Boatnerd Discussion Forum

Since AMC has a new contract with US Steel, , the GLF AAA boats have not been hauling their typical loads to USS mills this season.

Darryl wrote:Zug Island (Ecorse) will have one blast furnace still operating, won't they? I thought they had two there. TIA

There are actually three but only two have been active for the past several years.

I could see the Clarke going to the wall when/if the Anderson comes back out. Her survey is due to expire this year if I remember correctly

Zug Island (Ecorse) will have one blast furnace still operating, won't they? I thought they had two there. TIA

tugboathunter wrote:The Anderson’s survey and work is already underway. If they needed to reduce tonnage, they would more likely idle a vessel already in service.

That, or the Anderson may sit out the season with another of the AAA class remaining idle at the beginning of the 2020 season if there is insufficient demand.

ASC appears to be hauling around half the loads going to all USS mills.

Bob wrote:With uss steel shutting down 3 of there blast furnaces for the rest of the year is this going to affect the Anderson from coming out now? There will be a whole lot less tonnage to haul once they shut the furnaces down.

Only two of the furnaces are in the USA. I believe the other one is their mill in Croatia. I think the ore for that furnace comes from brazil and not from lake transshipment. USS is still in financial trouble from poor decisions the past ten years. They have also struggled since the F150 and Ford Expedition went to aluminum construction as the Ecorse mill was the supplier of 65% of that tonnage for many years. Their market may show weakness but other companies are doing ok in the current economy. AK steel has taken tonnage away from USS as their mill in Dearborn currently has a labor and production cost advantage over USS. They are running at high capacity and Interlake is making handsome profits on that ore delivery contract.

Handled by ASC and GLF in the past few years and seasons that I have kept track of this. I've seen the ASC footers and a few of their smaller vessels along with the GLF footers mainly the Presque Isle and sometimes the Gott.

Doesn't American Steamship haul most of the ore being transported to Zug Island?

The Anderson’s survey and work is already underway. If they needed to reduce tonnage, they would more likely idle a vessel already in service.

With uss steel shutting down 3 of there blast furnaces for the rest of the year is this going to affect the Anderson from coming out now? There will be a whole lot less tonnage to haul once they shut the furnaces down.

Here is a shot of the AMA showing the tarps on the sides. Taken at Fraser Shipyards June 10, 2019

Photos on Facebook of tarps being put around the Anderson's hull.

Noticed there is no Anderson AIS this morning.

Guest wrote:They dug the secret tunnel from southern L Michigan to L Erie decades ago. I was told this by a guy that truly believes that it was completed back in the 80’s. Just doesn’t make sense that they can’t build a new lock at the Soo, if they can build a tunnel. The new lock would cost less than the tunnel.

I've still got one of the shovels. Took a long time doing it by hand;)

They dug the secret tunnel from southern L Michigan to L Erie decades ago. I was told this by a guy that truly believes that it was completed back in the 80’s. Just doesn’t make sense that they can’t build a new lock at the Soo, if they can build a tunnel. The new lock would cost less than the tunnel.

Guest wrote:Yes, Lake Nebagomen as a destination :)

Why not. All they have to do is dig a canal to Nebagomen. No problem;)

Yes, Lake Nebagomen as a destination :)

Noticed this a.m. the Anderson's AIS is transmitting.

Guest wrote:Paint on a hull makes the vessel look nice, protects the vessel from rusting out. Does not help with the bottom line as far as hauling cargo. Therefore, a lot of the companies do not spend the money on paint as part of there maintenance like they use to.

Very true point in that vessel appearances are not as high a priority as in years past. That said, with the plethora of vessel inspections, vettings, ISO/ISM audits, and port state regulations, ocean-going ships are generally well maintained appearance-wise, particularly tankers.

I would point out that hull coatings (paint) are directly related to the efficiency of the vessel (which affects the bottom line). A hull with new coatings will have less resistance passing through the water. This may not make the ship any faster, but it will reduce fuel consumption. Marine growth on a hull also reduces efficiency. Propellers are polished routinely to further increase efficiency.

Unfortunately, as far as topsides go, paint is not cheap. A few years ago I worked in South Korea at Hyundai shipyard as a construction manager for a LNG shipping company building several vessels. The shipyard line item cost for exterior topside coating on this class, per ship (not the hull, only the superstructure, decks, and machinery) was USD$625,000. Labour was included in that figure, but labour was not expensive.