Prior to going to press with this issue of SA Shipping News, an interesting article appeared in the Sunday Times about a cargo ship that is using enormous sails to harness wind power. This innovation coincides with a renewed global commitment to reducing carbon emissions and a "roadmap" for change adopted at the United Nations climate change conference in Bali in December. Taking to the seas this year, the sails of the MS Beluga SkySails are expected to reduce carbon emissions, estimated to be between 10% and 35%.

Overcoming emission problems is a subject that is dealt with in a report on page 32. There are no quick fix solutions but the thinking appears to have moved beyond biodiesel which is considered to be expensive and insufficient for the industry's needs.

The need to be efficient in order to reduce the cost of doing business is top of AP Moller Maersk's agenda according to Eivind Kolding, Safmarine's new chairman and CEO of Container Business. Visiting South Africa late last year, he told a group of journalists that in view of the current environmental focus, especially ships' emissions, their customers were insisting on action. In response to this several improvements to efficiencies had been made that are good for the environment. More about this on page 6.

The third Marine Emergency response seminar hosted by Smit Amandla Marine, took place in November. A range of interesting topics were discussed (page 25) including places of refuge and the future of the marine salvage industry which faces numerous challenges.

Press reports that Transnet has put on hold plans for the expansion of the Bayhead container terminal (the Bayhead dig-out) are not factually correct. A statement issued by Transnet says it is the Environmental Impact Assessment study around the Bayhead area that is on hold, not the project, and that there are numerous proposals - but no decisions - for container expansion aligned to the overall transport plan for the port of Durban.
International news has mainly been dominated by reports of piracy. The annual report from the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) documents a 10% increase (263) in piracy incidents worldwide over the past year, with the major hot spots all in African waters. An alarming trend is the southward movement of such incidents and shipping companies are being urged to fit new safety features and more seafarers are now travelling with weapons to ensure safe passage past trouble spots.

However some incidents are reported to be taking place when ships are berthed. A case in point is the tanker explosion at Port Harcourt. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) claimed responsibility for the explosion on board the Greek tanker, Golden Lucy, which forced the closure of the port. However port and government officials have dismissed this claim saying that an official investigation had determined the explosion was the result of a fault in the ship's engine room.

On a more positive note, the shipping industry would not be what it is without the people who choose to work in it. I urge you to read the letter (mostly unchanged) from a young black woman studying at the Simon's Town High School. Never having seen the sea before, let alone a ship, she has chosen to make the maritime industry her career and her profound thanks to Safmarine will not fail to bring a lump to your throat.
 

Editor

Cover Story

The German-flagged ore carrier Paradise N photographed off the Cape, on passage from Brazil to China. At 332 metres, she is only 11 metres shorter than Berge Stahl, the largest bulk carrier. Paradise N has a beam of 58 metres and a loaded draught of 23 metres.

Photograph : Andrew Ingpen.