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Displaying items by tag: Sulphur Cap 2020

According to a new report, sharing the cost of the International Maritime Organization’s new sulphur rules (see: Irish Sea ferry operator) across the containerised supply chain could mark a new era of greener shipping transportation.

As LloydsLoadingList writes the report by Boston Consulting Group highlighted that compliance requirement from January 2020 is forecast to cost carriers between $25bn and $30bn in additional fuel costs to 2023.

“By selling environmentally friendly services effectively, lines can share these costs with customers as well as promote the ultimate objective of greener supply chains,” Boston Consulting Group said. “The entire ecosystem of value chain participants — including freight forwarders, cargo owners, and consumers — should be willing to bear their fair share of the costs.”

Lines will feel the heaviest impact from higher costs in the first year of IMO 2020 implementation, when it is expected to reach between $10bn and $12bn. Subsequent years would see smaller annual increases due to the shrinking price differential between high- and low-sulphur fuels.

But compliance costs would not be uniform across trade routes and carriers, according to Boston Consulting Group.

For more on this story click here. 

Published in Ports & Shipping

Ferry operator Stena Line is currently engaging with freight customers on its Irish Sea routes to advise them of an important International Maritime Organisation (IMO) environmental regulation which will come into effect on 1st January 2020.

The goal of the Global Sulphur Cap 2020 Regulation is to significantly and progressively reduce sulphur emissions within all areas of international shipping and applies to all ship operators world-wide.

A number of regulations have been introduced over the past years aimed at making the shipping industry more environmentally friendly, such as the 2015 sulphur cap in the English Channel, North Sea and Baltic Sea. This new mandatory cap of 0.5% sulphur in ships’ fuel will now require all operators on the Irish Sea to ensure reduced emissions by switching to low sulphur fuels from 1st January 2020.

The new industry regulation will see operating costs increase outside of Stena Line’s control.

As a result, at the start of the new year all freight shipments on Stena Line’s Irish Sea routes will be subject to a higher fuel charge, in order to cover the additional costs incurred. Further details on these costs can be found on Stena Line’s freight website via this link.

Published in Ferry

Galway Port & Harbour

Galway Bay is a large bay on the west coast of Ireland, between County Galway in the province of Connacht to the north and the Burren in County Clare in the province of Munster to the south. Galway city and port is located on the northeast side of the bay. The bay is about 50 kilometres (31 miles) long and from 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) to 30 kilometres (19 miles) in breadth.

The Aran Islands are to the west across the entrance and there are numerous small islands within the bay.

Galway Port FAQs

Galway was founded in the 13th century by the de Burgo family, and became an important seaport with sailing ships bearing wine imports and exports of fish, hides and wool.

Not as old as previously thought. Galway bay was once a series of lagoons, known as Loch Lurgan, plied by people in log canoes. Ancient tree stumps exposed by storms in 2010 have been dated back about 7,500 years.

It is about 660,000 tonnes as it is a tidal port.

Capt Brian Sheridan, who succeeded his late father, Capt Frank Sheridan

The dock gates open approximately two hours before high water and close at high water subject to ship movements on each tide.

The typical ship sizes are in the region of 4,000 to 6,000 tonnes

Turbines for about 14 wind projects have been imported in recent years, but the tonnage of these cargoes is light. A European industry report calculates that each turbine generates €10 million in locally generated revenue during construction and logistics/transport.

Yes, Iceland has selected Galway as European landing location for international telecommunications cables. Farice, a company wholly owned by the Icelandic Government, currently owns and operates two submarine cables linking Iceland to Northern Europe.

It is "very much a live project", Harbourmaster Capt Sheridan says, and the Port of Galway board is "awaiting the outcome of a Bord Pleanála determination", he says.

90% of the scrap steel is exported to Spain with the balance being shipped to Portugal. Since the pandemic, scrap steel is shipped to the Liverpool where it is either transhipped to larger ships bound for China.

It might look like silage, but in fact, its bales domestic and municipal waste, exported to Denmark where the waste is incinerated, and the heat is used in district heating of homes and schools. It is called RDF or Refuse Derived Fuel and has been exported out of Galway since 2013.

The new ferry is arriving at Galway Bay onboard the cargo ship SVENJA. The vessel is currently on passage to Belem, Brazil before making her way across the Atlantic to Galway.

Two Volvo round world races have selected Galway for the prestigious yacht race route. Some 10,000 people welcomed the boats in during its first stopover in 2009, when a festival was marked by stunning weather. It was also selected for the race finish in 2012. The Volvo has changed its name and is now known as the "Ocean Race". Capt Sheridan says that once port expansion and the re-urbanisation of the docklands is complete, the port will welcome the "ocean race, Clipper race, Tall Ships race, Small Ships Regatta and maybe the America's Cup right into the city centre...".

The pandemic was the reason why Seafest did not go ahead in Cork in 2020. Galway will welcome Seafest back after it calls to Waterford and Limerick, thus having been to all the Port cities.

© Afloat 2020