Trincomalee News

Sri Lanka has rejected China's request to dock one of its submarines in Colombo this month, two senior government officials said on Thursday as the Indian prime minister landed in the island nation. Sri Lanka last allowed a Chinese submarine to dock in the capital of Colombo in October 2014, a move that triggered fierce opposition from its northern neighbour India, which worries about growing Chinese activity in a country it has long viewed as part of its area of influence. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Sri Lanka on Thursday for a two-day official visit. A senior Sri Lankan government official said China's request to dock one of its submarines in Colombo this month had been rejected.

GAC Sri Lanka has completed the movement of offshore drilling rig Hercules Triumph from the port of Trincomalee to India. The rig, owned by Hercules Offshore, Inc., is now safely anchored at Kakinada, ready to start drilling operations for CAIRN Energy at the RAVVA offshore oil field. GAC Sri Lanka, part of global shipping, logistics and marine services provider GAC Group, chartered three anchor-handling tug boats - SCI URJA, SCI Ahimsa and Mahaweli - to off-land the Hercules Triumph from heavy-lift vessel Target at Trincomalee Anchorage and worked in close liaison with the Harbor Master and port officials throughout the complex operation.

Logistics and marine services provider, GAC Sri Lanka, chartered three anchor-handling tug boats to off-land the 'Hercules Triumph' from heavy-lift vessel 'Target' at Trincomalee Anchorage, Sri Lanka, then  arranged further towage over 700 NM miles to Kakinada, Indai arriving 8 days later. The rig is ready to start drilling operations for CAIRN Energy at the RAVVA offshore oil field. As part of its task to oversee the entire project, GAC Sri Lanka was also responsible for domestic air transfers of Hercules Offshore officials to and from the site.

GAC Sri Lanka has been appointed as the sole authorised agent for multimodal transport operator Sarjak Container lines Pvt (Ltd), handling all their shipping and Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC) activities in the country. Sarjak specialises in the door-to-door transportation of breakbulk and over dimensioned cargo (ODC) operating a fleet of self-owned containers including Super Racks, Flat Racks, Open Top, Hard Top Open Top & GP containers. As Sarjak’s appointed agent…

GAC’s in-house ship-to-ship transfer expert GAC Transfer Services (GTS) has responded to growing demand for LPG imports and exports of clean products in the Indian Subcontinent with the establishment of a new fully-equipped base in Sri Lanka. Ship-to-ship (STS) equipment such as fenders and hoses, in accordance with industry standards, is stored at GAC’s base in Galle, which is strategically located at the southern tip of the island nation, and is ready to be transported by tug to different locations according to demand and conditions.

Sri Lanka's new pounds Sterling 226 million deep sea port at Magampura harbor, Hambantota, on the south coast of the island has been officially opened with the ceremonial docking of the first vessel to use the port facilities. In a ceremony presided over by President Mahinda Rajapaksa as part of the week-long festivities surrounding his official inauguration for his second term in office, a traditional sailing yacht, Pradeepa 2, dropped anchor in Hambantota's Magampura harbor. She received a traditionally warm and colorful Sri Lankan welcome from the huge crowds gathered on the waterfront and quaysides. Pradeepa 2 was chosen in recognition of Sri Lanka's age old role as a key stopping point on the ancient east-west silk trading route.

On Tuesday 7th April, at 1900 hours, Tsavliris Salvage (International) Ltd. dispatched salvage tug Tsavliris Unity from her Galle (Sri Lanka) salvage station, to the assistance of the M/T Granba (GRT 4658 – DWT 7650) laden with about 5,250 M/T of sulphuric acid in bulk, disabled off Trincomalee due to heavy list and leaking from cargo tanks to ballast tanks. Our salvage team, together with substantial salvage, STS operations etc equipment, including special protective suits / masks, was flown from Greece and Holland to Sri Lanka.

Chemoil Corporation has commenced supplying bunkers in Sri Lanka. Local deliveries will be made by Lanka Bunkering Services Ltd. (LBS), a joint venture between Chemoil and local company, Sri Lanka Shipping Company (SLSC). SLSC is a well known shipping company in Sri Lanka who until recently sold bunkers using its subsidiary Lanka Maritime Services (LMS). Chemoil will join forces with SLSC, using its international network of customers and global experience in combination with SLSC's well established local knowledge. Chemoil's expansion into Sri Lanka recognizes the company's commitment to the region and its belief in the potential for growth in the Sri Lankan bunker market. Main delivery port in Sri Lanka will be the port of Colombo, including Colombo anchorage and OPL Colombo.

Sri Lankan forces sank two suspected Tamil Tiger rebel boats off the northeast coast on Saturday, the navy said. A flotilla of rebel attack boats including a suicide craft was intercepted by the Sri Lankan navy while it was headed towards Chalai, a naval statement said. "During the confrontation one enemy log craft and one attack craft was destroyed," an official said. It said the rebels brought in more boats as reinforcements but these were successfully beaten back. There was no comment from the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on the incident. A military official in the country's northeastern Trincomalee district said some fishing boats might also have been caught in the crossfire.

Sri Lanka Navy thwarted Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam militant attacks and saved the lives of 854 unarmed soldiers, who traveled from Kankesanthurai to Trincomalee in a passenger vessel on August 1. According to report Sri Lanka Naval sea unit confronted a cluster of LTTE suicide boats at the harbor entrance of Trincomalee. Naval sources confirmed that the passenger vessel has been navigated to a distance safely into the international waters and no casualties were caused during the confrontation. Three boats carrying the LTTE militants were destroyed in the attack. Several other LTTE boats were also damaged. The number of casualties due to the artillery attack at the Trincomalee harbor area is yet to be known.

The Panama-flag bulker Captain George Tsangaris was still aground on Round Island near Trincomalee in Sri Lanka on May 15, Reuters reported. It was believed that its cargo would have to be transhipped before it could be refloated. The 61,349 dwt bulker had been due to berth at the Prima Jetty to discharge its cargo of 52,653 tons of wheat when it ran aground. Some water had entered the vessel but there was no report of any damage to the cargo.

A tug was used on Wednesday to refloat the Panama-flag bulker Captain George Tsangaris that ran aground on Round Island near Trincomalee in Sri Lanka on Tuesday, port officials said. The port authorities had planned to load the cargo of wheat on to another vessel before trying to pull the ship free, but the officials said this had been unnecessary. The 61,349-dwt bulker had been due to berth at the Prima Jetty to discharge its cargo of 52,653 tons of wheat when it ran aground. Some water had entered the vessel but there was no report of any damage to the cargo.

Sri Lanka said Lloyds of London has declared the country as a war-risk zone which could result in hefty surcharges for ships entering the country's main port and hurt the trade-dependent economy. Surcharges of up to $150,000 could be slapped on larger ships entering Colombo port along with further charges for the amount of cargo carried. "Reinsurers in London have imposed a surcharge on insurance which we feel is completely unreasonable," Minister of Ports Ronnie de Mel said. The move comes after a massive attack at country's only international airport on July 24 by a suicide squad of Tamil Tiger guerrillas, who also launched a less destructive raid on the Colombo port in 1996.

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority has begun construction of a $16 million berth in the eastern Trincomalee Harbor to increase cargo handling, according to ports ministry officials. Work on the new berth, which will be able to handle both break-bulk and container traffic and would accommodate vessels up to 50,000 tons, is expected to be completed by July 2001. Trincomalee Harbor, approximately 150 miles northeast of the capital Colombo, currently has two privately run berths to handle flour and cement.