/ By marketupdate / news/ • / 0 Comments

Port of Vancouver Operations Remain Fluid Amid BC Atmospheric Rivers and Highway Closures

To Port of Vancouver’s valued customers and stakeholders, 

A series of atmospheric rivers is bringing heavy rainfall to coastal areas in British Columbia. The Province of BC’s Ministry of Transportation and Transit has issued a travel advisory for areas in the Fraser Valley and has closed major highways between the Lower Mainland and the Interior due to flooding, falling rock and debris, and high avalanche hazards. The Ministry is assessing highways and related infrastructure.  

Terminal and rail operations at the Port of Vancouver remain fluid and operational. While CN and CPKC remain unaffected at this time, BNSF Railway has announced that some BNSF subdivisions are out of service due to weather-related issues. For more information, please visit BNSF’s website here.  

Additional precipitation is expected to continue in the region over the coming days. We are working closely with our terminal operators, railways, and all levels of government to monitor conditions and will provide updates as they become available.  

For the most up-to-date information on road conditions and road closures, please visit DriveBC. 

Resources

  • Port performance insights: access live video feeds from around the port and updates on import rail performance, truck terminal turn times, container vessel on-time performance, and vessel traffic at anchor/berth through the port authority’s website (Performance Insights)
  • PortVan eHub app: access real-time insights into Port of Vancouver operations via the port authority’s mobile app eHub.  Download from the port authority’s website (eHub) or through the App Store (search for “PortVan eHub” or “Port of Vancouver”)
  • The Ministry of Transportation and Transit travel advisory  

Source: Port of Vancouver

/ By marketupdate / news/ • / 0 Comments

Vancouver’s new scheduling system gives 96-hour advance notice of vessel arrivals

The completion of a centralized scheduling system at the Port of Vancouver will provide marine terminals with at least four days of advance notice of container ship arrivals, allowing for better labor and equipment planning to mitigate import surges.

The system, launched two years ago by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, helps coordinate the five different types of vessels, ranging from bulk to cruise ships, that call on some 29 marine terminals in three different districts. The port also presents unique navigational challenges, from confined waters to changing river flow conditions, said Capt. Gord Cooper, chair of the Fraser River Pilots Committee.

Through the centralized scheduling system, the nearly 450 port stakeholders now have a “port-wide view” of vessel arrivals, said Sean Baxter, the port’s harbor master and director of marine operations. Similar to other North American West Coast ports, Vancouver experiences seasonal container cargo surges tied to the pre-Lunar New Year and holiday shipping seasons.

Baxter said the centralized scheduling system will allow vessel operators to optimize vessel speeds when moving to berth or anchorage, terminal operators will have greater visibility to vessel arrivals and Canadian National Railway (CN) will be better able to handle CN trains run over the Second Narrows Rail Bridge, which must be raised regularly to allow vessels to pass underneath.

“This helps us to meet the moment,” he said.

Source: JOC

/ By marketupdate / news/ • / 0 Comments

Rolf Habben Jansen expects gradual reopening of Suez Canal

It will take two to three months to resume sailing through the Red Sea and Suez to avoid bottlenecks in the ports, says the Hapag-Lloyd chief exec.

No timetable has yet been set for the resumption of shipping through the Suez Canal, but when shipping does resume, it will be gradual.

This was stated by Rolf Habben Jansen, chief executive officer of Hapag-Lloyd, the world’s fifth-largest container shipping company, during a teleconference with the company’s customers on Thursday, according to international news outlet Reuters.

However, there will be a transition period of 60-90 days to adjust logistics and avoid congested ports.

Shipping companies have been taking the longer and more expensive route south of Africa since November 2023 due to attacks on traffic in the Red Sea by the Houthis in Yemen.

Source: SHIPPINGWATCH