To intensify the focus on the use of intermodal transport solutions, a cluster of ports has initiated a new port collaboration. This collaboration includes the ports of Hirtshals, Kristiansand, Larvik, Grenland, Risavika, Bergen, Gothenburg, and Zeebrugge.
The Port of Tilbury’s proposals to build a new port terminal, TILBURY2, on the Thames close to the current port has been examined at Issue Specific and Open Floor hearings on February 20 and 21 by the Examining Authority, appointed by the Secretary of State.
TILBURY2 intends to build on a site which was part of the former Tilbury Power Station and will include a new deep water jetty in the river Thames.
The proposed terminal will act as a satellite of the main port and it is proposed that it will comprise a ferry terminal.
The project will also include surface access proposals to link the site to the existing road and rail networks.
Stena Line Ports is investing more than £4m in upgrades to improve infrastructure at the Port of Holyhead after recording a record year for freight growth.
The upgrades will include the creation of additional freight space at the Port and also extensive refurbishment to the Terminal 3 ramp.
February 20 saw the official inauguration of Stena Line’s Europoort (Rotterdam) terminal. The existing berth has been upgraded and a second berth has been added.
The new quay is now 212m long.
The two berths will help to handle the still growing freight volumes on Harwich and Killingholme.
Photo :Stena Line
- ORTC (Observatoire Régional des Transports de la Corse) published the first statistics for the year 2017. Some highlights:
- Total of ferry passengers: 4,144,614 (+2.1%)
- Total of airborne passengers: 4,025,727 (+9.7%) from which 241,744 came with low-cost flights.
- Several ports, both in Corsica and on the Continent saw a progression in passenger traffic. Ajaccio +5%, Bastia +2%, Marseille +8% (but Nice -9%), Genoa +14%.
- The ferry port of Porto Vecchio and the airports of Ajaccio, Bastia, Calvi and Figari have set new records.
- On the ro-ro freight side, most ports saw an increase. Only Toulon, on mainland France, went down -8%. Marseille is the most important mainland French port for freight.
- Corsica Linea is the biggest freight carrier, and saw month after month a steady increase. Second is La Meridionale, followed by Corsica Ferries.
All statistics can be found on the old-style (and in French) ORTC website under ‘publications’.
Photo: Mike Louagie
The Swedish company Processkontroll Elektriska AB has been chosen to build the new shore power installation in the Port of Oslo.
Stena Line would like to connect its ferry STENA SAGA. However, to convert the veteran Stena is seeking subsidies from Enova SF, owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. Otherwise it is not economically sustainable.
On Tuesdays the ship is 10 hours in port. According to the company’s own calculations, the use of shore power every Tuesday will help reduce annual emissions by about seven tonnes of NOx and 300 tonnes of CO2.
Color Line already has two ships connected to shore power. Now the port hopes that DFDS will also opt for cold ironing for its cruise ferries.
Photo: Mike Louagie
Rotterdam teams with IBM to build a connected, smart port of the future
Port of Rotterdam and IBM are going to collaborate on a digitisation initiative to transform the port’s operational environment using Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to benefit the port and its users.
The initiative will also prepare the Port of Rotterdam’s entire 42km site to host connected ships in the future.
It begins with the development of a centralised dashboard application that will collect and process real-time water (hydro), weather (meteo) sensor data and communications data, analysed through the IBM IoT platform.
This will enable a new wave of safer and more efficient traffic management at the port
