Shipbreaking in Pakistan , Gaddani shipyard Balochistan:

Since the revival of Gaddani shipyard in Balochistan, the shipbreaking industry has been currently meeting 70% iron and steel requirements of the country, Engineering Development Board (EDB) said in its report made public on Wednesday.

Pakistan Shipbreaking Association claims in the report that about 12,000 workers are on work there. More than 50 big ships are being hammered currently at Gaddani, the highest ever in 12 years.

The EDB said that 95% of the old scrap is recycled and reused; the shipyard industry meets country’s demand for steel, steel related products and non-ferrous products and machinery.

Pakistan Steel Mills now running in loss has not been working on its full capacity and cannot fulfill country’s requirements, so iron and steel obtained from the shipbreaking helps meet the high demand, the report said.

Most of the steel re-rolling and re-melting mills in Pakistan depend heavily on the shipbreaking industry for the supply of ship plates.

“Purchasing even expensive vessels is profitable because there is very high demand in the country and production is far below than that,” the report revealed.

About 20% requirement is fulfilled by imports from Ukraine, Turkey and Russia and by Pakistan steel Mill but iron supplied by shipbreakers is much cheaper if compared with Pakistan steel as Gaddani shipbreaking raw material is available at cheaper rate of Rs 55,000/tonne.

Source: Pak News Point. 3 August 2011

http://paknewspoint.blogspot.com/2011/08/gaddani-shipyard-balochistan-revival-of.html

What does Inventory of Hazardous Material (IHM)/ Green Passport cost?

• Fixed cost: USD 9,500
• Variable cost: USD 1,000 / day (survey time is variable, depending on available documentation and type of vessel; estimated 2 days for on-board survey, additional travel time will apply)
• Lab. Charges: estimated USD 5,000 (will be charged at cost depending on the no. of samples collected)
• Class charges: As per Class, but indicative is USD 4,500 for Issuing of SoC (plus on-board survey costs if required)

Source: Wilhelmsen Ship Management. 30 April 2010

http://www.wilhelmsen.com/services/maritime/companies/barbership/hseq/Documents/IHM%20Green%20Passport%20Rev%2030%20April%202010.pdf

USA Ship-Submarine Recycling Program (SRP):

Ship/Submarine Recycling Program (SRP) is the process the United States Navy uses to dispose of decommissioned nuclear vessels.

SRP takes place only at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS) in Bremerton, Washington, but the preparations can begin elsewhere.

Before SRP can begin, the ship or submarine must have her nuclear fuel removed. Defueling usually coincides with decommissioning. Prior to that event, the vessel is referred to as "USS Name," but afterward the "USS" is dropped and it is referred to as "ex-Name."

Defueling of submarines is carried out at 5 ship repair facilities on the West Coast, and the hulks are then towed to PSNS. Reusable equipment is removed at the same time as the fuel.

Spent nuclear fuel is shipped by rail to the Naval Reactor Facility in the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), located 42 miles (67 km) northwest of Idaho Falls, Idaho, where it is stored. The fuel is then reprocessed.

At PSNS the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard proper begins.

A submarine is cut into three or four pieces:

1)    the aft section,

2)    the reactor compartment,

3)    the missile compartment (if one exists), and

4)    the forward section.

Missile compartments are dismantled according to the provisions of the Strategic Arms Reductions Treaty.

Reactor compartments are sealed at both ends and shipped by barge and multiple-wheel high-capacity trailers to the Department of Energy's Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington State where they are slated to be buried. A large number of reactor compartments are stored in the open awaiting deconstruction. The burial trenches have been evaluated to be secure for at least 600 years before the first pinhole penetration of some lead containment areas of the reactor compartment packages occurs, and several thousand years before leakage becomes possible.

Until 1991, the forward and aft sections of the submarines were rejoined and placed in floating storage. Various proposals for disposal of those hulks were considered, including sinking them at sea, but none were economically practical. All required removal of the numerous polychlorinated biphenyl products (PCBs) on board, which are considered hazardous materials by the Environmental Protection Agency and United States Coast Guard. Since then, and to help reduce costs, the remaining submarine sections are recycled, returning reusable materials to production. In the process of submarine recycling, all hazardous and toxic wastes are identified and removed; reusable equipment is removed and put into inventory. Scrap metals and all other materials are sold to private companies or reused. The overall process is not profitable, but does provide some cost relief. Disposal of submarines by the SRP costs the US$25-50 million per submarine.

By the end of 2005, 195 nuclear submarines had been ordered or built in the US (including the NR-1 Deep Submergence Craft and Virginia, but none of the later Virginias).

The last of the regular Sturgeon attack boats, L. Mendel Rivers was decommissioned in 2001, and Parche, a highly-modified Sturgeon, was decommissioned in 2004.

The last of the initial "41 for Freedom" Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) submarines, Kamehameha, was decommissioned in 2002. Decommissioning of the Los Angeles boats began in 1995 with Baton Rouge.

Additionally, a handful of nuclear powered cruisers have entered the program, and their dismantling is ongoing. The United States operates nuclear powered aircraft carriers, but as of 2008 no nuclear powered carrier has been decommissioned. The first aircraft carrier due for decommissioning that would enter the SRP is planned to be Enterprise, intended for withdrawal in 2013.

Source: Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship-Submarine_Recycling_Program

USS Virginia (CGN-38) in dry dock for nuclear core removal.jpg

A bow on view of the nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser USS VIRGINIA (CGN-38) in a dry dock at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard undergoing deactivation. The superstructure has been removed and containment structures placed over the hull so the shipyard can remove the ship's nuclear core.

Location: Elizabeth River, Norfolk, Virginia (VA). USA.

Source: Wikipedia. Photo taken by: DON S. MONTGOMERY, USN. 26 August 1994

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:USS_Virginia_(CGN-38)_in_dry_dock_for_nuclear_core_removal.jpg

Tension over construction of shipbreaking yard on a canal:

CHITTAGONG, JULY 31: A shipbreaking yard is allegedly being constructed by filling up a canal named Mukim Afzal Khal at the shore of Shonaichhari union under Sitakunda upazila in Chittagong. Our Sitakunda correspondent Sekander Hossain reports that a tense situation is prevailing at the area over the incident. The canal discharges water from four villages of the area. Locals fear a bloody confrontation between the shipyard owner and residents may occur any time.

The owner of Sultana Shipbreaking yard Rashedul Islam Rumi procured a huge area of land on the shore of Ghoramara village in Shonaichari union and leased some other land from Chittagong Deputy Commissioner’s office to construct a shipyard one and half years ago. But they are yet to obtain permission from the Directorate of Environment to construct the shipyard.

They have already constructed a shipyard at the area occupying the embankment of Water Development Board and now started constructing another on the southern side of the earlier one which required extra piece of land. To meet the requirement, the company allegedly started filling up the Mukim Afzal canal flowing just beside the shipyard.

Nritiyananda Jaladas, a resident of the area, told The Independent that more than two hundred fishermen families are dependent on the canal as they anchor their boats on the canal to unload fishes and sell them to market.

The filling up of the canal will hinder the life and livelihood of the fishermen living in that area, he feared.

Mohiuddin, another resident of the area, said that rain water of at least 4 villages flows down to the sea through this canal and the filling up of the canal might cause water logging in that area. 

He also said that residents of the area had already informed the concerned local administration about the illegal filling up of the canal. The residents are now planning to stage demonstration to resist the illegal filling up if the yard owner does not refrain, he added.

Chairman of Shonaichhari union parishad Nuruddin Mohammad Jahangir Chowdhury told The Independent that he had heard about the alleged filling up of the canal and if the allegation is proved he would request the Directorate of Environment (DoE) to take legal action.

On the other hand the manager of the shipbreaking yard rejected the allegation of filling up the canal and said that the authority is constructing yard on their purchased land. But he could not give any satisfactory reply while asked how they were constructing 2 yards taking permission of one.

Assistant Commissioner (Land) of Sitakunda upazila Tanvir Gazi told The Independent that he had not received any complaint about the illegal filling up of Mukim Afzal canal. If we get any complaint we will look into the matter, he added.

Assistant Director of DoE, Chittagong, Tazminur Rahman told The Independent that the approval of the alleged shipbreaking yard might have been pending. He also said that he would look into the matter and take legal action if the allegation is proved.

It may be mentioned here that more than 80 shipbreaking yards grew up on the shore of Bhatiary, Shonaichhari and Kumira unions of Sitakunda upazila in Chittagong. In 2009 at least 20 shipyards have been developed at the areas occupying the embankment of WDB and destroying the coastal forest and causing huge threat to the biodiversity of the areas.

Source: The Independent. 1 August 2011

http://theindependentbd.com/paper-edition/backpage/132-backpage/63284-tension-over-construction-of-ship-breaking-yard-on-a-canal.html

Another ship grounded at Mumbai's Juhu beach:

MT Pavit near Juhu Beach, Mumbai

MUMBAI: In a repeat of the M V Wisdom episode, a much-smaller cargo vessel ran aground near the Juhu beach in north-west Mumbai on Sunday, officials said here.

The Panama-flagged vessel M V Pavit, which has a capacity to hold 1,000 tonnes of cargo (as against M V Wisdom's 10,000 tonnes) run aground near Seven Bungalows early this morning and was suspected to have drifted on from the Persian Gulf, they said.

M V Wisdom had got stuck on Juhu beach in June, and could be salvaged after about three weeks.

"Pavit's crew was rescued somewhere in the Persian Gulf in the first week of July. Possibility of sailors being on board is less, as we did not get any SOS. It has possibly been drifting all along (since the rescue of sailors)," Director General of Shipping, S B Agnihotri, told PTI here.

An emergency towing vessel, which was hired following the M V Wisdom episode for the entire monsoon season, will be used to salvage the stuck vessel, Agnihotri said.

"They will take a professional call...as it's a smaller vessel, towing it out will not be very difficult," he said.

However, he declined to say how long it will take. Wisdom was being towed towards the ship-breaking yard in Alang in Gujarat from Colombo, and snapping of some wires attaching it to towing ship caused it to drift.

As in the case of Wisdom, DGS feels that Pavit too is not carrying any cargo or fuel, so hopefully there would be no environmental fall-out. Agnihotri added that officials are trying to get in touch with Pavit's Dubai-based owners.

Source: The Economic Times. 1 August 2011

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/shipping-/-transport/another-ship-grounded-at-mumbais-juhu-beach/articleshow/9432368.cms