at 11h00 on 8th February, she raised her anchor, and instead of entering Durban harbour, she headed South, down the coast, and direct for Cape Town instead. Durban, it would seem, would have to wait, because either Cape Town was getting desperately low on a fuel product, or simply it was because Durban could not accommodate her at this time.

Built in 2008 by the Onimichi Zosen KK shipyard at Kobe in Japan, ‘Hansa Sealifter’ is 183 metres in length and has a deadweight of 47,472 tons. She is powered by a single Mitsui MAN-B&W 6S50MC-C6 6 cylinder 2 stroke main engine, producing 11,665 bhp (8,580 kW) to drive a fixed pitch propeller for a service speed of 14 knots.

Her auxiliary machinery includes three Yanmar 6N18AL-UV generators providing 480 kW each. She has a single Osaka DC-061416 exhaust gas boiler, and a single Alfa Laval Aalborg Mission OM oil fired boiler. She has 12 cargo tanks, with a cargo carrying capacity of 50,588 m3. She can carry four grades of product at any one time, and she has four cargo pumps, each capable of discharging at a rate of 1,000 m3/hour.

One of three sisterships, ‘Hansa Sealifter’ is owned by Leonhardt & Blumberg Reederei GmbH, of Hamburg, and managed by Leonhardt & Blumberg Tank Shipmanagement GmbH, also of Hamburg. She is operated by Ardmore Shipping Ltd., of Cork in Ireland.

Until April 2022, ‘Hansa Sealifter’ was owned by the Ardmore Shipping Group, of Bermuda, and named ‘Ardmore Sealifter’. She, and her two sisterships, were all block purchased for US$40 million (ZAR715.66 million) by Leonhardt & Blumberg who, up to this point, were known as a container ship operator, and they had never operated tankers before.

However, the purchase of ‘Hansa Sealifter’ was a sale and leaseback arrangement, as she and her sisters were all immediately time chartered straight back to Ardmore Shipping Ltd., of Cork, which explains why she displays the Ardmore Shipping houseflag on her funnel. In effect, her name changed on her bow, but her funnel colours remained the same. The time charter to Ardmore was for a period of two years, with a start date being in June 2022.

In June 2019, ‘Hansa Sealifter’, was on a voyage from Castellon, in Spain, to New York, when she was directed by the US Coast Guard to go to the aid of a yacht called ‘Boundless’, that was in difficulties some 600 nautical miles east of New York. The yacht, with four crew aboard, had set off from Baddeck, in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, for a 3,600 nautical mile transatlantic voyage to Portugal.

On 13th June, ‘Boundless’ had encountered high winds, accompanied by six metre swells, which had snapped their aluminium rudder, and bent it parallel with the ocean surface, leaving them unable to steer, and at the mercy of the storm.

At the time that the distress call was made, ‘Hansa Sealifter’ was some 17 nautical miles south of the position broadcast by ‘Boundless’. On arrival at the scene, she provided a lee, dropped a 12 metre pilot rope ladder, and came alongside ‘Boundless’. The yacht was safely abandoned, and all four crew were taken safely aboard ‘Hansa Sealifter’, who brought the survivors to New York. Sadly, the ‘Boundless’ was lost.

Her fuel product parcel discharges, for Cape Town, were completed after just 48 hours alongside, and ‘Hansa Sealifter’ sailed from Cape Town at 08h00 on 13th February, bound once more for Durban. She is due to arrive off Durban at 12h00 on 16th February, and hopefully, this time around, she will have timed her arrival to proceed straight into Durban harbour, and to go directly to her working berth, at the Island View Oil Terminal.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t to happen. On arrival off Durban at 13h30 on Thursday 16th the tanker was directed to the outside anchorage where she was at anchor when this report was completed at 17h30 that day.

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Added 17 February 2023

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Africa as green jobs leader: Shipping undergoes low carbon revolution

 

Edited by Paul Ridgway
London

It was reported from Accra, Ghana, on 15 February that experts from the Maritime Just Transition Task Force had told Africa’s maritime leaders that their continent was well placed to take a large share of the new jobs and training places expected from shipping’s green transition.

Africa as a world leader

In a joint statement by UNGC, ICS2, and ITF3 we learn that Africa has an opportunity to become a world leader in seafarer training and could yet claim many of the new green jobs available as the global shipping industry transitions to low- and zero-carbon fuels. Delegates were told of this at that day’s Green Shipping Conference held in Accra.

Growth markets

The conference was hosted by the Ghana Maritime Authority in partnership with the Danish Maritime Authority and the UN’s IMO. Delegates, including many Directors General of shipping, gathered representing 17 maritime authorities from across the African region. With 1.3 billion people and a combined GDP of $3.5 trillion dollars, Africa is one of the world’s biggest growth markets.

Helio Vicente, senior manager of trade policy and employment affairs at the International Chamber of Shipping asked: “Many shipowners are already ordering vessels with new designs, powered by alternative fuels and equipped with new technologies. More orders will be made of these new vessels. But the question is: do we have the crew to operate them?”

Research commissioned by the Maritime Just Transition Task Force found as many as 800,000 seafarers could require additional training by the mid-2030s to handle low and zero-carbon fuels such as hydrogen and ammonia if the IMO adopts a target for net zero emissions for shipping by 2050 in line with the 1.5 C goal of the Paris Agreement in July, as many expect it to.

As the industry cuts carbon pollution and moves away from fossil fuels to alternative low to zero carbon in anticipation of July’s decision, the training and maritime job opportunities are growing, the Task Force experts say,

An African centre of maritime excellence?

Addressing conference delegates, Vicente added: “There is already a shortfall in officers and almost 90,000 additional officers will be needed by 2026. Africa has the opportunity to step up and help provide the world with these seafarers and more, trained with the skills needed for the future.”

He said that a future global centre of maritime excellence for seafarer training could be based in Africa, bringing with it more jobs and wider benefits for the region.

In conclusion: “Africa can leverage the strategic opportunities of this shipping revolution. But our advice is that you need to move on this now, today.”

Mohammed Dauda Safiyanu, Africa Regional Secretary for the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) stated: “We know that the decarbonisation of shipping, like any transport sector, will only be successful with a Just Transition for its people.”

He continued: “Our region, Africa, has an important role in developing the workforce of the future, and also to make sure our African seafarers are properly supported with good quality jobs.

“To capitalise on this transition, we need to start bringing all parties – governments, employers, and trade unions – together, to align the various training, health and safety, and investment elements. ITF is here to see Africa succeed, and see our continent’s seafarers succeed. Seafarers move the world.”

Captain Catherine Haizel, maritime lecturer and seafarer, reflected: “Governments and employers need to listen to the voice of women seafarers about what we need from a life at sea. I know from many years as a seafarer and as a teacher of maritime studies, that quality training, conditions and benefits make the difference. I see a huge potential for a Just Transition to improve our industry so we can attract more women and more African seafarers.”

Captain Haizel is also ITF inspector for Ghana. She is lecturer at the Regional Maritime University in Ghana and is a member of the Ghana Merchant Navy Officers’ Association.

Sturla Henriksen, Special Advisor, Ocean, UN Global Compact, said: “Moving towards a low-emission global economy will create tens of millions of new, high-quality green jobs across sectors. Through ensuring a Just Transition to a green economy, Africa has an opportunity to capitalize on the emerging green jobs of the future – in shipping and beyond.

“Governments must now come to the International Maritime Organization this summer and align on an ambitious decarbonization goal of total zero emissions by 2050 with strengthened 2030 and 2040 targets to align to the 1.5ºC of the Paris Agreement.

“This will help to unlock the investments in seafarer training and skills today to support the green maritime jobs of the future. Small and medium enterprises can play an important role in green job creation, and the UN Global Compact Africa Strategy provides a sustainability roadmap for action.”

The Task Force sees July as an important moment to achieve ambitious consensus and unlock the investment needed to unleash the green maritime jobs of the future.

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Added 17 February 2023

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Xeneta Container Update: Week 7

 

Divide between long-term and spot rates dissolves, as shippers look to call shots in contract negotiations

The latest data from Xeneta reveals a fundamental shift in the container market, with a rapid closure of the once gaping divide between long-term and spot rates on the world’s leading trade corridors.

The bigger they are, the harder they fall

Xeneta’s crowd-sourced data paints a stark picture of developments across the five major fronthaul routes out of the Far East. As of 12 December 2022, shippers reported paying an average of USD 3,900 more per FEU on long-term contracts than the spot market. However, by 12 February that premium had plummeted to “just” USD 810 per FEU.

The corridor with the greatest fall was the Far East to US East Coast, where a long-term premium of USD 5,180 per FEU in mid-December collapsed to USD 1,280 over the course of the next two months.

Pressure takes toll

Peter Sand, Chief Analyst at Xeneta, comments: “Depressed demand, easing of the supply chain, and availability of equipment, alongside other macro-economic and geopolitical factors, undermined the strong positions of the carriers last year, with spot rates quickly falling in line with weakening fundamentals. However, long-term rates initially weathered the storm, causing striking gaps to open up between the long- and short-term markets. But that’s all changing now.”

He continues: “The ferocious competition for volumes in a declining market, set against the possibility of shippers moving to spot rates to secure far greater value, meant carrier efforts to maintain elevated long-term rates were always a long-shot. In the end, market forces have proved irresistible, as evidenced by this dramatic ‘correction’ of the rates divide.”

New approaches

Sand notes that the shippers are now firmly in ascendancy in negotiations.

He expects long-term rates will “continue to fall” and says the arrival of TPM, and the signing of new contracts in the US, will be an interesting indication of things to come.

Approaches to negotiations are, he points out, “evolving in line with the ever-changing picture”, explaining: “Many shippers are looking to secure index-linked agreements to ensure they don’t miss out on future rates falls. In a recent webinar for Xeneta customers, almost a quarter of participants responded they were signing up for index-linked 12 month deals. Another one in five revealed they were shortening the length of their new long-term contracts to between three and six months to benefit from what is expected to be a continued downward trend.

“The fact they can follow these strategies clearly demonstrates their increased power at the negotiating table.”

Detailed differences

Xeneta’s data also highlights that the Far East to the Mediterranean trade is the major fronthaul with the smallest ‘rates gap’, with spot rates now averaging USD 3,120 per FEU and long-term contracts at USD 3,270 per FEU (a premium of USD 150).

On four of the smaller of Xeneta’s top 13 trades, shippers on the spot market are paying more than those signing new long-term contracts – with spot premiums of between USD 10 and USD 430 per FEU. All four are trades out of Europe, two from the Mediterranean to the Far East and the US East Coast, as well as the corridors from North Europe to the Far East and to the South American East Coast.

For more details visit www.xeneta.com

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Added 17 February 2023

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Nigerian Chamber of Shipping has new president

Aminu Umar has been elected as the 7th president of Nigerian Chamber of Shipping (NCS) at the recent governing council meeting of the organisation.

Umar is the managing director of Sea Transport Group and has a background of involvement in several ministerial committees, and a former president of the Nigerian Indigenous Ship-owners Association (NISA).

Sea Transport Group operates in the ships husbandry, ship management, crew managememnt and energy transportation fields.

“He is also a leading indigenous ship owner and operator in Nigeria and his emergence as President of NCS is definitely a square peg in a square hole!” said the Director-General of NCS, Chimezie-Azubuike.

A former D-G of the Nigerian Shipping Council, Mrs Ify Anazonwu-Akerele was elected as vice-president of the NCS.

They fill the roles of former president and vice-president of the NCS, Andy Isichei and Ahmed Tijjani Ramalan, who stood down after two consecutive terms.

The NCS was created in 2002 to ensure the participation in Nigeria’s domestic shipping industry within the international maritime domain.

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Added 17 February 2023

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Kpler Acquires MarineTraffic and FleetMon for maritime sector expansion

Kpler, now a leading provider of commodities data, analytics, and market insight, announced today (Thursday) that it has acquired MarineTraffic and FleetMon, two providers of global ship-tracking data and maritime analytics.

The deal follows an earlier acquisition of FleetMon by MarineTraffic, resulting in a coordinated double acquisition for Kpler in the maritime analytics space.

Since its founding in 2007, Athens-based MarineTraffic has become an integral part of the maritime industry by spearheading innovation that has made ship tracking intelligence and analytics widely accessible. Rostock-based FleetMon, also founded in 2007, provides AIS data to market-leading corporates including industrials at the end of the supply chain.

Kpler said in a statement that combining these companies’ strong points will allow Kpler to unlock more value for the maritime sector and increase the quality of the products, data, and services it provides to its clients. This comes at a time of increasing demand for new digital tools, as well as intensifying global challenges across the maritime supply chain.

“Since its creation, Kpler has been focused on tracking cargoes, not vessels. We believe the time has come to marry commodity and maritime intelligence into one single platform. This will lead to improvements in the data and services we provide and drive further innovation in the maritime sector, by incorporating the excellent work of both MarineTraffic and FleetMon.” said François Cazor, CEO, Kpler.

“I am very proud of what MarineTraffic has achieved over the years and really excited for what we can further achieve as part of Kpler, alongside the FleetMon team. I am confident that the integration of our products and organisational cultures will lead us to new frontiers, ultimately benefiting our customers and our community. The increasingly connected maritime world needs more digital tools and better analytics and we’ll continue innovating in that direction,” Demitris Memos, CEO of MarineTraffic said.

Lars Brandstäter, CEO, FleetMon said that creating transparency for the maritime world has driven Fleetmon’s work for over a decade now. “To combine the experience and excellence of the Kpler, MarineTraffic and the FleetMon teams will push the journey of digitalization for maritime transport and supply chains,” he said.

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Added 17 February 2023

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Admiral Gorshkov departs from Cape Town for Durban

Pictures by ‘Dockrat’

The Russian frigate ADMIRAL GORSHKOV (454) completed her replenishment duties in the Port of Cape Town on Wednesday morning and sailed at 10h15 bound for Durban, where she is expected on Friday 17th February.

The ship’s visit aroused some attention among Capetonians and a small group of local Ukrainians ventured out in a yacht to make a protest on the water in front of the vessel.

The incident caused some interest on board the vessel with personnel lining the deck to watch and take photographs.

Other than this and various tweets by the Cape Town mayor (reported in yesterday’s edition of Africa Ports & Ships) the sip’s call at Cape Town went off without further incident, as no doubt will be the case when she calls at Durban later this week.

Meanwhile the small Russian support vessel, the tanker KAMA has been observed off the West Coast on a heading for Cape Town where this ship is due on Friday 17th.

Presumably the Kama will then proceed around the Cape and head along the southern and east coasts to link up with the frigate along the KZN coast.

Armed Forces Day

Meanwhile, the SA Navy has announced that four vessels are taking part in the Armed Forces Day activities being held in Richards Bay and the surrounding towns.

These are the frigate SAS Mendi (F158), the inshore multipurpose patrol vessel SAS King Sekhukhune I, the hydrographic survey vessel SAS Protea and the inshore patrol launch SAS Tekwane.

They are in port at Richards Bay and open to the public from today (16th) to Sunday 19th February between 09h00 and 15h00 each day.

There is no news whether the Russian and Chinese naval ships, which are here to take part with the SA Navy in Exercise Mosi II, will berth in Richards Bay or on which dates. All that is known is that the Russian frigate will be at Durban’s N Shed from this Friday until Sunday 19th February.

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Added 16 February 2023

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Dangote Refinery will bring a transformational shift in both crude and product tanker flows to West Africa

Dangoe Refinery in Nigeria under construction.  Picture: Dangote

In the latest Weekly Tanker Market Report from Gibson Shipbrokers, attention is focused on the effect that the Dangote Refinery in Nigeria will have on tanker flows to West Africa.

Headed ‘The Wind of Change’ Gibson Shipbrokers points out that in recent years close attention has been paid to the new 650kbd Dangote refinery currently under construction.

The project was initiated nearly a decade ago and was originally scheduled to come online in 2019. However, says Gibson, as is the case with most grassroots refineries, the scale of the project coupled with typical logistical delays; which were further amplified by disruptions caused by the pandemic meant that the start-up has been pushed back.

In late 2022, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) reported that the refinery is nearing completion, being 97% commissioned, whilst many media outlets suggested that the scheduled start-up date is in Q1 2023.

In contrast, the IEA currently expects the refinery to fire up around mid-2023, but the agency also acknowledges that further delays cannot be ruled out due to the sheer size and complexity of the single train refinery.

An increase in crude imports into Lekki, it says, will signal that the start date is approaching fast; however, so far this has not been witnessed despite the speculation.

With the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) acquiring a minority equity stake at the refinery and agreeing to supply 300kbd into the plant, the start up will lead to a further decline in West African crude exports.

According to Kpler, regional exports averaged 3.4mbd last year, easing by 150kbd year-on-year but down massively by 1.4mbd from peak levels in 2015. The refinery’s impact will also be felt beyond the regional market.

West Africa helped to offset the halt in Russian crude flows into Europe, with shipments to European destinations increasing by nearly 200kbd in 2022.

However, when Dangote is up and running, these flows will come under renewed pressure, with Europe needing to source even more barrels from the Middle East, US Gulf and Latin America.

Product tanker flows are also bound to transform, and these changes could begin even prior to the Dangote start-up. West Africa imported circa 0.94mbd of clean products last year, with 60% of all products coming from Europe.

These flows are likely to decline, now that EU ban on Russian products is in place. Direct flows from Russian ports could increase, although it is still too early to know for sure.

In the long run, when Dangote is operational, it is widely believed that regional product imports will decline notably, with the plant reported to yield circa 325kbd of gasoline, 245kbd of gasoil/diesel and 55kbd of jet fuel when fully operational.

Ironically, however, it could make more economic sense for West African countries to buy discounted Russian products and resell domestic volumes at market values. The same could also be applied to crude.

Yet, a lot here depends on the freight element, whilst significant involvement of international financial institutions in many wide-ranging projects in Africa also have the potential to block this lucrative trade.

Only time will tell what actually happens, but one thing is certain – Dangote will bring a transformational shift in both crude and product tanker flows to West Africa. source: Gibson Shipbrokers

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IN CONVERSATION: When two elephants fight: how the global south uses non-alignment to avoid great power rivalries

Adekeye Adebajo, University of Pretoria

An African proverb notes that “when two elephants fight, it is the grass underneath that suffers”.

Many states in the global south are, therefore, seeking to avoid getting caught in the middle of any future battles between the US and China. Instead, they are calling for a renewal of the concept of non-alignment. This was an approach employed in the 1950s by newly independent countries to balance between the two ideological power blocs of east and west during the era of the Cold War

The new non-alignment stance is based on a perceived need to maintain southern sovereignty, pursue socio-economic development, and benefit from powerful external partners without having to choose sides. It also comes from historical grievances during the era of slavery, colonialism and Cold War interventionism.

These grievances include unilateral American military interventions in Grenada (1983), Panama (1989) and Iraq (2003) as well as support by the US and France for autocracies in countries like Egypt, Morocco, Chad and Saudi Arabia, when it suits their interests.

Many southern governments are particularly irked by America’s Manichaean division of the world into “good” democracies and “bad” autocracies. More recently, countries in the global south have highlighted north-south trade disputes and western hoarding of COVID-19 vaccines as reinforcing the unequal international system of “global apartheid”.

A return of non-alignment was evident at the March 2022 UN General Assembly special session on Ukraine. Fifty-two governments from the global south did not support western sanctions against Russia. This, despite Russia’s clear violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, which southern states have historically condemned.

A month later, 82 southern states refused to back western efforts to suspend Russia from the UN Human Rights Council.

These included powerful southern states such as India, Indonesia, South Africa, Ethiopia, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico.

The origins of non-alignment

In 1955, a conference was held in the Indonesian city of Bandung to regain the sovereignty of Africa and Asia from western imperial rule. The summit also sought to foster global peace, promote economic and cultural cooperation, and end racial domination. Governments attending were urged to abstain from collective defence arrangements with great powers.

Six years later, in 1961, the 120-strong Non-Aligned Movement emerged. Members were required to shun military alliances such as NATO and the Warsaw Pact, as well as bilateral security treaties with great powers.

Non-alignment advocated “positive” – not passive – neutrality. States were encouraged to contribute actively to strengthening and reforming institutions such as the UN and the World Bank.

India’s patrician prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, is widely regarded to have been the intellectual “father of non-alignment”. He regarded the concept as an insurance policy against world domination by either superpower bloc or China. He also advocated nuclear disarmament.

Indonesia’s military strongman, Suharto, championed non-alignment through “regional resilience”. South-east Asian states were urged to seek autonomy and prevent external powers from intervening in the region.

Egypt’s charismatic prophet of Arab unity, Gamal Abdel Nasser, strongly backed the use of force in conducting wars of liberation in Algeria and southern Africa, buying arms and receiving aid from both east and west.
For his part, Ghana’s prophet of African unity, Kwame Nkrumah, promoted the idea of an African High Command as a common army to ward off external intervention and support Africa’s liberation.

The Non-Aligned Movement, however, suffered from the problems of trying to maintain cohesion among a large, diverse group. Many countries were clearly aligned to one or other power bloc.

By the early 1980s, the group had switched its focus from east-west geo-politics to north–south geo-economics. The Non-Aligned Movement started advocating a “new international economic order”. This envisaged technology and resources being transferred from the rich north to the global south in order to promote industrialisation.

The north, however, simply refused to support these efforts.

Latin America and south-east Asia

Most of the recent thinking and debates on non-alignment have occurred in Latin America and south-east Asia.

Most Latin American countries have refused to align with any major power. They have also ignored Washington’s warnings to avoid doing business with China. Many have embraced Chinese infrastructure, 5G technology and digital connectivity.

Bolivia, Cuba, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela refused to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Many of the region’s states declined western requests to impose sanctions on Moscow. The return of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as president of Brazil – the largest and wealthiest country in the region – heralds the “second coming” (following his first presidency between 2003 and 2011) of a champion of global south solidarity.

For its part, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has shown that non-alignment has as much to do with geography as strategy. Singapore sanctioned Russia over the invasion of Ukraine. Indonesia condemned the intervention but rejected sanctions. Myanmar backed the invasion while Laos and Vietnam refused to condemn Moscow’s aggression.

Many ASEAN states have historically championed “declaratory non-alignment”. They have used the concept largely rhetorically while, in reality, practising a promiscuous “multi-alignment”. Singapore and the Philippines forged close military ties with the US; Myanmar with India; Vietnam with Russia, India, and the US; and Malaysia with Britain, Australia, and New Zealand.

This is also a region in which states simultaneously embrace and fear Chinese economic assistance and military cooperation. This, while seeking to avoid any external powers dominating the region or forming exclusionary military alliances.

Strong African voices are largely absent from these non-alignment debates, and are urgently needed.

Pursuing non-alignment in Africa

Africa is the world’s most insecure continent, hosting 84% of UN peacekeepers. This points to a need for a cohesive southern bloc that can produce a self-sustaining security system – Pax Africana – while promoting socio-economic development.

Uganda aims to champion this approach when it takes over the three-year rotating chair of the Non-Aligned Movement in December 2023. Strengthening the organisation into a more cohesive bloc, while fostering unity within the global south, is a major goal of its tenure.

Uganda has strong potential allies. For example, South Africa has championed “strategic non-alignment” in the Ukraine conflict, advocating a UN-negotiated solution, while refusing to sanction its BRICS ally, Russia. It has also relentlessly courted its largest bilateral trading partner, China, whose Belt and Road Initiative and BRICS bank are building infrastructure across the global south.

Beijing is Africa’s largest trading partner at US$254 billion, and builds a third of the continent’s infrastructure.

If a new non-alignment is to be achieved in Africa, the foreign military bases of the US, France and China – and the Russian military presence – must, however, be dismantled.

At the same time the continent should continue to support the UN-led rules-based international order, condemning unilateral interventions in both Ukraine and Iraq. Pax Africana would best be served by:

• • building local security capacity in close cooperation with the UN;
  • promoting effective regional integration; and
  • fencing off the continent from meddling external powers, while continuing to welcome trade and investment from both east and west.

Adekeye Adebajo, Professor and Senior research fellow, Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship, University of Pretoria

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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South Africa aims to generate R2 trillion in trade by 2028, with emphasis on intra-Africa

South Africa’s diplomatic missions across the globe stand ready to mobilise R2 trillion y 2028, with a particular focus on increasing intra-Africa trade, which stands at 17% of total trade.

This is according to the Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Alvin Botes, who participated in the debate in parliament on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Tuesday.

Members of Parliament from both Houses gathered at the Cape Town City Hall to debate the address.

“Mr President, because of your leadership, in 2021, we exported more to Africa — R385 billion — than to the European Union’s R355 billion.”

Botes pointed out that the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) would cover a market of 1.2 billion people in Africa, with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of US$2.5 trillion.

He told Parliament that this would increase intra-African trade by up to 52.3% and expand the size of Africa’s economy to US$29 trillion by 2050, as estimated by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

The AfCFTA is one of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, enjoined by its seven aspirations to realise inclusive prosperity.

“A South African, Wamkele Mene, is the Secretary-General and the penholder on implementation of the prescripts of the Abuja Treaty and Lagos Plan of Action. The promotion of economic diplomacy has dialectically contributed to your investment target of R1.2 trillion, Mr President,” Botes said.

Global governance

As the only African country in the G20 or Group of Twenty and in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), as well as a key strategic partner of the European Union (EU), the country continues to place the African continent and the global South on the agenda.

Botes said a critical priority for 2023 is South Africa’s Chairmanship of BRICS under the theme: ‘BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development, and Inclusive Multilateralism’.

“The Global South is elated with the re-election of Brazilian President Lula da Silva, and we welcome his support for your leadership in BRICS.”

In addition, he said one of the issues that will be discussed in BRICS, is how to restructure the global, political, economic and financial architecture so that it becomes more balanced, representative, inclusive, and equitable.

Under President Ramaphosa’s leadership, Botes said the international community voted overwhelmingly for South Africa to be a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the next three years (2023-2025).

He also announced that the eighth South Africa-European Union Summit will be hosted on home soil in the first half of 2023.

“I wish to reiterate the South African government’s appreciation for the continued EU support to development cooperation and EU’s support during the pandemic and to Biovac and the mRNA vaccine technology transfer hub in South Africa,” he said.

“We further appreciate the technical assistance received from the EU related to the possible greylisting of South Africa by the Financial Action Task Force.”

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The new Mercy Ships’ hospital ship, Global Mercy™ arrives in Dakar

Designed with purpose — The Global Mercy™ arrives in Dakar ready to serve the people of Senegal and The Gambia with surgical expertise and training

This field service will include partnership with ministries of health in both Senegal and The Gambia, serving both countries through the port of Dakar

The newest Mercy Ship, the GLOBAL MERCY™ arrived in Dakar Senegal on 14 February 2023.

While the ship hosted surgical training in Senegal in 2022, this year marks the first time that specialised surgeries will take place on this newly built hospital ship. This field service will include partnership with ministries of health in both Senegal and The Gambia, serving both countries through the port of Dakar.

Designed with purpose, the Global Mercy hospital ship is 174 metres long, 28.6 metres wide and has space for 200 patients, six operating rooms, a laboratory, general outpatient clinics, dental, and eye clinics, and training facilities.

The hospital decks cover a total area of 7,000 square meters and contain the latest training facilities. The ship can accommodate up to 950 people when docked, including crewmembers and volunteers from all over the world and will serve collaboratively in the future with the Africa Mercy, which has been in operation since 2007 and is currently undergoing refit to return to service in the fall.

It is expected that more than 150,000 lives will be transformed through surgery alone, during the next 50 years of the Global Mercy’s lifespan, with each transformation representing a person with a name, a face, a story, a family, and a purpose. In addition, thousands of African medical professionals will receive training and mentoring with the goal of multiplied impact within their own communities.

“The Global Mercy’s arrival in Dakar this week is particularly meaningful to our team, as this year, we will be serving the people of both Senegal and The Gambia thanks to partnerships with their ministries of health,” explains Gert van de Weerdhof, Mercy Ships CEO.

“We anticipate that over the next five months more than 800 maxillo-facial, paediatric orthopaedic, paediatric general, general, and eye surgeries will be carried out on board with up to 25% coming from The Gambia.”

When the Global Mercy visited Senegal in 2022, more than 260 Senegalese healthcare professionals received training on board through a variety of courses addressing topics impacting delivery of safe surgical care, including Surgical Skills, SAFE Anaesthesia, and Nursing Skills. In 2023, Mercy Ships anticipates providing training for more than 600 medical professionals.

“This ceremony marks a new stage in the partnership between the government of Senegal and the NGO Mercy Ships,” stated Dr Marie Khemesse Ngom N’diaye, Minister of Health and Social Action, Senegal.

“It is a dynamic and very beneficial collaboration, because the intervention of Mercy Ships represents an essential contribution to strengthening the supply of surgical care and improving the supply of our surgical and social action systems.

“Indeed, through its many actions, Mercy Ships relieves thousands of individuals, and participates in reducing inequalities of access to health and quality services,” the minister said.

The Global Mercy was inaugurated in Dakar by President of Senegal Macky Sall in May 2022, an ardent advocate in the strategic efforts to improve access to safer surgery, not just in his home country, but across all of Africa, as evidenced by his championing of the Dakar Declaration which he takes forward to the rest of the African Union.

The introduction of Global Mercy and arrival in Dakar has freed up Mercy Ship’s second ship, AFRICA MERCY which is now on her way to Durban in South Africa to undergo a refit maintenance at the Dormac Ship Repair yard.

Africa Mercy will arrive in Durban in the first week of March.

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Le nouveau navire-hôpital, le Global Mercy™ arrive à Dakar

Il servira les populations du Sénégal et de la Gambie grâce à ses infrastructures chirurgicales à la pointe de la technologie

Ce service sur le terrain comprendra un partenariat avec les ministères de la santé du Sénégal et de la Gambie, desservant les deux pays via le port de Dakar.

Le plus récent navire de Mercy Ships, GLOBAL MERCY™, est arrivé à Dakar au Sénégal le 14 février 2023.

Alors qu’il a déjà servi de plateforme à des formations chirurgicales au Sénégal en 2022, cette année marque les premières interventions spécialisées qui auront lieu à bord du navire-hôpital nouvellement construit. Cette mission est issue du partenariat mis en place avec les ministères de la santé du Sénégal et de la Gambie, et servira les deux pays au départ du port de Dakar.

Conçu pour être un navire-hôpital, le Global Mercy mesure 174 mètres de long, 28,6 mètres de large et peut accueillir 200 patients. Il comprend six salles d’opération, un laboratoire, des cliniques externes générales, et des cliniques dentaire et ophtalmologique. Les ponts de l’hôpital couvrent une superficie totale de 7,000 mètres carrés et hébergent également des installations de pointe dédiées à la formation.

Lorsqu’il est à quai, le navire peut accueillir jusqu’à 950 personnes, y compris les membres d’équipage bénévoles du monde entier. A l’avenir, il servira les nations africaines, conjointement avec l’Africa Mercy, en service depuis 2007 mais en cours de rénovation actuellement pour reprendre son service à l’automne.

Au cours des 50 prochaines années du Global Mercy, plus de 150,000 vies devraient être transformées par la seule chirurgie, chaque transformation représentant une personne avec un nom, un visage, une histoire, une famille et un avenir. En outre, des milliers de professionnels de la santé africains recevront une formation et un encadrement dans le but de multiplier l’impact au sein de leurs propres communautés.

“L’arrivée du Global Mercy à Dakar cette semaine est particulièrement significative pour nos équipes, car cette année, nous allons servir les populations du Sénégal et de la Gambie grâce à des partenariats avec leurs ministères de la santé,” explique Gert van de Weerdhof, Directeur Général de Mercy Ships.

“Nous prévoyons qu’au cours des cinq prochains mois, plus de 800 opérations chirurgicales maxillo-faciales, orthopédiques pédiatriques, générales, et ophtalmologiques seront réalisées à bord, dont jusqu’à 25% seront réalisées sur des patients gambiens.”

Lorsque le Global Mercy était en mission au Sénégal en 2022, plus de 260 professionnels de la santé sénégalais ont reçu une formation à bord au cours de diverses sessions abordant des sujets ayant un impact direct sur les soins chirurgicaux sûrs, notamment les compétences chirurgicales, les soins infirmiers, et l’anesthésie SAFE. En 2023, Mercy Ships prévoit de former plus de 600 professionnels de la santé.

“Cette cérémonie marque une étape supplémentaire dans le partenariat entre le gouvernement du Sénégal et l’ONG Mercy Ships,” dit Docteur Marie Khemesse Ngom NDIAYE, ministre de la Santé et de l’Action Sociale.

“C’est une collaboration dynamique et bénéfique, car l’intervention de Mercy Ships apporte une contribution essentielle au renforcement de l’offre de soins chirurgicaux et à l’amélioration de nos systèmes chirurgicaux et d’action sanitaire.

“En effet, à travers ses nombreuses interventions, Mercy Ships soulage des milliers de patients, et contribue à la réduction des inégalités de l’accès à la santé et aux soins médicaux de qualité,” le ministre a dit.

Le Global Mercy a été inauguré à Dakar par S.E. le Président du Sénégal Macky Sall en mai 2022, un fervent défenseur de l’amélioration de l’accès à une chirurgie plus sûre, non seulement dans son pays, mais dans toute l’Afrique, comme en témoigne son soutien à la Déclaration de Dakar qu’il diffuse au sein de l’Union africaine.

L’introduction de Global Mercy et l’arrivée à Dakar ont libéré le deuxième navire de Mercy Ship, AFRICA MERCY qui est maintenant en route vers Durban en Afrique du Sud pour subir une maintenance de radoub au chantier de Dormac Ship Repair.

Africa Mercy arrivera à Durban la première semaine de mars.

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Lake Victoria’s newest and largest ship mv Hapa Kazi Tu, is launched

There’s a new ship on the waters of Lake Victoria, a large and impressive looking cargo and passenger vessel.

We’ve been a little confused with the naming of this new ship which carries the name mv MWANZA on her bows, because six years ago the Tanzanian government launched another lake ferry bearing the same name, mv Mwanza.

That particular ship was launched in 2017 and completed the following year and remains in regular service. She was built at Mwanza by Songoro Marine Transport Ltd and entered into in operation from the Tanzanian port of that name.

The latest vessel launched just recently and still to be completed has the name mv Mwanza on her bows, with the smaller words Hapa Kazi Tu beneath. On her stern she displays MWANZA PORT in large letters, adding to the confusion. We believe her name may well be HAPA KAZI TU (Hard Work Required) or possibly Mwanza Hapa Kazi Tu, but await clarification.

Whatever the actual name is, the latest vessel is certainly impressive in appearance.

She is being touted as the largest vessel on all the Great Lakes region and will certainly improve the ferry services across Lake Victoria.

Local reports say she was built at a cost of US$ 46.6 million and that she can carry close to 1,200 passengers and 400 tons of cargo as well as 20 motor cars and three trucks.

The new 3,500-ton vessel has a length of 92 metres and a width of 17 metres. The contract to build the ship was awarded to a South Korean company, GASEntec working with the South Korean Kangnam Corporation. Construction took place at the Mwanza Shipyard.

Once in service the vessel will operate from Mwanza to Bukoba port and other Tanzanian ports, and the Kenya port of Kisumu and Uganda’s Port Bell and Jinja ports at the northern end of the lake.

The new ship will enter service ahead of the 2026 completion of the standard gauge railway project from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza, which s expected to increase the number of people making the full journey from Kenya and Uganda to the Tanzanian port.

Among her attractions and amenities are an entertainment lounge and disco, clinic with health services, and an elevator section to cater for passengers with disabilities.

Passengers will have a choice of a VVIP and separate VIP section, first class for 60 passengers, business class for 100, second class for 200 and an economy section catering for 834 passengers.

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WHARF TALK: Cape Town bunkering – LIPUMA & others

Pictures by ‘Dockrat’
Story by Jay Gates

The provision of bunker fuel for vessels in all South African ports is not always possible, and only the major ports of Richards Bay, Durban, Gqeberha, Ngqura and Cape Town have virtually immediate access to bunker tankers. The bunker fuel itself is provided by the four big South African oil majors of BP, Shell, Engen and Astron, and distributed to bunker tankers which are then transferred to those vessels in need by a variety of local operators.

Durban, not surprisingly, up to now, had the largest operating fleet of bunker tankers, with some cross pollination with those bunker tankers operating out of Richards Bay. Gqeberha and Ngqura also share assets, including those operating within the Algoa Bay OPL area. Cape Town was operating with two bunker tankers, one on contract to Astron, and one operating for BP.

In the Cape Town operation, the Astron vessel, ‘Southern Valour’, tends to remain within the confines of the harbour at all times, and the ‘Al Safa’, the BP vessel, tends to stay out in Table Bay, and only enter the harbour when required to conduct a transfer, or to take a fresh stock of bunkers from an arriving MR tanker, operating from Durban on the BP coastal run. The size range, and make up, of vessels calling into Cape Town, and requiring bunkers, meant that two based bunker tankers being available to satisfy the demand seemed to be the right balance.

So how does one explain that there are now four operating bunker tankers, operating within the environs of Cape Town harbour. An explanation for one of the new arrivals may be it is a temporary replacement for ‘Southern Valour’, which appears to be devoid of bunkers, is riding high out of the water, and is seemingly undergoing a refit at the Repair Quay. Or it may be simply that competition is getting ‘hot’, and more of the majors have decided to undertake their own bunkering operations in Cape Town.

The latest two bunker tankers arrivals both turned up in the last month, with ‘Vemadignity’ coming in from Walvis Bay, and the other one arriving under tow, and coming from the Durban and Richards Bay fleet. The bunker tanker under tow will be very well known to the maritime fraternity of Durban and Richards Bay.

As the old year was running down, at 08h00 on 29th December 2022, the Durban based AMSOL Anchor Handling Tug ‘Siyanda’ (IMO 9479709) departed from Richards Bay with the bunker tanker LIPUMA (IMO 8735883) under tow, and bound for Cape Town. The towing couple duly arrived off Cape Town on 4th January at 08h00 in the morning, after a leisurely six day voyage from Richards Bay, and entered Cape Town harbour, going alongside the Landing Wall in the Duncan Dock.

The reason for ‘Lipuma’ arriving under tow, and not under her own steam, was that she was neither able, nor suitable, to conduct an open ocean voyage around the Cape, hence why she arrived at the end of a tow wire from ‘Siyanda’. Any thought that ‘Lipuma’ might be here for maintenance purposes was dispelled when, after a short period, she was seen conducting ‘business as normal’ operations, and going alongside other vessels in the harbour, and conducting bunker transfers, including to container vessels of the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) at F berth on the MPT.

Built in 2008 by Dormac Marine Engineering in Durban, ‘Lipuma’ is 71 metres in length and has a deadweight of 3,536 tons. Her construction by Dormac, at Durban’s Bayhead, took 243,000 man hours over an 18 month period, with ‘Lipuma’ being laid down in October 2006, launched in November 2007, and entering service in March 2008, at a completed cost of ZAR60 million.

She was launched by then Minister of Transport, Jeff Radebe as ‘Smit Lipuma’. Interestingly, her name was written on the launch speech document as ‘LiPuma’, rather than ‘Lipuma’. The word ‘LiPuma’ refers to the emergence of something that has meaning to life, such as the birth of a child, or the rising of the sun. Not unsurprisingly, and in an extremely un-nautical manner, as Minister Radebe was major ANC apparatchik, he concluded his launching speech with the words ‘Viva Smit LiPuma Viva, Viva Smit Amandla Marine Viva’.

She was commissioned by Smit Amandla Marine (Pty) Ltd., of Cape Town, and designed as a double skinned tanker by Triton Naval Architects, of Cape Town. Electrical design contractor Raubicon, also of Cape Town, undertook the project management of detail design, integration, planning, classification approvals, and in-progress inspections.

Her propulsion is diesel electric with two Ingeteam LV200 AFE air cooled converters providing power to two 500 kW stern thrusters, and an Ingeteam LV200 AFE air cooled converter providing power to a 420 kW bow thruster. Her cargo carrying capacity allow her to carry 3,600 m3 of Intermediate Fuel Oil I(IFO), as well as Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO), and 800 m3 of Marine Gas Oil (MGO). Her pumping rate is 500 m3/hr for IFO, and 150 m3/hr for MGO.

In 2016, African Marine Solutions Investments (Pty) Ltd., of Cape Town, better known as AMSOL, took over ‘Lipuma’, and now own, operate, and manage her. Until now, and from entering service, she was contracted to provide bunkers in Durban harbour, and also Richards Bay harbour, on behalf of the local SAPREF and other oil majors. The combined AMSOL bunker operation in these two harbours is quite vast, with almost 1,500 vessels serviced in one year.

The vessel that towed her from Richards Bay to Cape Town, ‘Siyanda’ was built in 2010 by the Keppel Nantong Shipyard at Nantong in China. She is 50 metres in length and has a deadweight of 1,037 tons. Although owned by Smit Shipping Singapore Pte. Ltd., of Singapore, she was operated and managed by Smit Amandla Marine (Pty) Ltd., and was taken over by AMSOL in 2016. Her original Smit heritage is clear when viewing her name on her accommodation, and as with ‘Lipuma’, by her royal blue and gold colouring on her bow bulwarks.

She is an Anchor Handling Tug, built to a Rampage 5000 design, and is normally employed off Durban, in every aspect of managing the offshore Single Point Mooring (SPM) buoy operation. She conducts a wide range of duties including static towing over the bow, hose handling, hose flushing, dive support, fire-fighting operations, general maintenance of the SPM buoy, anchor-handling, and chain replacement operations of the SPM buoy. She also has a 3.3 m x 3.1 m moon pool on her midships centreline, with a side launching gantry for a diving bell, and adjacent to a diving decompression unit.She is powered by two Wärtsilä 8L26 8 cylinder 4 stroke main engines producing 3,648 bhp (2,720 kW) each, driving two Rolls-Royce US305 Z-Drive controllable pitch propellers, for a free running speed of 14.9 knots. Her onboard power gives her a bollard pull of 98 tons.

Her auxiliary machinery includes two Caterpillar 3406C generators providing 260 kW each, and a single emergency generator providing 250 kW. For added manoeuvrability she has a transverse bow thruster providing 30 kW.

After dropping her tow at the Landing Wall, ‘Siyanda’ soon departed Cape Town for her return voyage back to Durban, in order to resume her SPM duties. As for ‘Lipuma’, she continues to provide bunkers within Cape Town harbour to those clients who request it, including MSC container vessels. Whether her current operation in Cape Town is a permanent one, or a temporary one, and thus how long she will remain in Cape Town, is currently unknown.

As a footnote to the above, ‘Lipuma’ was observed bunkering the cruise ship MSC Sinfonia in Cape Town this week, a duty she would have carried out many times in past years when MSC Sinfonia was homeported in Durban.

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Cape Town mayor says Russian warship not welcome

The arrival of the Russian frigate ADMIRAL GORSHKOV in Cape Town on Monday 13 February remained low key, with no formal welcome extended to the Russian warship that was calling mainly for the purpose of refuelling and replenishing supplies.

The ship departed its base in the Baltic early in January and is in South African waters to participate in the Exercise Mosi II, which will be held off the KwaZulu-Natal coast and at the Ports of Durban and Richards Bay from Friday 17 February.

Ships of the South African Navy and the Chinese Navy will also take part in what has become something of a controversial issue on account of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis made his feelings known by way of tweets in which he said the warship is not welcome in the city’s harbour.

“We are not hosting this warship, nor is it welcome in the Mother City. Cape Town will not be complicit in Russia’s evil war,” he tweeted.

It appears he was responding in part to a tweet from a Russian organisation that announced the arrival of the ship at Cape Town, while en-route to Durban.

The Cape Town mayor is known for being vocal about controversial Russian ships in Cape Town harbour. The recent call in the port by the Russian seismic survey vessel Akademik Alexander Karpinsky saw the mayor stating that “Russian state vessels should not be here.”

Meanwhile, the frigate Admiral Gorshkov is heading for Durban where she is due on Friday 17 February for a three-day stay, before departing again on Sunday 19th for Richards Bay and the offshore naval exercise.

While in Durban the frigate will berth at N Shed, the old passenger terminal on the T-Jetty, being practically beneath the offices of Transnet National Ports Authority in the Ocean Terminal Building.

With Durban being (by a slender margin) an ANC-led city, no doubt the welcome extended by city and other officials will be warm and welcoming.

Other ships taking part in the joint exercise include three vessels from the Chinese Navy, believed to be a destroyer, a frigate and a supply ship, and several SA Navy ships including the frigate SAS Mendi, the inshore patrol vessel SAS King Sekhukhune I, another smaller patrol craft and possibly the survey vessel SAS Protea.

The exercise corresponds with the annual South African National Defence Force Day, being held in the Richards Bay/Empangeni area this year

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Added 15 February 2023

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No rush for TotalEnergies to restart LNG operations in Mozambique

In a case of ‘once bitten, twice shy’, French oil major TotalEnergies chief executive, Patrick Pouyanne, said last week that TotalEnergies is “not in a hurry” to restart operations in Cabo Delgado province, Mozambique.

The French group withdrew from developing a liquefaction facility onshore near the small port town of Palma after rebels overran the region including the town and threatened the liquefaction facility which was under construction at the time.

Speaking at a conference last Tuesday, Pouyanne said a new condition to restarting is the need to maintain the costs that the developers had when they were forced to withdraw.

“If I see the costs going up and up, we’ll wait. We have waited. We can continue to wait. And the contractors will wait as well,” he said.

Pouyanne added that a restart will also depend on the human rights report from Jean-Christophe Rufin.

Joseph Hanlon points out in his latest Mozambique News that the $14.9bn financing for the project was signed in 2020, and included loans from eight export credit agencies, 19 commercial bank facilities, and a loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB). Costs have gone up substantially and it is not clear the contractors will be willing to continue at the old price.

“This may be a negotiating tactic to try to force Mozambique and donors as well as the contractors to cover some of the higher costs of security and construction. And it is looking increasingly likely that Mozambique will gain much less than expected from the project,” Hanlon writes.

“But Pouyanne is also making clear the he has a wide range of options and may not need Mozambique LNG. TotalEnergies is already active in South Africa, Uganda and elsewhere and there are networks of pipelines being developed. The Cabo Delgado gas field is less than 100 km south of a gas pipeline in Tanzania and well could be linked to that with LNG production done in Tanzania.

“The market for LNG is hugely debated. At the global heating limit of 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels, there is no long term market for Mozambique gas. But the fossil fuel industry and many countries have abandoned 1.5ºC and are now assuming 2ºC. That would have a major impact on Mozambique, both creating a market for the gas and causing worse cyclones, drought, and rainfall which will have a disastrous impact.” Source: Joseph Hanlon’s Mozambique News reports

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South Africa has new State of Disaster declared over flooding

The South African Government has declared a National State of Disaster to enable an intensive, coordinated response to the impact of floods that are affecting Mpumalanga, the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, the Northern Cape and North West provinces.

The declaration, made in terms of the Disaster Management Act of 2002, was on Monday gazetted by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma.

The National Disaster Management Centre has, in terms of Section 23 of the Disaster Management Act, classified the impact of current, above-normal rainfall in various parts of the country – with Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape as the most affected – as a national disaster.

A national disaster may be declared by the Minister where disastrous events occur or threaten to occur in more than one province.

The Presidency on Monday said the National Disaster Management Centre has received reports ranging from flooded homes, vehicles swept away by floodwaters and overflowing dams and sewerage facilities, to the loss of basic infrastructure and damage to roads, bridges and a Limpopo hospital.

“In agriculture, farmers have suffered crop and livestock losses, and anticipate further losses as the South African Weather Service predicts that current heavy rains will persist.

“These conditions have been brought on by the La Niña global weather phenomenon which occurs in the Pacific Ocean but impacts on a country like South Africa with above-normal rainfall,” said Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya.

Forecasts indicate that this weather pattern will remain in this state during the early part of 2023.

The presence of a La Niña event usually has its strongest impact on rainfall during the mid-summer months.

“With the continued strengthening of the La Niña event, the country can expect above-normal rainfall and below-normal temperatures over the summer rainfall areas,” said Magwenya.

“Taken together, these conditions demand the provision of temporary shelters, food and blankets to homeless families and individuals and the large-scale, costly rehabilitation of infrastructure.”

Mozambique

The heavy rains have affected large parts of neighbouring Mozambique, with road and bridges washed away raising logistical challenges. As reported earlier in Africa Ports & Ships, the road from the port city of Maputo to Goba on the Eswatini border has been damaged by flood waters.

Much of the low-lying land in southern Mozambique was under water as rivers flooded and overflowed their banks following over five days of solid rain.

Several parts of Maputo and Matola were without water, forcing people in the Matola ‘A’ and Trevo neighbourhoods to resort to seeking water in ditches and streams.

The Águas da Região Metropolitana de Maputo (Maputo Metropolitan Region Waters) issued a warning of a possible reduction in water supply in the city of Maputo, according to a Notícias report.

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Transnet seeks to shrink rail network and reduce costs

by Terry Hutson

In what appears an enforced step aimed at reducing overheads (and bringing back memories of the decision to close branch lines), Transnet is planning to further reduce its already shortened rail network by over a third (35%) while it focuses on higher profit cargo services.

These plans come at a time when Transnet Freight Rail, Transnet’s loss making rail division, is crippled by a series of disasters including flood damage, wholesale theft of cabling and infrastructure, sabotage of assets, a shortage of serviceable locomotives and spares brought about through corrupt activities, surmounting debt, and a measure of poor management.

It coincides with information that the heavy-haul coal line to Richards Bay handled a little over 50 million tonnes (50.43mt) in 2022, way down from its peak of over 75 million tonnes.

The problems on rail impact heavily of the performance of the ports, further weakening the overall capacity and ability of Transnet.

According to Transnet CEO, Portia Derby, Transnet can no longer justify operating loss-making entities, resulting in a “revision of certain flows across the network.”

Faced also with a crippling debt that has been difficlt to service, Transnet SOC Ltd in January successfully issued a US$1.0 billion five-year bond at a coupon of 8.25%, in its first international bond issuance in over 10 year, the company announced proudly, adding that the bond was almost three times over subscribed.

According to Derby, the new debt has bought Transnet five years of peace and quiet, because it will be used to service existing older debt. She acknowledged that the bond did not remove the need for generating greater revenue or the need to “stop loss-making flows.”

She stated that the bond will be utilised to “start putting to bed some of our old debt.”

This gives Transnet five years of breathing space in which to turn round its loss-making rail and port enterprises and begin generating healthy profits, otherwise it simply has a further larger debt hanging over its corporate head!

All this coincides with efforts by Transnet Freight Rail to attract private enterprise into taking responsibility for some of the rail network operations, including the high-potential Container Corridor between Gauteng and the port of Durban. SEE HERE

Surprise development

This surprise development follows the generally unsuccessful attempt to encourage private operators into buying slots along some 16 of its ‘corridors’ including the strategically important Durban Container Corridor. In the event only one slot was allocated, the lightly-trafficked (by comparison) line between Kroonstad and East London.

The current attempt to bring on board private enterprise into taking a 20-year operational responsibility for the KZN Container Corridor looks, sounds and feels just like a concessioning of the line, though Transnet avoids using the term. Its doubtful if the unions will ignore what is proposed and are watching the proceedings more than closely.

It’s been speculated in some quarters that this latest container corridor proposal (at this stage a request for qualification or RFQ) might not attract any serious interest if only because it is for a shortish 20-year period, though as with most concessioning agreements the world over (RFQs or otherwise) an extension clause is normally included or available.

The devil lies always in the detail and so it will prove in this case, but on the surface of things it would appear more likely to attract serious attention than the previous call for slot purchases.

Smaller network

Andrew Shaw, Transnet’s chief strategy and planning officer is reported to have said that Transnet Freight Rail can operate more effectively with a slightly smaller network. Ït still serves the economic interest of the country and it still allows additional operators,” he said.

Not all TFR lines can be negotiated away quite so simply – not all have real revenue-generating potential as does the Durban Container Corridor. The worry then become that in its zeal to reduce by 35% or any similar figure, a few ‘babies will be tossed out with the bath water’, whereas by offering really serious opportunitie4s to the private sector to take over and operate those sections without the overriding interference from a rail network operator that hasn’t been able to operate the section successfully in the first place, is more likely to have success.

What Transnet should be bold enough to seek is the proper privatisation of all of its operations whether by concessioning or otherwise, including the heavy-haul routes to the coal port of Richards Bay and the iron ore port of Saldanha. The mining houses will not be slow in stepping forward after their devastating experiences at the hands of the national railway provider.

The exercise should be followed at more of the port terminals at the respective ports – although the offer to manage the Durban Container Terminal is on the table.

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Added 14 February 2023

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WHARF TALK: Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Navy Gorshkov (454)

Pictures by ‘Dockrat’
Story by Jay Gates

Exercise Mosi II is a pivotal moment is North-South, East-West, relations for the South African government. For a government that represents a nation purporting to be a staunch supporter of the principles of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), of which South Africa once held the Presidency, the ANC have fallen well short of being able to plot a political course that does not alienate your friends, or threaten your standing in the world, especially that relationship you have with your major trading partners, and providers of development aid.

It is not that Exercise Mosi II is wrong, or that it doesn’t represent good sense in the military training and interoperability world that we live in. It is just that the timing is awful, and the players are ones that should not be afforded a world stage that highlights South Africa as a staunch supporter of one, if not both, of the invited players.

The reason is simple. Russia is currently waging an illegal war in somebody else’s country. If Ukraine was in Africa, and Russia crossed the border with 500,000 troops, and 5,000 tanks, with nothing other than the declared view that it has a determination to annex territory, remove a democratically elected government, deport its population, force them to speak their own language, and in the acts of achieving their aims, destroy civil infrastructure and property, and kill innocent women and children, the South African government would have been the first to cry foul, and they would have done so very loudly.

The invasion of Ukraine is nothing short of a grand act of ‘Colonialism and Imperialism’, which the ANC has fought against for over a century. In a lesser sense, the other player is also sabre rattling, and threatening to annex another sovereign state, whilst openly annexing the South China Sea for themselves. To add to this is that Exercise Mosi II will take place on the first anniversary of the illegal invasion of Ukraine, and South Africa’s participation is seen as nothing short of a show of support for the aggressor. Yet the cloth-eared, and tone-deaf, Ministry of Defense sees no problem with any of it.

In fact, their asinine defense is that they have held recent naval exercises with the US and the French Navies, and nobody complained about that. True, except that neither of these two navies was, at the time, engaged in a murderously aggressive war in somebody else’s country, neither of these two navies was lobbing inaccurate cruise missiles into that territory to destroy schools, hospitals and power stations, in defiance of the Geneva Convention, and the United Nations Charter, and neither of these two navies warships arrived openly displaying aggressive logos that had the clear potential to upset, insult, and stick two fingers up to a great number of the local population, of the country they were visiting.

In case the South African government needed reminding, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) operates on ten major principles, known as the “Bandung principles”, adopted in 1955:

Respect for fundamental human rights and for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
Respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.
Recognition of the movements for national independence.
Recognition of the equality of all races and of the equality of all nations, large and small.
Abstention from intervention or interference in the internal affairs of another country.
Respect for the right of each nation to defend itself singly or collectively, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations.
Refraining from acts or threats of aggression or the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any country.
Settlement of all international disputes by peaceful means, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations.
Promotion of mutual interests and co-operation.
Respect for justice and international obligations.

It is pretty plain that Russia is not following any single one of these principles, and in an act of grand irony, the NAM granted observer status to Russia in 2021. Incidentally, the only country in Europe that is a current full member of NAM is Belarus, the nation that gladly afforded Russia the means to invade Ukraine at the start of the conflict. It beggars belief.

In terms of Exercise Mosi II, the South African Navy intends to field one Valour Class Frigate, and one of the new Inshore Coastal Patrol Ships. The Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) of China is sending one Destroyer, one Frigate, and one Fleet Auxiliary oiler to partake in the exercise, and the Russian Navy is sending one Frigate, and one small Fleet Auxiliary Oiler.

The plan was that the Russian Frigate would take the opportunity of sailing into Cape Town, on a flying the flag public relations call, whilst en-route to KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), where Exercise Mosi II would be taking place. The word was spread that the Frigate would be arriving on Sunday, 12th February, and it was broadcast on national TV, in all the local newspapers, magazines and on Social Media. Except that she didn’t arrive on the 12th.

On Monday, 13th February in the mid-morning, the Russian Frigate ‘Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Navy Gorshkov’ (Pennant Number 454) arrived, unannounced, off Cape Town, after a voyage from her Northern Fleet home base of Severomorsk, that began on 4th January. With her two Transnet harbour tug escort, she entered Cape Town harbour, proceeding into the Duncan Dock and going alongside the Eastern Mole.

It was telling that she was not met and escorted into harbour by any unit of the South African Navy, and neither was there a great fanfare of Naval Officers there to meet her, nor was the Band of the South African Navy on the quayside to greet her. Maritime observers will recall that was exactly what happened, back in 2019, when the last squadron of Chinese PLAN warships arrived at Cape Town. Maybe the Government woke up to the negative noise that the visit is producing, and decided to ensure that low-key was the best order of the day. In fact, just two SAN officers were observed on the Eastern Mole, and the usual peripheral security detail watching events from a safe distance. Maybe the 24 hour, unreported delay in her arrival was part of the process of throwing folk off the scent, and hoping for an arrival that passed most people by, including the local press.

She arrived with a freshly painted funnel, which clearly displayed the letter ‘V’ on the port side of the funnel, and the letter ‘Z’ on the starboard side of the funnel. Both letters are those painted onto Russian tanks and aircraft that took part in the invasion of Ukraine, and which continue to display the symbols to this day, even on the destroyed, and rusting, wrecks lying throughout the fertile plains of Ukraine. It is a sign of the tone deafness of the Russian naval authorities that these symbols might be deemed offensive to some South Africans, especially in a nation that does not openly support their actions, and should possibly have been painted over for the visit.

Interestingly, with the majority of visiting naval vessels who enter South African ports, the crew of ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ did not man the sides. This is the naval tradition where the crew of an arriving warship will stand, and line, the decks of the ship as they enter port. It is a fine sight to see, and there is a very good, and historical, reason for the practice. It goes back to the days of the traditional ship of the line, with her decks of broadside capable cannons. By placing all of your crew in full view on the upper deck, you are signaling to your host that the guns are not secretly manned, and the arriving warship is not about to spring a surprise on the host by attacking them from within the harbour itself. Naval tradition is a fine thing.

Despite her unwieldy long name, shown in Cyrillic on her stern quarter as ‘Admiral Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza Gorshkov’, which will be shortened to simply ‘Admiral Gorshkov’, she is in fact the lead vessel of a brand new class of frigate being built for the Russian Navy, which has been named after her, and collectively known as Project 22350. Currently, there is only one other of the class in service, with a third unit currently completing her sea trials back in the Baltic Sea. All are to be named after former Soviet, and Russian, Admirals.

Built by the Severnaya Verf Naval Dockyard in St. Petersburg, ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ was originally laid down in February 2006, and launched in October 2010. Despite taking over four years to be launched, she was only 40% complete at the time, and she was only commissioned into service in July 2018, a full 12 years after her initial laying down. It is planned for between 15 and 20 frigates of the Admiral Gorshkov class to be built, with ten already having been ordered. The fourth of the class is not due for completion until 2024, and the rest will follow in stages until 2029.

When construction started on her, the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia stated that she would be completed, and in service, by 2009. This was subsequently moved to 2011, and then even later, as a result of delays in the delivery of her main gun, other crucial equipment, and the testing of her offensive systems. In December 2014, she had a major fire in one of her main engines, which further delayed her completion. One of the engines, originally destined for the second in the class was transferred over to ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ to allow her to continue with sea trials.

Named after Admiral Sergey Georgiyevich Gorshkov (1910-1988), who was made the Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union in April 1962. He was responsible for the growth and development of the Soviet Navy during the Cold War, including the introduction of nuclear power, and armaments, and the carrying of helicopters on Soviet Warships.

She is a unit of the Russian Northern Fleet, which has its headquarters at Severomorsk, a closed town in the high Russian Arctic region of the Barents Sea. Severomorsk is located at 69°04’ North 033°25’ East, and is located in the Kola Inlet, some 14 nautical miles northeast of the city of Murmansk.

Built at an estimated cost of US$250 million (ZAR4.47 billion), ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ is 135 metres in length, and has a full displacement of 5,400 tons. She is a CODAG (Combined Diesel and Gas Turbine) powered vessel, with two Kolomna 10D49 10 cylinder 4 stroke main cruising engines producing 5,200 bhp (3,900 kW) each, and two UEC-Saturn M90FR gas turbine engines producing 27,500 bhp (20,500 kW) each. Her total power output is 65,400 bhp (48,800 kW), driving two fixed pitch propellers for a maximum speed of 29.5 knots.

She is a unit of the 43rd Missile Ship Division, and carries a crew of up 210 officers and men. She has an endurance of 4,850 nautical miles, at an economical speed of 14 knots, over a 30 day period. She has a stern helideck, with a hangar holding a Kamov KA-27 Helix helicopter. Her stern also has a stern door launched Vinyetka towed sonar array, with a bow mounted Zarya-M sonar.

She is designed for multi-roles operations, as witnessed by her armaments. Her traditional armaments include a A-192M 130mm main gun, two Palash Close-in Weapons Systems (CIWS), with twin 6 barrel Gatling guns on each CIWS, and two 14.5mm pedestal mounted machine guns. She has two quadruple 330mm torpedo tubes. She carries 32 vertical launch system (VLS) cells for Triumf surface-to-air missiles, and 16 vertical launch system (VLS) cells for a mix of Kalibr cruise missiles, Oniks anti-ship missiles, Tsirkon land attack missiles, and Otvet anti-submarine missiles.

The ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ frigates are the first to carry the Tsirkon missile, and the current claim made by Russia is that the Tsirkon hypersonic missile can travel at Mach 9 (11,113 kph), and is unstoppable by any western defense missile, although the claim is yet to be verified, nor its accuracy confirmed. The first firing of a Tsirkon missile from a vessel was when ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ fired one in January 2020. So far, it is not thought that the missile has been fired in anger during the Ukraine conflict and, up to now, only low quality video exists of the firing of the missile from the ‘Admiral Gorshkov’.

Amazingly, on her maiden deployment, which took place between February and August in 2019, ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ became the first Russian vessel to complete a circumnavigation of the globe since 1889, which brings into perspective the Russian Navy real capabilities. She travelled 35,000 nautical miles, and called into 8 ports en-route, but not South Africa. On all of her deployments she has been accompanied not only by an auxiliary fleet oiler, but also by a large naval salvage tug. On her maiden deployment, that salvage tug was none other than ‘Nikolay Chiker’ which spent a number of years, in the early 2000s, based in Cape Town under contract to the Greek operator, Tsavliris Salvage Group.

On this voyage, ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ is accompanied only by the auxiliary fleet oiler ‘Kama’, which is due to arrive on the South African coast later in the week, at around the time that Exercise Mosi II is due to get underway. She is a 41 year old small tanker, built in 1982, and originally designed to refuel the distant water trawlers of the Soviet fishing fleet, dozens of which fished the waters of Namibia in the 1980s.

As she departed from Severomorsk back in January, ‘Admiral Gorshkov’ was reported to be under the command of Captain of the First Rank Igor Krokhmal, although the complete naval detachment was later reported to be under the command of Captain of the First Rank Oleg Gladky. She is due to return to Russia, via the Mediterranean, after the exercise.

Exercise Mosi II is scheduled to take place off the northern KZN coast, in the vicinity of Richards Bay and Durban, between 17th February and 27th February. It coincides with the first anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, which took place on 24th February 2022. Visits to both Richards Bay and Durban by some, if not all, of the participating warships have been mooted. Something for the casual maritime observer of KZN to look forward to.

One can only hope that no political capital is made of the 24th February date during the exercise, especially by the ‘Admiral Gorshkov’, that might further embarrass the ANC and, hopefully, that the South African government can come out of this unnecessary debacle with some international dignity, and her reputation, at least partially intact.

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Six crew dead after tank cleaning onboard tanker off Lagos

Six seafarers have died while carrying out onboard tank cleaning of a products tanker at anchor off the port of Lagos.

The product tanker involved is the HALIMA (IMO 9231705) which is registered to Red Star Oil & Gas Ltd and managed by Transpecific Shipping Ltd, at 14 Akanbi Danmole Street, Lagos in Nigeria.

The 26,200-dwt tanker, which was built in 2002, was at anchor outside Lagos and undergoing tank cleaning.

Reports have suggested the likely cause of death to be asphyxiation.

The Nigerian Navy vessel Beecroft (F89) responded to a distress call from the Halima transmitted through the Western Region Control Centre of Falcon Eye.

A rescue party from the navy ship went onboard the tanker which was at anchor southwest of the Lagos Fairway Buoy.

The deceased crewmen were evacuated to Mekwe Jetty on Victoria Island where the tanker’s owner took possession and moved the bodies to the Military Hospital in Ikoyi.

The incident will come under investigation from among organisations, NIMASA.

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Russian missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov arrives in Cape Town – LATEST

The Russian Navy missile frigate ADMIRAL GORSHKOV (454) arrived in the Port of Cape Town this morning, one day behind the schedule as shown on the Cape Town port barchart.

Earlier in January and February the frigate carried out a special missile launch in the North Atlantic involving the high-speed hypersonic missile system that Russia has been developing.

The ship is in South African waters to participate in Exercise Mosi II, a naval exercise with the South African and Chinese Navies, which will take part in Richards Bay and the coastal seas off KwaZulu-Natal.

A further report will follow later this evening.

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Heavy rains disrupt Transnet rail networks

Transnet is facing additional challenges on its rail network connecting to the Indian Ocean ports.

Heavy rains last week and over the weekend disrupted rail traffic on the North-East Corridor.

According to Transnet, the North-Eastern Corridor (NE C) The North-East corridor (NEC) consists of two clusters namely the Beitbridge, Polokwane, Phalaborwa cluster which supports Limpopo, and the Witbank to Komatipoort cluster which supports Mpumalanga province.

The corridor stretches from Limpopo River at Beitbridge in the Limpopo province through Komatipoort down to Richards Bay on the East coast and; from Pyramid/Witbank (Rayton) to Komatipoort.

This corridor strategically links the South African freight business with that of other SADC countries mainly through eSwatini (Swaziland), Zimbabwe, Maputo, Zambia, and the DRC.

Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) reports that disruptive weather conditions in Mpumalanga and Limpopo have adversely affected Transnet Freight Rail operations in the North-East Corridor.

Heavy, abnormal rains have damaged the rail infrastructure across the Corridor’s major commodity pathways resulting in severe disruption to the train service, TFR says.

As a precautionary measure and for safety reasons, operations across the North-East Corridor were wholly suspended on Friday, 10 February 2023.

Washaways have occurred as a result of flood waters overwhelming the drainage systems and from washing away the railway ballast that supports the railway sleepers.

Railway sections that are heavily impacted by the adverse weather conditions are the lines between Nelspruit -Kaapmuiden and Komatipoort as well as the Mhlume line to eSwatini, adversely hindering major commodity flows such as magnetite, chrome, ferrochrome and rock phosphate.

Branch line operations at Lydenburg (Mashishing) and Belfast are also severely impacted, affecting the movement of magnetite, chrome, ferrochrome, rock phosphate and coal.

Overborder operations to the Maputo port and TCM are reported at a standstill due to flooding on the network, affecting the movement of export magnetite, rock phosphate, chrome and ferrochrome.

Extremely heavy rains were reported within Mozambique around the Maputo and adjacent area.

With continuous rains, there has been more reports of wash-ways on the Hoedspruit – Groenbult- Messina and Pienaarsriver lines. This effectively means that over 90% of the North-East corridor network is completely shut.

TFR says that de to the severity of the floods and for safety reasons, it has resolved to suspend its services on the corridor until a full safety assessment is undertaken – and the line is certified as safe for normal running of train traffic.

“Employee safety is a primary concern. Full resumption of services will only occur once the lines are declared safe. TFR continues to maintain regular contact to update its customers and stakeholders on the status of the train service and on-going recovery recovery efforts,” said TFR.

It was reported from Maputo at the weekend that a bridge on the trunk road leading from Maputo to Goba, on the eSwatini border, was washed away. This means that road traffic between the port of Maputo and eSwatini through Goba has been curtailed until repairs have been carried out.

Recently, truckers and taxi drivers took to using the Goba route to KwaZulu-Natal instead of the more direct route through Ponta do Ouro, on account of Mozambican vehicles being stopped within northern KZN/Zululand and torched by thugs attempting to prevent this traffic from reaching Durban.

The South Africa Police Services appear helpless to prevent these criminal actions.

With the Goba route affected by flood damage the truckers and other drivers will be forced to either chance the Ponta do Ouro route or go via the long way into Mpumalanga and from there to the KZN border near Vryheid or Newcastle.

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WHARF TALK: Greek-owned Supramax bulk carrier LIA

Picture by ‘Dockrat’
Story by Jay Gates

It is not a readily known fact that in terms of South Africa, and due to her vast mineral resources, that South African ports account for no less than 1.22% of all dry bulk carrier calls on a global scale. It may not sound like a big figure, but in terms of shipping movements, it is huge.

In terms of the export of ores of any kind from South Africa, it is Saldanha Bay and Richards Bay that are at the forefront of the mineral resources export markets. Both ports being there for no other reason than to export mainly Iron ore in the case of Saldanha Bay, and to export coal in the case of Richards Bay, although other ores, including the rare Titanium Sands, and other smaller chunks of the Earth’s crust are also exported from Richards Bay.

Both Durban and Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha) also have important ore export terminals, with Durban handling exports of Coal, Cobalt, Manganese, Copper Sulphates, Ferro-Chromium and Chromium Ore amongst others, and Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha) having a dedicated Manganese ore terminal.

Cape Town is not generally known for the export of ore, mainly due to a lack of area for stockpiles, and also due to distance from the mining areas of the interior. However, every now and again, it does receive an outbound shipment of ore, normally brought in by both road truck and rail, and stored in the undercover warehouses alongside Duncan Dock.

So, for the casual shipping observer, one gets to see the rare sight of an arriving bulk carrier, but not one arriving laden with imported agricultural products, but rather one arriving in ballast, with hatches open, in readiness to load an export cargo of manganese ore, in the main.

At midnight on 4th February, the Supramax bulk carrier LIA (IMO 958 4152) arrived at the Table Bay anchorage, from the Port Elizabeth anchorage in Algoa Bay. She anchored for an overnight stay off the port, and at 09h00 on 5th February, she entered Cape Town harbour, proceeding into the Duncan Dock, and went alongside further down than the usual haunt of arriving bulk carriers, and went alongside midway between H and J berth.

Both her berth, and that she was in ballast was a clue as to what she had arrived for. In addition to that, of her three most aft hatches, the one closest to the accommodation block was partially open, with the next two holds fully ‘cracked’ for ventilation, in readiness for loading. All this was further evidence that ‘Lia’ had arrived to load ore. In this case it was to be Manganese ore.

Built in 2011 by the COSCO Guangdong Shipyard at Dongguan in China, ‘Lia’ is 190 metres in length, and has a deadweight of 56,772 tons. She is powered by a single Mitsui MAN-B&W 6S50MC-C7 6 cylinder 2 stroke main engine producing 12,889 bhp (9,480 kW), driving a fixed pitch propeller for a service speed of 14 knots.

Her auxiliary machinery includes three Daihatsu generators providing 700 kW each, and a single Cummins emergency generator providing 100 kW. She has a single Alfa Laval Qingdao auxiliary vertical boiler. She has a cargo carrying capacity of 71,634 m3, and has five holds, all with McGregor hydraulic hatch covers. Her holds are served by four 30 ton electro-hydraulic cranes, and she carries four Güven 12.5 m3 remote control grabs, to assist with her own loading.

By now, most casual observers will be recognising her look, and realising that she is one of the Shanghai Ship Design and Research Institute (SDARI) Dolphin class of bulk carriers. Her deadweight identifies her as a Dolphin 57 Supramax. This design, which began with the first being delivered as far back as 2005, is one of the world’s most popular bulk carrier designs, with more than 400 of them having been delivered, to shipowners worldwide, to date.

Owned by Rockwell Trading SA, of Athens, ‘Lia’ is both operated and managed by Sea Traders SA, also of Athens, and her blue and white funnel colours are that of Sea Traders. This is not her first visit to South African waters in recent months, as she spent three days loading coal in Richards Bay, back in November 2022. The cargo was delivered to New Mangalore in India.

Her arrival in Cape Town was slightly convoluted, but not unusual in the world of tramping bulk carriers. She had discharged her last cargo in Chittagong, in Bangladesh. From there she left the port and went straight into the Chittagong anchorage, presumably to await orders. Chittagong, as with Port Elizabeth, has undergone a recent name change, in line with local political desires, rightly or wrongly, to bring the city name in line with the local Bengali dialect. In 2018 it was renamed Chattogram, although both forms of the port name are still in use.

After six days at anchor off Chattogram, ‘Lia’ departed from the Chittagong anchorage on 8th January, with her destination set for Gqeberha, where she arrived in the Port Elizabeth anchorage at 06h00 on 28th January. It is presumed that there was an expectation that she would be loading Manganese ore from the Port Elizabeth Manganese Terminal. However, after 36 hours at anchor, her next cargo was fixed for Cape Town, and at 18h00 on 29th January she sailed from Algoa Bay, bound for Table Bay.

The Manganese ore cargo for ‘Lia’ comes from the Northern Cape Province. The Kalahari Basin region of South Africa is thought to hold 80% of the world’s known economic reserves of Manganese ore, with South Africa accounting for 33.5% of the global production of Manganese ore. When operating at full capacity, the ore is mined from 22 mines in South Africa, with a mix of both open cast mines, and underground mines.

Manganese is used mainly in the steelmaking industry, in order to harden steel products. The ore itself is exported from South Africa and sent worldwide, with China and India accounting for a full 72% of the export total. The local Manganese ore export industry is a lucrative one, and annual exports in 2021 accounted for a total of US$2.76 billion (ZAR49.4 billion).

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Added 13 February 2023

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Suez Canal ‘not for sale’ as revenue increases 47 per cent

The Egyptian government said on Friday that there is no truth in reports suggesting the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) had reached an agreement with a foreign company to take over the management of the canal authority and its services.

Lieutenant General Osama Rabie, SCA Chairman said the canal is owned by Egypt and the Egyptian people and was not for sale or for concessioning.

He said the canal is managed by Egyptians and that is how it will continue. Reports to the contrary are wrong and misleading and should be ignored.

It appears that social media has been spreading the report that the SCA has contracted a private company to come in and manage the canal. In spite of the denial the rumours continued circulating over social media that the canal had been concessioned off on a 99-year deal.

There has been considerable outrage expressed by others on social media.

This led to the Egyptian cabinet issuing a statement denying the report, saying the canal remains a state-owned asset, which misses the point that even as a state-owned asset it could still be concessioned. The question is about who will be running the asset.

Canal Revenues

In a separate issue Rabie revealed that canal revenues increased by a massive 47% in January compared with the same period of 2022.

During January 2,159 vessels crossed the canal – an increase of 21%. During the whole of 2022 the number of vessels crossing the Suez Canal was 23,800.

The chairman said that a part of the canal’s revenues would in future be invested in the further development of the canal, following a draft law approved by parliament in December to this effect. He said Egypt would retain full sovereignty over the waterway at all times. – source: Asharq Al-Awsat

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A.P. Moller-Maersk reports extraordinary results for 2022

A.P. Moller-Maersk (Maersk) reports an extraordinary financial performance for the 2022 year, in which revenue increased by 32% to US$ 81.5 billion, and EBIT increased 57% to US$ 30.9 billion.

Simultaneously, Maersk has accelerated its business transformation, expanded the integrated logistics capabilities through acquired companies like Pilot, Senator and LF Logistics, and organically grown Logistics with more than 20%.

Maersk says it has defined precise roadmaps to reach its commitment to decarbonize logistics across all transport modes. 70% of the top 200 customers have set carbon goals and supporting them in reaching these goals is core to Maersk’s ESG strategy.

Slow-down ahead

While the slow-down of the global economy will lead to a softer market in particular in Ocean, Maersk says it will continue to pursue the growth opportunities within the Logistics and Terminals businesses..

It is in this context that Maersk gives 2023 full year an EBIT guidance of US$ 2-5 billion.

In its report Maersk advises that 2022 was an exceptionally strong year for the international Danish-headquartered company. “The unprecedented financial results were driven by solid performance across all businesses during the abnormal market conditions in the first part of the year.

Äs congestions eased and declining consumer demand led to a significant de-stocking in all segments, the expected normalization of the Ocean market kicked in during the final stretch of year.”

2022 was remarkable

“2022 was remarkable in more than one way,” says Vincent Clerc, CEO of A.P. Moller-Maersk.

“While we report the best financial result in the history of the company, we have also taken the partnerships with our customers to a new level by supporting their supply chains end to end during highly disruptive times.”

“Our commitment to provide visibility and truly integrated logistics solutions continue to resonate strongly with our customers for whom it is a strategic imperative to make their supply chains more resilient and sustainable.

“As we enter a year with challenging macro-outlook and new types of uncertainties for our customers, we are determined to speed up our business transformation and increase our operational excellence to seize the unique opportunities in front of us,” he said.

Ocean

In 2022, Ocean delivered the strongest result on record due to the high freight rates and strong demand, particularly in the first half of the year. Ocean revenue was up 33%.

Throughout the year, Ocean continued to deliver on the strategic transformation, maintaining a stable level of long-term contracts, Maersk says. Ocean meanwhile has continued to improve on delivery performance over the year as congestion eased and was able to maintain strong margins due to the contractual nature of its customer relationship.

Logistics & Services

In Logistics & Services, revenue increased by 47%, with an organic contribution of 21%. The organic revenue growth came primarily from top 200 customers as the business continues to develop integrated solutions to meet end to end supply chain needs.

Growth was particularly strong in warehousing where the footprint more than doubled to 7.1m sqm with the acquisition of LF Logistics alone adding 198 warehouses or 3.1m sqm.

Terminals

In Terminals, EBIT adjusted for the Russia exit reached a record of US$ 1.2 billion, supported by solid volumes growth and high congestion related storage income. Based on a combination of tariff increases and efficiencies the impact of high global inflation has been mitigated.

Guidance for 2023

A.P. Moller-Maersk’s guidance for 2023 is based on the expectation that inventory correction will be complete by the end of the first half leading to a more balanced demand environment.

2023 global GDP growth is expected to be muted and global ocean container market growth to be in a range of -2.5% to +0.5%. A.P. Moller – Maersk expects to grow in-line with the market.

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Just in Time arrival concept: New portal launched to support implementation

New portal launched to support implementation of Just in Time arrival concept. Picture: IMO

Edited by Paul Ridgway
London

A new one-stop-shop portal which aims to support the implementation of the Just in Time (JIT) arrivals concept has been launched.

It is understood that the free-to-access portal was developed by the Global Industry Alliance to Support Low Carbon Shipping (Low Carbon GIA) and is hosted on the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 project website.

This reported by IMO in a briefing on 8 February.

An overview of the JIT arrivals concept

This portal provides both port and shipping sectors with an overview of the JIT arrivals concept, including the main benefits, and general steps which can be taken towards its implementation in addition to key resources developed both by the Low Carbon GIA and other international organizations, such as the International Task Force on Port Call Optimization (ITPCO).

The JIT portal can be ACCESSED HERE

Captain Andreas van der Wurff, Port Optimisation Manager at A.P. Moller-Maersk and Chair of the Low Carbon GIA Ship-Port Interface workstream, commented on the latest news with: “Just in Time (JIT) arrival allows ships to optimize speed during their voyage to arrive in port when berth, fairway and nautical services are available.

“This makes JIT an important tool for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships. After many years of work conducted by the Low Carbon GIA in this field, we are proud to launch this portal which centralizes all resources and tools alongside information around the benefits and how to implement the concept created to support anyone in the industry in adopting JIT.”

Research projects

Furthermore, it is understood that Low Carbon GIA has been actively exploring the concept of JIT arrival through various research projects and several industry stakeholder roundtables under the Ship-Port Interface Workstream for many years.

We learn, too, that to-date, several resources have been developed by the Low Carbon GIA that focus on the JIT concept, including the Just in Time Arrival Guide, the Just In Time Arrival – Emissions reduction potential in global container shipping research study and a short Just in Time YouTube animation video

This portal will be regularly updated with new developments and available information and resources. In future, interviews with stakeholders from ports that have successfully implemented JIT will also be published on the portal where users can listen to their experiences and knowledge around the practical implementation of the concept.

Public-private partnership

The Low Carbon GIA is a public-private partnership that operates under the framework of the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 Project. The aim of the Low Carbon GIA is to develop innovative solutions to address common barriers to decarbonizing the shipping sector.

Port authorities invited to learn more

For any ports interested in adopting JIT, the IMO-Norway GreenVoyage2050 project could offer further support. Readers are invited to contact the organization for more information CLICK HERE

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Added 13 February 2023

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Hapag-Lloyd ships to be retrofitted with new propellers and bulbous bows

German container liner company Hapag-Lloyd will retrofit 100 of it container ships with new propellers and bulbous bows in order to better perform in terms of reducing CO2 emissions.

See related report below Xeneta ‘Green Shipping’ report

Hapag-Lloyd will retrofit slimmer propellers with less blades that will assist with a programme of slow steaming which in turn reduces fuel consumption and emissions.

This is in line with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) target of reducing CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030 when compared with 2008 levels.

The new propellers are being delivered from Germany’s Mecklenburger Metallguss (MMG) in Waren an der Müritz and will be transported to various locations where the respective ships will be calling, in time for their periodic class renewal inspections, which calls for appropriate dry docking.

Hapag-Lloyd ships will carry the new equipment to the selected ports.

On account of the new rotational speed and different efficiency levels of the slimmer propeller, the ships’ main engines will require adjustments to the new parameters.

The ports where this will occur are China, Denmark, Oman, Portugal, Singapore, Spain and Türkiye.

At the same time new more efficient bulbous bows will be fitted. source: Offshore Energy

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Angola plans a three-year ban on exports of unworked wood

The Angolan government is introducing a suspension of exports of unworked wood for a period of three years.

The law which was approved by the Angolan cabinet last week, is aimed at promoting the sustainable management of forest resources, reports the Portuguese-language publication, Lusa.

The suspension covers wood logs, blocks, semi-blocks and planks.

Due to over-exploitation, the new law has become necessary for the protection of the environment and to ensure reforestation.

Lusa quoted a statement it has seen saying the law will “create conditions to stimulate the growth and expansion of a strong, modern and competitive forestry industry.”

Angola, like several other African countries, has witnessed severe over-exploitation of its forests in recent years, with large tracts of forest lands destroyed, with much of the wood products being exported to China and other Far Eastern destinations.

In Mozambique similar suspensions of unworked wood have been introduced, with mixed results. The ports of Nacala and Beira have been used for the smuggling of container loads of unworked in the form of cut logs.

Despite the legal restrictions, smuggling has continued, often involving the bribery of officials in order to promote the illegal export of the wood.

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Xeneta ‘Green Shipping’ report: Far East to South America East Coast container corridor

Xeneta has taken the first step in a campaign to identify the carrier industry’s best and worst environmental performers across the world’s 13 leading shipping trades.

With the help of the Carbon Emissions Index (CEI), a unique tool from Xeneta and Marine Benchmark, carriers have been assessed on the main Far East to South America East Coast container corridor. The analysis makes uncomfortable reading for industry giant Evergreen.

Proof of performance

In an age of ever-greater environmental scrutiny, the CEI aims to provide global shippers with the data they need to make informed “green shipping” decisions for their cargoes. Built on the foundation of real-time AIS data and individual vessel specifications, the index covers the main routes for liners, tracking movements and calculating emission footprints.

Xeneta will now be announcing the industry’s ‘heroes and villains’ for each trade in the weeks and months to come.

According to this latest analysis, the CO2 emitted per ton of cargo from the Far East to the East Coast of South America rose by 6.3% (quarter-on-quarter) in Q4 2022. This leaves the trade with a CEI of 96.6, its highest tally since Q3 2021 and the highest CEI of all the five major corridors out of the Far East.

Stakeholders take note

The scores of individual carriers, reveals Peter Sand, Xeneta Chief Analyst, were “very mixed” with clear winners and others, he says, “that would benefit from doubling down on their efforts.”

He comments: “Environmental performance has never been more important, both from a ‘green’ and a commercial perspective, with shippers, regulators, financiers and other stakeholders paying close attention. With that in mind, Hamburg Süd will be very happy to record the lowest CEI on the trade, registering 76.2. This means a ton of cargo sailing on a ship operated by Hamburg Süd emitted over 20% less CO2 than an average ton on this trade. A great result.”

Evergreen wilts

The low score, Sand explains, is due to Hamburg Süd’s sailing of “relatively slow steaming”, larger-than-average ships on this trade.

Amongst other “star performers” were ONE, scoring 82.2, and Hapag Lloyd, registering 84.3. Looking at historical figures, Hapag Lloyd actually emerges as the most carbon-efficient carrier on this trade in the past five years.

“Unfortunately for them, the CEI data shows that Evergreen was the worst performer amongst the top six carriers over the quarter,” Sand notes, adding that the Taiwanese group logged a score of 109.7.

“Somewhat counter-intuitively, Evergreen actually had the highest filling factor on the trade – whereas Hamburg Süd’s was lower than average – however, its smaller, less carbon efficient vessels took a toll on the overall score. In addition, their ships sailed much faster, with speeds of 8.9% above the trade lane average.”

Added value

Interestingly, comparing the CEI with Xeneta’s wealth of crowd-sourced ocean freight rates data shows that green performance doesn’t necessarily come with a premium price tag.

Looking at Q4 2022, Hapag Lloyd’s average rates were lower than average on the spot market, while on the long-term contract market, Hamburg Süd charged less than the market average when considering all valid long-term contracts. Evergreen, on the other hand, was more expensive on the long-term market, but offered savings on the spot market compared to the industry average.

CEI data, which is trusted, verified and independent from carriers, covers 13 of the world’s biggest trades. More lanes will be added by Xeneta and Marine Benchmark in the coming months.

To find out more please SEE HERE

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GENERAL NEWS REPORTS – UPDATED THROUGH THE DAY

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EXPECTED SHIP ARRIVALS and SHIPS IN PORT

Port Louis – Indian Ocean gateway port

Ports & Ships publishes regularly updated SHIP MOVEMENT reports including ETAs for ports extending from West Africa to South Africa to East Africa and including Port Louis in Mauritius.

In the case of South Africa’s container ports of Durban, Ngqura, Ports Elizabeth and Cape Town links to container Stack Dates are also available.

You can access this information, including the list of ports covered, by  CLICKING HERE remember to use your BACKSPACE to return to this page.

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CRUISE NEWS AND NAVAL ACTIVITIES

QM2 in Cape Town. Picture by Ian Shiffman

We publish news about the cruise industry here in the general news section.

Naval News

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