|
M/V HUAL America Makes Maiden Voyage to Delaware |
|
Wilmington, DE - Diamond State Port Corporation (DSPC), HUAL North America, Inc. and maritime community representatives will welcome the m/v HUAL America on Friday, March 5, at 11:30 a.m., on her maiden voyage to the Port of Wilmington, Delaware. The m/v HUAL America is the most recent addition to HUAL’s unique fleet of RoRo (roll-on, roll-off) vessels which can carry virtually anything on wheels up to five meters in height and 150 metric tons in weight. At a cost of approximately $60 million per vessel, the M/V HUAL America is one of 12 planned additions to HUAL’s fleet through 2007. “The investment in our fleet positions HUAL to meet anticipated increases in import/export activity from vehicle manufacturers in the Far East, Europe and North America,” said Roy Winograd, vice president, marketing, HUAL North America Inc. The arrival of the M/V HUAL America in Wilmington, the Mid-Atlantic export facility for General Motors, highlights a 30-year relationship between the Port of Wilmington and HUAL. “Our skilled workforce, excellent inland transportation infrastructure, and a new dedicated berth with a paved roadway linked to vehicle staging and processing areas offer a complete logistics package to auto manufacturers and world-class auto carriers like HUAL,” noted DSPC Executive Director Gene Bailey. In
2003, HUAL made 40 port calls to Wilmington loading more than 60,000
vehicles bound to the Middle East. On her maiden voyage to Wilmington
she will load General Motor’s new factory vehicles and high and heavy
rolling cargoes destined to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and other Middle
Eastern ports of discharge. Built
by Stoczna Gdynia S.A. Gdynia Poland, the M/V
HUAL America features unique multiple liftable decks for flexibility
in loading cargoes of varying heights as well as a minimum deck height
of 1.85 meters for increased cargo carrying capacity. Flying the
Bahamian flag and capable of cruising at a speed of 20 knots, the ship
is nearly 200 meters long, 32.62 meters wide and can carry up to 6,500
standard size cars. The Port of Wilmington, located on the U.S. Mid-Atlantic East Coast, is a world-class auto distribution hub with an 875-foot-long, $27.5 million newly constructed auto and RoRo berth on the Delaware River. The berth is linked to vehicle staging, preparation and processing areas by a paved, 2-lane dedicated roadway, which facilitates quick, and safe cargo operations. Transportation specialist HUAL North America, the North American division of HUAL AS in Oslo, Norway, regularly operates a fleet of 27 ships between ports on the U.S. East Coast, Europe, the Middle East, West and South Africa, and the Far East. |
|
For
further information, digital photos, free tours of the Port and free
speakers contact: Vered Nohi-Becker, Marketing Services Manager
at the Port of Wilmington |
