Port Of Kingston News

Kingston Freeport Terminal Ltd (KFTL), a Jamaican consortium formed by French global terminals operator CMA CGM and its majority-owned subsidiary Terminal Link, said it recorded the best performance ever in the history of the port of Kingston in terms of container moves.Kingston Freeport, which has leased Kingston Container Terminal, KCT, under a 30-year concession, said a total of 3,304 moves were handled within 24 hours of operation on the Post-Panamax vessel Cosco Beijing, which arrived at the terminal on January 24. That included 1,464 containers being unloaded and another 1,840 reloaded on to the vessel.KFTL achieved an average crane productivity of 36 moves per hour and average berth performance of 136 moves per hour with only four (4) gantry cranes working on the mainliner.

​ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd (ZIM)  has announced a significant upgrading of its Atlantic network, offering improved connections between US, Canada and the Mediterranean, starting April 2017, subject to FMC approval. ZIM Container Service Italy (ZCI) - A new premium string, offering improved service to the Italian and French markets, connecting with Canada and the US East Coast, with faster transit time, additional ports of call in Italy and a direct call in Fos, France. ZIM’s flagship service, ZIM Container Service Atlantic (ZCA), operating 7 vessels, will focus on the East Med and Spain, with a new call in Algeciras, serving the South Spain market and adding new direct calls in two major Turkish ports- Izmir and Mersin.

Liebherr Maritime Crane has delivered the largest mobile harbor crane of the Caribbean to Kingston Wharves Limited in Jamaica. The LHM 600 is equipped with an elongated tower extension and eases the handling of big container vessels up to Super-Post-Panamax size. In November 2015 Kingston Wharves ordered the first Liebherr mobile harbor crane, type LHM 550 high rise version. The crane is the biggest mobile harbor crane in operation in Jamaica. In order to further increase operation efficiency the company now ordered an even bigger Liebherr MHC…

Jan De Nul NV is part of a consortium that is responsible for the expansion of the port of Kingston. In 25 months the access channel and the port basin will be deepened, and the berths on the existing quay walls will be reinforced and renovated. Hence, the port will be able to provide access to larger container vessels , which will find their way to the region more easily thanks to the expansion of the lock complex in the Panama Canal. For the dredging activities Jan De Nul NV will mobilize 6 vessels, namely the cutter suction dredger Marco Polo with four accompanying split barges and the trailing suction hopper dredger Pedro Alvares Cabrál. It is the fourth project in Jamaica for Jan De Nul.

Starting in June 2016, shipping company Hapag-Lloyd will add a new call in Port Everglades to its Mediterranean Gulf Express (MGX) service. Florida International Terminal (FIT), operated by SAAM since 2005 in Port Everglades – Fort Lauderdale, Fla., will add a new service. Starting next month, shipping company Hapag-Lloyd will include Port Everglades in the rotation of its Mediterranean Gulf Express (MGX) service, increasing its coverage between Europe and Southeast Florida. The first MGX call at FIT will take place in June, with a rotation that includes the ports of Cagliari, Livorno, Genoa, Barcelona, Valencia, Port Everglades, Kingston, Veracruz, Altamira, Houston and New Orleans.

Jamaica’s plans to become one of the world’s top four logistics centres has received a major boost after the World Bank committed to providing technical and other assistance for specific aspects of the proposed Global Logistics Hub initiative. The World Bank Group, through its representative to Jamaica, Giorgio Valentini, has endorsed the Government of Jamaica’s plans for the logistics hub initiative, describing it as ‘transformational’ when implemented which will significantly enhance Jamaica’s potential for growth. A 16 person delegation from the World Bank Group visited Jamaica last month for consultations on Jamaica’s Country Partnership Strategy which will feature the Logistics Hub Initiative.

Fairmount Marine’s tug Fairmount Alpine has towed MV Elbcarrier safely into a Guatemalan port after the vessel was drifting off the South-East Mexican isle Cozumel. The container vessel Elbcarrier got into troubles after motor failure. Fairmount Alpine was mobilized from the port of Kingston, Jamaica. The tug arrived at the location of the Elbcarrier within 36 hours and was able to connect in short time. Fairmount Alpine towed the Elbcarrier to Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala. The voyage of just 321 nautical miles took only two days, with an average speed of 6.4 knots. The Elbcarrier is a 139.6 meters long German owned container vessel flying the flag of Antigua & Barbuda and build in 2007.

The CMA CGM Group is pleased to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the operation, equipment and expansion of the Gordon Cay Container Terminal in the Jamaican port of Kingston, for a minimum period of 35 years. The project to develop the terminal will be based on the existing facilities. Signed on 4 August 2011 by Rodolphe Saadé, CMA CGM Executive Officer, and the Chairman of the Port of Kingston, in the presence of Jamaica’s Minister of Transport Michael Henry, the MOU marks the start of a major investment program before the terminal is fully commissioned in 2015. The project to widen the Panama Canal will require a major reorganization of shipping, particularly in the Caribbean and North America region.

The Maritime Authority of Jamaica has a new head office - right on the waterfront in Kingston. Customers of the MAJ and Jamaica Flag Registry are set to benefit from the new location which is also closer to the Maritime Training Institute and only seven minutes from the Port of Kingston. The MAJ says its new offices will allow for greater accessibility to the MAJ by its customers and will better enable the MAJ to serve its market. Seymour Harley, Registrar General of Ships, said: "We are delighted that we are exactly one minute's walk - I timed it! - from a vessel docked along the waterfront. Previously we were located in the heart of the uptown business district with only 'peephole' views of the harbour through skyscrapers.