Portsider-July-2023

CHANGINGGEARS

Kia ora koutou katoa,

It has been another busy period at the Port since the last edition of the Portsider.

Work has continued on project Kia Whakaū to deepen our entrance channel, berth pockets, and swinging basin by an additional metre. Dutch Dredging has been operating in both the berth pockets and the swinging basin with the "Albatros," removing small volumes of silt and sand This work was completed on 23 June

We are now waiting for the Heron Construction GPK backhoe dredge to return to the Port, to finish the consent work in August/September before we can declare a new draft

This is an exciting time for the Port. It wasn’t that long ago that the deepening of the channel was not considered achievable, at least at a cost that would have a supporting business case, so this is a very positive outcome.

There has been plenty of recent commentary about purchasing our new tug, the “Rakiwai.” Typically, the Port operates a two-tug model. As part of this most recent purchase, there has been another discussion on whether to retain the “Hauroko” and operate a third tug, adding more resilience to our Marine operation. The decision was simple in the end, especially with the deepening of our draft and potentially heavier laden/larger vessels entering the Port; we need to have a third tug as a backup

Port watchers would have recently seen stage one of the Kaiwera Downs wind farm equipment being discharged at the Port (covered later in this edition). There is significant demand for additional electricity going forward, and Southland is seen as having “world-class” wind, therefore, excellent potential for wind farm developments. Kaiwera Downs is the first large development in Southland (240MW and 50 turbines) since the White Hill wind farm was developed in 2007 (58MW and 29 turbines).

Contact Energy has also recently announced the potential development of a 300MW wind farm (50 turbines) near Wyndham and has begun stakeholder engagement

These two developments will likely be only a part of a development pipeline of wind farm proposals in the coming years to meet the expected demand in the region

Members of the Board and the writer attended the Murihiku Regeneration, Energy, and Innovation Wānanga in late May. This event was excellent, bringing in speakers from throughout Aotearoa, including the Port, to discuss several important issues for Murihiku. To view content and recordings of the sessions, refer to www.murihikuregen.org.nz. Congratulations to the Hokonui Rūnanga and Mike Shatford for running an excellent event.

The Board has recently appointed Carla Harper as an intern dir later in this edition) As most will know, South Port is Southland Company; therefore, the Board, working with the Southland Bu was enthusiastic about assisting in developing and coaching asp region

Finally, when writing this column, we have reached the end of a want to thank the Board, our staff, customers, contractors, the community for the support over the past 12 months.

Ngā mihi nui, Nigel Gear

COVER:The"SpiritofNewZealand"inBluff March2023 IMAGECREDIT:ChrisHowell

TheBluffPortsideriscompiledby: SouthPortNZLtd POBox1,Bluff9842 (03)2128159 reception@southportconz wwwsouthportconz

ChiefExecutive:NigelGear Editedandproducedby:CharlotteScoles Contributors:DAEdge,GEMcLeod,JMay,and CScoles

OURPEOPLE

WELCOME

Zarah Roderique – Container Terminal Planner

Abbigail Surridge – Human Resources Advisor

Georgie Sunshine – Administrator

Ben Wilson – Dairy Warehousing Operator

Jayleel Fa’amoe Ioane – Depot Operator

INTERNALCHANGES

FIXED-TERMPROMOTIONS-COLDSTORES:

TorinCleworth

CarwynHenigan

LeudyMora

NelsonGomez

BronsonRyan

TRANSFERS:

JennyPhillips-MarineAdministrator

ReneeNyhon-CommercialPropertyAdvisor

WANT TO JOIN THE SOUTH PORT TEAM?

RISKADVISOR

LeadSouthPort'sriskmanagementandcompliance legislativeprogramme!

Tofindoutmoreaboutthisgoldenopportunity,contact ThomasLewis:

Telephone:(03)2128159

Email:tlewis@southport.co.nz

RAYMONDTULL: MARINEPILOT

RayTulljoinedSouthPort’spilotagegroupinJuly2020 AlthoughRaygrewupinChristchurch,hehasmanyfond memoriesofhischildhoodandteenageyears,spendingschool holidaysinBluffwithhisgrandparentsandextendedfamily

HehasstrongfamilyconnectionstoBluffandSouthPort, throughhisgrandfather,thelateRossChristiansenwhowasour TugMaster,andhisuncle,thelatePaulChristiansenwhowasa Pilot

RayisaMasterofForeignGoingandholdsaDiplomainNautical Science HewasinthefirstintakeofMaerskcadetsinNew Zealandin1999andwasthenemployedwithMaerskforfive years-workingoncontainerships,producttankers,andcar carriers,allonworldwidetrade

BeforehejoinedSouthPort,RaywasemployedbySolstad Offshore,operatinginNorthWestAustraliaintheoilandgas industry Hehasextensiveexperienceintheoffshoreindustry supportingROV(remotelyoperatedvehicle)operations,dive operations,andplatformsupplyoperationsintheMiddleEast, SouthEastAsia,andAustralia

Threeyearsago,afterachievinghisgoalofhavingcommandofa ship,thepilotjobinSouthlandbeckoned So,hejumpedatthe chanceforhimandhisfamily-wifeMiraandtheirchildrenZach andRebecca-tomovetothePort,wherehisloveofseafaring began:“I’vealwayswantedtoworkatthePort,andthetiming wasperfectforthemovesouth.”

ThesearefamiliarwatersforRay,buthe’scertainlynot complacent!“It’satrickystretchofwater…andthechanneland harbourleaveverylittleroomforerror,whichcanneverbe underestimatedortakenforgranted.”

Rayisproudoftheenergyandefforthe’sputinoverthepast threeyears,andwhenhe’ssignedoffasanUnrestrictedPilotin thenextfewweeks,itwillbeworthyofcelebration. Afterthat milestoneistickedoff,hisnextgoalwillbetocontinuetraining oncruiseshipsandsupporttheFiordlandcruiseactivitiesnext summer.

Rayloveslivinginthesouth.“Thefamilyhasexcelledin Southland,thekidshaveflourishedhere,they’reconfidentand independent,andtheycanbikeeverywheretovisittheirfriends. Wealllovethefreedomoflivinginasmallercity,unlikewhenwe livedintheAucklandregion”.He’sproudaspunchofhis daughterRebeccawhoisaSouthlandgymnasticsrepresentative, andhissonZachwho’sintheSouthlandUnitedU15football team.

TherearesomebonusesforRay,too-he’sakeenmotorcyclist andcanbeseenonhisbrightgreenKawasakiexploringthe southernroads.He’salsointentonimprovinghisgolfhandicap,a goodexcusetogetoutthereandenjoythefreshairandscenery.

JIM MITCHELL

InFebruary2023,achancerequesttovisittheIslandHarbourbyaformerBluffHarbourBoardemployeesawtalesoftimespastbeingrelived ThisledthePortsiderEditorintodiscussionswithotherswhowantedtosharetheirstoriesfrom‘backintheday ’ Inthisedition,wetalk toformerDraftsman,JimMitchell–thepersonresponsibleforkick-startingthe‘TalesofTimesPast’segmentwithatruepassionandfond recollectionofhistimeinBluff.

Jim,bornandbredinBluff,wasaproudBluffresidentfor29years.HestartedwiththeBluffHarbourBoardinearly1956,atthetenderageof19. Therewereroughly20employees:fiveengineers,sixclericalstaff,threeofficestaff,andsixothers Heinitiallyworkedinthedrawingoffice,a temporarybuildingbehindthemainHarbourBoardofficeonGoreStreet,drawingplansassociatedwiththebuildingofthenewIslandHarbour In1957,heshiftedoutontotheislandreclamation Heworkedfromamobilehut,supervisingandrecordingtheFrenchcontractors'pile-driving operationsand,later,theconcreteplacingofthewharvesandcounterforts Thenfollowedsupervisingworkonallfacetsofengineering, undergroundservices,yards,roading,cargosheds,andbuildings.Later,astheislandconstructionworkscontinued,heshiftedintothesiteoffice (engineering)locatedontheforeshorebesidetheShannonStreeton-rampandtookovertheconcretetestinglaboratory.AftertheIsland Harbourwascompleted,JimshiftedtothenewSouthlandHarbourBoard'sadministrationbuilding,workinginthedrawingofficeasDraftsman.

Fromthemid-'50s,theBoard'srockbreaker,"Tokanui,"wasinvolvedinwideningthenarrowharbourentrancechannel Shewasprogressively anchoredinsidethechannellineandpositionedfromsitemarkserectedbytheengineeringstaffonTiwaiShorelineProper Thiswasavery exactinganddifficultoperation;aftertherequiredwaterdepthwasattained,thebucketdredge"Murihiku"removedtheshatteredconcrete

Anotherchallengewasthedredgingoftheharbour'sberthsandswingingbasin,giventhattheislandwasbuiltonasandbank,formedbythe build-upofsandatthejunctionoftheMatauraandOretirivers,millionsofyearsago.Firstly,beforeconstructionoftheIslandHarbourbegan,the areawasdepthsurveyedbytheSurveyLaunchQuery,fittedwithanupmarkethydrographicechosounder.Atriangulargridcoveringtheareato bedredgedwasestablished,basedonaprominentrockontheeastsideofSpencersIslandusingalineofsightonsome20pilespreviouslydriven acrossthesandbankabovetheship'sswingingbasin

TheseabedwasechosoundedbeforedredgingbytheFrenchsuctiondredger"Rupel " Asdredgingprogressed,monthlypaymentsforthe materialremovedweremadebytravellingonlineandusingsextonanglesonpermanentharbourmarks Thesoundingchartwasreadforwater depths,tideheightsdeducted,andtheamountofmaterialremovedcalculated.Thisworkwasdonebyengineeringstaff.

Memorablemomentsincludedthecommissioningoftheisland'spipedwatersupplynetwork.Thiswasfedfromtheborough'sShannonStreet main,locatedundertheBluff-Invercargillrailwaytracks,andacrossviaacast-ironmainontheislandaccessbridge.Oncompletion,French contractorsusedtheex-InvercargillCityEngineertocommissiontheproject Sectionbysection,thenetworkwaspressuretestedtotwiceits workingpressure,andoncompletion,thewholenetworkandthenine-inchmainswereturnedbackon Itblewupundertherailway embankment,andhastyrepairsweremade Later,anemergencysteelsupplylinewasestablishedontheothersideoftheaccessbridge Around1958,oneofthelastoldsailingcutters(nowsteam-powered)sankatheroldoysterberth,insidethemainwharfovernight.Shewas salvagedusingagantrymountedforliftingharbourbeaconsontheforedeckofthedredge"Murihiku."Herupperdeckswereabovewater,and onliftingthevesselshuddered,andagumbootfloatedupsidedowntothesurface.Anemergencyhaltwasmadetorescuetheso-calledoneleggedman,stillfloatingupsidedownabovethehull.

DuringJim'stenureatthePort,hisdutiesvariedasa"backroomboy"-hewasresponsibleforpreparinganas-builtplanoftheIslandHarbour, showingallstructuresandservicesaboveandunderground Thisrolerequiredskillandaccuracy FieldbookrecordingsweremadeastheIsland wasbuilt,andfinally,aplanwaspreparedonheavylinendrawingpaperatascaleof50fttotheinch MuchtoJim'sdelight,thisplanwaslocatedin theolddrawingandstoragevault.Ithasclearlylastedthetestoftimeandisstillingoodconditiontoday.Inaddition,Jimalsopreparedasimilar documentfortheforeshore.

In1959,JimmarriedDonaldaStewart,andtheycontinuedtheirinvolvementinBluffcommunityactivities-suchasrugby,netball,golf,yachting, athletics(Invercargill) JimjoinedtheTeAraoKiwaSeaScoutsin1948,becameaQueenScout,and,finally,TroopLeader

InSeptember1966,heresignedfromtheHarbourBoardandstartedac andin1973,shiftedtoAshburtonCountyCouncilinasimilarrole Both Countieswerebusilyinvolvedwithmajorruralworksimprovement, involvingroadconstruction,sealing,bridging,urbanandruralwater supplies,andwaterraces.HispreviousemploymentinBluffstoodhim inverygoodstead.Heservedafurther33yearsandretiredin1999.

“Somethingschange,andsomethingsdon’t–therearesomeswings androundaboutsinthisrespect,”Jimexplainedonthismostrecenttrip toBluff “ThecentreofBluffitselfisnolongerahiveofactivity;itused tobecommerciallybusyandwasbuzzingwithshopsandworkers.In sayingthis,thespiritofthepeoplehasn’tchangedfromacaringand supportivecommunity."

GROWTH SEES ONE JUMPING SHIP

Overthepastfewyears,SouthPorthascommittedtoassistingourstafftodeveloptheirskillsandfurthertheircareersbyproviding outsidetraining,literacy,andnumeracycoursesandencouragingthemtoapplyforanyinternalvacanciesorpromotions Onesuch staffmemberwhoepitomisesthispolicyofrecognisingandutilisingtalentfromwithintheorganisationisReneeNyhon,whohasbeen appointedtothenewlycreatedroleofCommercialPropertyAdvisorwiththeCommercialDepartment

SouthPortidentifiedanopportunityinourcorporateteamthatwouldbetterserveourpropertycustomers'needs SouthPort CommercialManager,JamieMayadded,“currently,severalstaffatthePortsupportourpropertydepartmentonapart-timebasis.By havingasinglepointofcontactforourcustomersmakestheexperienceofdealingwithSouthPortmorestreamlinedandefficient.We introducedasimilarmodelinourbulkcargooperationandsawtheimmediatebenefits”.

Renee,whoisBluffbornandbred,beganaDiplomainBusinesscourseat SouthernInstituteofTechnologyin2010beforeleaving afterayearofstudytojointheovernightcruisesaboardthe“Mariner”atMilfordSound Shejoinedasacrewmember,whichincluded taskssuchasservingpassengers,takingpassengersonkayakandtendercrafttoursinHarrisonsCove,andeverydaycrewduties

In2012,ReneemovedtoMelbourneandwasemployedastheRestaurantSupervisorattheWoolshedPubinDocklands Here,the venueoftenheldfunctionsofupto1,000guestsatatime ShereturnedtoInvercargillin2015tobeclosertoherfamilywhile continuinghercareerinhospitalitybyjoiningthestaffatBusterCrabbastheMaîtreDe.ShealsoactedasasupervisoratZiffsin Otatara.

ReneefirstcametoSouthPort'sattentionwhensheappliedforapositionintheDairyWarehouseteam.Althoughbeingpassedover forthisvacancy,herapplicationcametothenoticeofGrahamBrown,theTerminalSupervisor,who,atthattime,wasalsoseekinga newteammembertofillarolevacatedbyastaffmembertransferringtotheSecurityDepartment.Uponrecognisingherproven organisationalabilities,GrahamapproachedReneetojointheContainerTerminalteam

Shehasnowbeeninthisroleforoverfiveyears,planningtheMSCvessels,optimisingtheterminalpadperformance,and administratingtheprocessingofemptycontainersusingbothJadeandDepotprocomputersoftwaresystems,ataskshehascarried outtothehighestlevelofefficiencyandcompetency

ReneeresidesinInvercargillwithherfiancéMichael,whoisaself-employedbuilder.Reneeassistshimbycarryingoutallhis bookkeepingneeds.Theyalsohaveaone-year-olddaughter,Ava.

SPIRIT OF NEW ZEALAND TURNS 50 YEARS OLD

AttheendofMarch2023,theBluffcommunitywasluckytohaveavisit fromtheSpiritofNewZealand,asapartoftheSpiritofAdventureTrust's ten-dayyouthdevelopmentvoyage.

TheTrustwasstartedin1972;thefirstvessellaunchedbythe Trustwas the"SpiritofAdventure"onDecember7,1973-makingtheTrust50years oldthisyear Theinauguralyouthdevelopmentvoyagewaslaunchednot longafter,inJanuary1974

LouFisher,whowasresponsibleforfoundingtheTrust,envisioned empoweringthecountry'syouth Learningfocusesonteamwork, communication,self-leadership,self-reliance,self-discipline,self-esteem, resilience,confidence,andleadership.Learningtosailatallshipisjusta smallpartoftheprogrammesthattheTrustoffers

Sailingforaroundtenmonthsoftheyear,the"SpiritofNewZealand"is believedtobetheworld'sbusiestyouthshipandhastakentensof thousandsofyoungNewZealandersonvoyagesofpersonaldiscovery

In1986,theTrustlauncheditsnewvessel,the"SpiritofNewZealand,"and thetwovesselsranuntilthe"SpiritofAdventure"wassoldin1996

Each"SpiritofNewZealand"voyagecanbecheckedoutontheSpiritof AdventureTrustwebsite,withpastvoyagesfeaturingadailylogandlive GPSdataoftheship'scurrentlocation

Aspartofthe50-yearcelebration,fortyrangatahi(youngerpeople)were takenonboardforadayofsailingaroundtheSouthlandregion Before COVID-19,we'dhavebeenlikelytoseethevesselinPortevery1-2years, so,postthismostrecentvisit,wehopetoseethemagainsoonenough.

Ifyou'dliketolearnmoreabouttheSpiritofAdventureTrust,visit: www.spiritofadventure.org.nz/about-us

KAIWERA DOWNS WIND FARM TURBINES ARRIVE IN BLUFF

Construction of the Kaiwera Downs I wind farm is half-way through, just six months after the project started. In an exciting key milestone, the 67m turbine blades and other components arrived here at South Port in the first week of May.

The foundations for each turbine have already been prepared, and the delivery of the blades, towers, and nacelles commenced in the second week of May The project is expected to remain on target, with Mercury's GM Portfolio, Phil Gibson, stating, "Kaiwera Downs I is on track to be generating renewable energy within six months"

"All on-site roads, crane pads, and turbine foundations have been completed and ready for the turbines to go up from the end of this month (May) - that's when you can really see the progress"

"The longest load is the blades at around 67m, and the heaviest load will be the base towers that weigh in at around 75 tonnes, so shout out to the team at McNeilly Heavy Haulage, who are going to be driving this precious cargo from Bluff to the Kaiwera Downs Wind Farm."

The size of the components means they'll travel different routes: all will go through Invercargill, but the blades will travel through Edendale, while the towers and nacelles will travel through Gore due to the weight of the loads

Infrastructure to send the electricity out to the grid is already in place, with underground electrical wiring installed and the switchroom connecting the wind farm to the grid ready for action

A local success story relating to the delivery and installation of the wind turbines features local Bluff company, Bluff Engineering. Bluff Engineering worked alongside Brian Perry Civil on the Town Wharf Upgrade last year and was approached to assist with assembling the wind turbine foundation cages.

Logistically, the equipment took a lot of work to handle due to the weight of the materials They arrived in nine 40-foot containers, five of which were on Bluff Engineering's site and the remainder down on Foreshore Road at a laydown area

Bluff Engineering had five team members working on the assembly process, with each base taking around two days to assemble There were ten bases in total, so, as you can imagine, there was a lot of manual labour and heavy lifting. Each base weighed around 15 tonnes, which had to be loaded onto a low loader at the yard to be transported onto the wind farm site at Kaiwera Downs. They also assisted in setting up and placing each foundation cage on-site.

The team reported that the project's highlight was seeing the components assembled in the workshop and the opportunity to work alongside Brian Perry Civil again

HELLO, HAPPINESS!

Overtheyears,asurprisingnumberofshipshavecalledatBluffduringthecourseoftheirmaidenvoyages,andthelatesttodosoisthe “HappinessBulker”,whicharrivedonthe15thofMarch.Ashernamesuggestsandfunnelconfirms,the“HappinessBulker”wasbuiltfor servicewiththefamousDanishcompanyJ.LauritzenandwasdeliveredbytheImabariShipbuildingCompanyinFebruarythisyear, havingbeenbuilttotheverypopularBari-Star38design-ofwhich172arecurrentlyinserviceorunderconstruction.

Grosstonnageis23,238,andherdeadweightof37,694tonnesplacesherfirmlyinthe‘largehandy-size’bulkcarriercategory.To commemoratehervisittoBluffonhermaidenvoyage,aplaquewaspresentedtohermaster,CaptainVictorCadiz,bySouthPortPilot, MarkSaunders

FAREWELL, 'LITTLE TOOT'

ThefirstVoithtugtograceBluff’swaters,the“Hauroko”built atWhangareiin1968,isnomore.

EarlyinDecemberlastyear,weheardthatthe“Hauroko,” whichbrieflybecame“HaurokoII”andsince2003hasbeen named“Loyal,”wasbrokenupatTauranga.Whenshearrivedin Bluffon14November1968,the“Hauroko”joinedthe venerableoldsteamtug“Awarua,”themostpowerfultugin NewZealandwhenshearrivedin1932butbythenbecoming dueforreplacement.The"Monowai"arrivedin1983-another Voithtugandabigsisterfor“Hauroko,”withtwiceherbollard pull.Theircrewsknewthepairas‘BigToot’and‘LittleToot,’ respectively.BigTootisstillgoingaboutherbusiness,pushing shipsaroundinPicton,butsadly,LittleToothasgonetomeet herbreaker. Comparedtoconventionaltugs,handlingaVoithfittedvesselrequiresquiteadifferentskillset,andmanyBluff tugmasters,pastandpresent,learnedthatskillsetaboard 'LittleToot.'

KIA WHAKAU PROJECT UPDATE

The"Albatros"TrailerSuctionHopperDredgewasintheharbouronceagain-itwaslastinBluffin2020,whenitcompletedamaintenance dredgingcampaign.

Onthisoccasion,the"Albatros"wasundertakingacapitaldredgingcampaignaspartofourgoaltoincreasethedepthofthePortby1m SouthPortCommericalManager,JamieMay,said"increasingthePort'sdraftby1misanexcitingtimeforimportersandexportersinthe lowerSouthIslandregion Itcreatesanopportunityforlogexporterstofullyloadvessels,andenablesincreasedtonnagestobehandled acrossavarietyofcargoes"

The"Albatros"wasexpectedtobeinBlufffor6weeks,ofwhichwasdependentonseveralfactorswhichcanimpactproductivity,suchas weather,materialtype,andbreakdowns.Thedredgingactivityfocusedmainlyontheswingingbasinandberthpockets.Followingthe consentconditions,dredgingbythe"Albatros"wasonlypermittedbetween7:30amand6pm,7daysaweek.Theywerealsopermittedto transittothedisposalsiteoutsidethesehours.

Nowthatthe"Albatros"dredgingcampaigniscomplete,wewillfocusondredgingtheremainingmaterialintheentrancechannel Aswith lastyear,weintendtoundertakethisworkusingabackhoedredge,giventhehardermaterialweexpecttoencounterinthechannel The exactdateforthisworkisunknown,butitwilllikelybetowardstheendofJuly2023

INTERN DIRECTOR APPOINTED

SouthPortispleasedtoannouncetheappointmentofCarlaHarperasanInternDirectortoits BoardofDirectorsforatermofoneyear.Theappointeewillbeanobserveronlyandisnot consideredtobea“director”undereithertheCompaniesAct1993orNZXListingRule3.20.

TherolehasbeendevelopedwiththeaimofbuildinggovernancecapabilityinSouthlandand providingopportunitiesforaspiringdirectorstoadvancetheirgovernancecareers

SouthPort’sBoardChair,RexChapmansaid“CarlawillbeSouthPort’sfirstInternDirector appointment.WeweredelightedtoworkalongsidetheSouthlandChamberofCommerceto sourceanalumnicandidatefromtheirLeadershipAcademy.AsSouthland’sonlylocallybased listedcompany,thisappointment,togetherwithfutureappointments,willenableappointeesto gainvaluablegovernanceexperienceandmentoring.”

MOVE ON THE TASMAN

On26Marchthisyear,amulti-purposecargoship,the“Atlas Wind,”arrivedinBluff,inauguratingthefirstdedicated Trans-Tasmanservicetobeintroducedinovertwentyyears.

ThedrivingforcebehindthisnewserviceisMOVeLogistics, oneofthebiggesttransportandlogisticsgroupsinNew Zealand,withahistorydatingbackto1869whenHooker BrothersTransportwasfounded

HookerShippingwasformedin1883,originallyasagentsfor NorthernSteamShipCompany,buttodayproviding representationatallNewZealandports,whiletheship operatingdivisionisthenewlyestablishedMOVeOceans. NewZealandportsservedareBluff,Timaru,Nelson,and NewPlymouth,andacrosstheTasmanportsinTasmania andsoutheasternAustraliaarevisitedonamonthlyrotation

PORTOPEN DAY2023

FAMILYFUNDAY

ISLANDHARBOUR,BLUFF

FREEKIDSACTIVITIES | FOODSTALLS | LIVEMUSIC

2-hourlytourswhichincludecraneandforkliftdemonstrations,thecold stores,andthesyncrolift.ExploretugboatTeMatua,watcha demonstrationoftheRakiwaiinaction,andmeetthelocalCoastguard.

BOOKINGS ARE ESSENTIAL

Should the weather be poor, cranes and forklifts may not be able to operate due to the requirement for us to stay within safe working parameters.

TOUR TIMES: 9AM 11AM 1PM

SUNDAY, 1 October 2023

REGISTRATIONS will open soon

FAIRFIELD CHEMICAL CARRIERS

Chemical tankers are such highly sophisticated and specialised ships these days, that they are generally owned by companies whose business is concentrated on the seaborne transport of liquids, ranging from comparatively benign to highly volatile, and sometimes the operation of installations on shore for the storage of these Several of these companies have featured on the back page of Portsiders past, and to this number we can now add Fairfield Chemical Carriers. Although the company was founded as recently as 1996, the Fairfield story really begins in the city of Seattle in 1909, when Kaiichi (Kay) Sugahara was born to Japanese immigrants, the second of five children

Following a move to Los Angeles, the children were orphaned when Kay Sugahara was just 12 Despite the difficulties facing him, Kay worked to help support his siblings while attending the University of California, from which he graduated in 1932.

Many Japanese had migrated to the west coast of North America and Kay’s first business venture was to establish a customs brokerage to assist JapaneseAmerican businessmen clearing inward goods and advising exporters on sending goods to Asia. This, and other ventures in which he was involved, were generally very successful - but 7 December 1941 changed all that. Following the attack on Pearl Harbour, Kay Sugahara, his wife and three sons were interned, as were many of their fellow Japanese-Americans Post-war, the Sugahara family moved to New York

where Kay Sugahara was prominent in renewing Japanese-American relations and promoting the resumption of trade In 1957 he founded Fairfield-Maxwell, ‘Fairfield’ being an English translation of ‘Sugahara,’ and ‘Maxwell’ the name of an American intelligence officer with whom he had dealings during the war and greatly respected. Fairfield-Maxwell moved into maritime activities, including the building, selling, and leasing of dry cargo ships and tankers

In 1978, Great American Lines was formed to manage the car carrier/refrigerated ship “Sunbelt Dixie.” Outwardly a typical car carrier she was fitted with equipment to cool the car decks so that after discharging vehicles in the USA she could load fruit or other chilled cargo for the return trip - thus eliminating unprofitable ballast voyages In 1979, Kay Sugahara appointed his eldest son Kaytano President of Fairfield, and he became Chairman following his

father’s death in 1988 Under the leadership of Kaytano, and from 2017 his brother Byron, Fairfield continued to expand its ship management services over a wide variety of ship types, including chemical tankers.

Fairfield Chemical Carriers Incorporated was established in 1996 with the intention to build a fleet of high specification chemical tankers The first of these was the “Fairchem Vanguard” in 1999 with stainless steel cargo tanks and fittings enabling her to carry virtually any pumpable fluid All subsequent ships have been similarly equipped, and Fairchem ships can carry over 600 grades of liquid cargo. Numbers are fluid, so to speak, but currently about forty tankers are trading, with four new ships due for delivery over the next couple of years, these being LNG powered, greatly reducing their carbon footprint It is a homogeneous fleet, with deadweight tonnages being between about 20,000 and 26,000 tonnes, and average age is just four years old.

Routes are wide-ranging, with 450 ports of call scattered around the world, and Bluff has been a frequent destination since the “Fairchem Integrity” made the first call here by a company ship on 21 April 2020 Generally, the tankers bring in chemicals for the dairy industry, and sometimes load tallow as an export cargo.