ACL Latest News 2012

ACL & Peel Ports secure new locomotive import business with General Electric.

Atlantic Container Line (ACL) and Peel Ports; Port of Liverpool, have successfully secured new business with GE Transportation to ship, handle and deliver four locomotives before the end of February 2012 to Freightliner, one of the UK’s leading rail freight operators.

Two of the four new GE PowerHaul locomotives have already arrived after having been shipped for the first time by ACL from the USA to the Port of Liverpool. The PowerHaul 70017 locomotive weighs a massive 123 tonnes, and it is anticipated a total of four locomotives will be shipped through Liverpool this year.

The PowerHaul series, manufactured in Pennsylvania, USA, is the new generation of locomotives designed by GE Transportation to use less fuel and reduce carbon emissions whilst increasing network utilisation, port capacity and reliability. The locomotives are moved by rail to the Port of New York where they are loaded onto the ACL vessel operating on its weekly transatlantic service.

The locomotives are transported on Mafi trailers capable of carrying up to 150 tonnes. On arrival in Liverpool the Mafi trailer and locomotive are moved by Tugmaster to the Liverpool Container Terminal rail head. Here the unit is lifted by a dual crane lift from the Mafi onto the rail track. Once the locomotive is safely located on the rail, safety and brake tests will be conducted before the train is moved to Crewe,where it will be prepared for service.

ACL operates the world’s most versatile Con Ro (Container / Roll On Roll Off) vessels in the North Atlantic trade. With their unique design, ACL have the flexibility to handle a variety of cargoes, carrying a combination of 1,850 TEUs of containers both above and below the weather deck. The RORO decks have the capacity equivalent of 1,000 TEU for project cargo (massive turbines, heavy machinery, aircraft fuselages, wind turbines, cranes and vehicles).

ACL operates its Transatlantic RORO service on a weekly, fixed-day basis calling at the ports of Halifax (Nova Scotia), New York, Baltimore and Norfolk, Virginia. In Europe, ACL call at the ports of Liverpool, Antwerp, Hamburg and Gothenburg.

Ian Higby, managing director of ACL said: “The strength of the ACL North Atlantic service to Liverpool is that we bring a liner service with all the advantages of regularity, reliability and safety to cargo, which may have had to be transported in expensive break bulk or heavy lift vessels. We are very pleased that we have been able to demonstrate to Freightliner and to GE that we have the capability and expertise to look after their valuable locomotives and deliver them safely and soundly to Liverpool. We look forward to delivering the next three and more.”

Paul McCoy, business manager imports/exports at the Port of Liverpool and the Manchester Ship Canal, said “The Port of Liverpool welcomes opportunities to work with customers like ACL to secure new business through the Port, and this is a great example of the flexibility and versatility the Port offers handling all types of cargo.”

Liverpool's ambitions to establish a sizeable maritime cluster have received a strong vote of support from Atlantic Container Line, which is planning to enlarge its local workforce.

The Grimaldi subsidiary may even buy an office building on Merseyside as it prepares to take on more back office activities for the Italian group.

The transatlantic specialist employs around 70 people in Liverpool, but that number could eventually go up to more than 100, according to ACL chief executive Andrew Abbott.

Rather than outsourcing jobs, he wants to transfer documentation work from other parts of Europe. Local UK staff are both cheaper to employ and also more productive, he said.

ACL has had a presence in the city since 1978. Liverpool is one of the ports of call in its North Atlantic service, but it is the skills base and local maritime know-how that is attracting other global carriers that do not necessarily have any Liverpool ship calls. Maersk, CMA CGM and CSAV are among the big international ship operators that have their UK headquarters on Merseyside.

The expansion plans come at a time when ACL is preparing a major fleet upgrade programme to replace its existing fleet of elderly multipurpose ro-ros. The line expects to sign a letter of intent next month for five groundbreaking ro-ro ships that will be the biggest built to date. A shortlist of four South Korean and Chinese yards are now finalising bids, with ACL expecting to place a firm order in October, with 2013 delivery dates.

With Grimaldi one of the few international shipowners to make a profit even during the worst of the 2009 slump, and ACL’s transatlantic business currently doing very well, Mr Abbott said he does not expect financing to be an issue.

Although eastbound traffic has weakened in recent months despite the strength of the euro, European exports to the US are booming.

“If I had more capacity, I could fill it,” said Mr Abbott.

In particular, the ro-ro decks are all full, with construction equipment now in strong demand in the US as infrastructure improvements funded by the stimulus money that was injected into the flagging US economy finally gets started.

ACL has had a presence in Liverpool for many years, but others are more recent arrivals.

Maersk Line moved its UK head office from London a couple of years ago, citing the city’s vibrant maritime community and strong skills base.

Israeli line Zim is another relative newcomer, moving its UK headquarters to Merseyside five years ago. “Liverpool has done more than many other locations to provide the right environment, providing training and development facilities for staff at all levels,” Zim said in a recent statement.

Mr Abbott, who has been visiting Liverpool for many years, has seen the transformation at first hand.

“Liverpool understands the value of shipping and has been supportive of our continued growth,” he said.

Liverpool-based Bibby Ship Management has been appointed by fellow city maritime giant Atlantic Container Line (ACL) to provide full service ship management across its fleet of container vessels.

The agreement will see the third-party ship management division of Bibby Line Group, headquartered on Duke St, supply crew and technical management support to a total of five container vessels, including some of the world’s largest roll-on/roll-off and container ships.

ACL operates weekly services between Liverpool, Gothenburg, Hamburg and Antwerp and the North East Coast of Canada and The USA with five sister ships, purpose- built for the North Atlantic, Atlantic Cartier, Atlantic Companion, Atlantic Compass, Atlantic Concert and Atlantic Conveyor.

Bibby Ship Management was awarded the contract following a lengthy tender and audit process and UK Managing Director, Martin Kent, attributes the success to a clear synergy between the two businesses.

He said: “ACL is a company with a proven pedigree and a long history in Liverpool, so understandably we are delighted to be selected as its full service ship management agency.

“Our successful tender involved a long and detailed negotiation process and I’m confident that our expertise, attention to detail and focus on quality and safety closely mirrored ACL’s dedication to service and innovation for their specialised fleet.”

Ian Higby, managing director of ACL (UK), said: “From an early stage, we identified a number of shared commitments between ourselves and Bibby Ship Management and this played a key role in the final reckoning.

“Both businesses have strong values such as quality, integrity, safety and service and I have no doubt that these values will be reflected in our relationship going forward.”