23 March 2011
MUSCAT -- Port of Sohar is preparing to receive one of the largest bulk carriers ever to call the industrial port.
MV Bulk Asia (pictured), a 170,000 deadweight-tonne (DWT) Cape-size vessel, makes its maiden visit to Sohar today with a shipment of iron ore for the newly launched integrated steel mill of Jindal Shadeed Iron & Steel LLC.
The port call is significant in that it attests to the deepwater capabilities of Sohar Port and its ability to handle large-capacity bulk carriers, among other types of merchant ships.
Khimji Ramdas Shipping, an integrated and well-diversified provider of shipping, logistics, freight transportation and air cargo services, has been appointed agents for the vessel. The company represents a large number of reputable container shipping lines, common carrier feeder operators, tanker operators and cruise liners, besides undertaking shipchandling, project handling, P&I Club representation, insurance, and husbanding services for naval ships.
MV Bulk Asia arrives with roughly 154,000 metric tons of Brazilian iron ore for Jindal-Shadeed's state-of-the Direct Reduction Iron facility, which commenced operations earlier this year. The 295-metre long vessel will come alongside Jindal-Shadeed's dedicated 600-metre-long jetty at Sohar, which has drafts of -19 metres.
According to officials, the shipment is also one of the largest ever to be delivered to any of Jindal's steel operations in India and elsewhere around the world.
During its roughly nine-stay stay in Sohar, the vessel's contents will be discharged by giant unloaders which will transfer the iron ore to a system of conveyors that carry the feedstock directly to Jindal-Shadeed complex within the industrial port.
But Sohar's ability to handle much bigger bulk carriers will soon be ramped up when new deepwater jetty infrastructure, currently under implementation at the industrial port, is brought into operation sometime this year. Sohar Industrial Port Company (SIPC), the landlord-operator of the industrial port, in investing around $250 million in the construction of the 1,380-metre-long deepwater jetty, boasting drafts of -25 metres.
When operational, it will enable the handling of a new generation of bulk carriers with capacities equalling three times that of MV Bulk Asia. The facility has been dedicated to the Oman subsidiary of Brazilian mining conglomerate Vale Oman, which is preparing to bring its giant iron ore pelletising at Sohar into operation.
The state-owned Oman Shipping Company (OSC) is currently building four Ultra Large Ore Carriers (ULOCs) each of a staggering 400,000 tons capacity. These vessels will be leased to Vale Oman for the transportation of iron ore from Brazil to Sohar. The 360-metre-long ships, which rank among the largest ore carriers of their kind, are currently under construction at a Chinese shipyard. Two of the four vessels will join the OSC fleet by the end of November 2011 while the rest will be delivered by February 2012.
Sohar's existing logistics terminals, notably Oman International Container Terminal (OICT), C Steinweg Oman, and Oiltanking Odfjell, are also equipped to handle huge vessels, given the deep drafts that they enjoy.
MUSCAT -- Port of Sohar is preparing to receive one of the largest bulk carriers ever to call the industrial port.
MV Bulk Asia (pictured), a 170,000 deadweight-tonne (DWT) Cape-size vessel, makes its maiden visit to Sohar today with a shipment of iron ore for the newly launched integrated steel mill of Jindal Shadeed Iron & Steel LLC.
The port call is significant in that it attests to the deepwater capabilities of Sohar Port and its ability to handle large-capacity bulk carriers, among other types of merchant ships.
Khimji Ramdas Shipping, an integrated and well-diversified provider of shipping, logistics, freight transportation and air cargo services, has been appointed agents for the vessel. The company represents a large number of reputable container shipping lines, common carrier feeder operators, tanker operators and cruise liners, besides undertaking shipchandling, project handling, P&I Club representation, insurance, and husbanding services for naval ships.
MV Bulk Asia arrives with roughly 154,000 metric tons of Brazilian iron ore for Jindal-Shadeed's state-of-the Direct Reduction Iron facility, which commenced operations earlier this year. The 295-metre long vessel will come alongside Jindal-Shadeed's dedicated 600-metre-long jetty at Sohar, which has drafts of -19 metres.
According to officials, the shipment is also one of the largest ever to be delivered to any of Jindal's steel operations in India and elsewhere around the world.
During its roughly nine-stay stay in Sohar, the vessel's contents will be discharged by giant unloaders which will transfer the iron ore to a system of conveyors that carry the feedstock directly to Jindal-Shadeed complex within the industrial port.
But Sohar's ability to handle much bigger bulk carriers will soon be ramped up when new deepwater jetty infrastructure, currently under implementation at the industrial port, is brought into operation sometime this year. Sohar Industrial Port Company (SIPC), the landlord-operator of the industrial port, in investing around $250 million in the construction of the 1,380-metre-long deepwater jetty, boasting drafts of -25 metres.
When operational, it will enable the handling of a new generation of bulk carriers with capacities equalling three times that of MV Bulk Asia. The facility has been dedicated to the Oman subsidiary of Brazilian mining conglomerate Vale Oman, which is preparing to bring its giant iron ore pelletising at Sohar into operation.
The state-owned Oman Shipping Company (OSC) is currently building four Ultra Large Ore Carriers (ULOCs) each of a staggering 400,000 tons capacity. These vessels will be leased to Vale Oman for the transportation of iron ore from Brazil to Sohar. The 360-metre-long ships, which rank among the largest ore carriers of their kind, are currently under construction at a Chinese shipyard. Two of the four vessels will join the OSC fleet by the end of November 2011 while the rest will be delivered by February 2012.
Sohar's existing logistics terminals, notably Oman International Container Terminal (OICT), C Steinweg Oman, and Oiltanking Odfjell, are also equipped to handle huge vessels, given the deep drafts that they enjoy.
© Oman Daily Observer 2011
