An Irish shipping company that manages a fleet of vessels for one of the world’s biggest dry-cargo fleet logistics companies saw the largest of these ships arrive at Dublin Port on Wednesday (March 19), writes Jehan Ashmore.
The Dundrum, Dublin-based Corrib Shipping Group manages five vessels totalling 30,000 deadweight (dwt) tons on behalf of Royal Wagenborg Shipping B.V. of Delfzijl. Among them is the largest, the 7,901 deadweight-all told (dwat) tons multipurpose (MPP) dry-cargo carrier, M.V. Ziltborg, which had been in Dublin Bay at anchor before it entered the capital port last night to load zinc at a bulk-berth terminal.
Since its inception in 1995, the Corrib Shipping Group has specialised in crewing, technical management, marine engineering and compliance, purchasing, and regulatory ship management. Of the group’s five-ship Wagenborg portfolio, aside from M.V. Ziltborg, the remaining quartet are the M.V. Cathy Jo, M.V. Cathma, and M.V. Jolyn, respectively. They all have the green and white Celtic motif on the funnel to reflect their Irish-managed background; see related previous photo coverage.
Afloat tracked M.V. Ziltborg on Saturday to its anchorage off Dun Laoghaire Harbour, having departed three days before from Vlissingen. At another Dutch port is Delfzijl, where the 118.55m length overall (LOA) MPP is registered at the homeport of Wagenborg, whose grey-hulled vessels sport a red band lengthwise, and this wraps around the bow and stern. In the case of the Irish-managed ship, a freefall lifeboat is offset to port, which is the primary form of emergency escape.
The Dutch shipping company, originally a family business based in Delfzijl, was founded in 1898 by Egbert Wagenborg and, more than 125 years later, has grown into a global maritime logistics company with around 2,000 seafarers and 160 MPP dry-cargo ships. Some of which are built by their own shipyard!
As for the MV Ziltborg, the vessel is 25 years old this year and is the leadship of a trio of Z-Class, albeit not built at their shipyard but by Bodewes Scheepswerven B.V.
Since its anchorage in Dublin Bay, the MV Ziltborg has been observed waiting to enter port. It berthed at Alexandra Basin West, where the Boliden Tara Mines terminal reopened in October following the temporary (18-month) closure of Europe’s largest zinc mine near Navan, Co. Meath.
Commenting to Afloat, Corrib Shipping said the MV Ziltborg is to be loaded with zinc for discharge in Kokkola, Finland, as 'Ports & Shipping' previously featured the ice class 1A-strengthened vessel with its heavy cargo, which is designed to cope in such harsh winter sea conditions at the frozen port in the Gulf of Bothnia accessed through the Baltic Sea.
At this time of the year, icebreaker assistance is typically in force for all the Gulf to the end of April.
The M.V. Ziltborg also has a double-skinned hull of the single-decker (incl. 1 movable bulkhead) with its open hatch and fully boxed hold, where cargoes of the ship, as reported in recent years, involve a port rotation of Kokkola-Rostock (Germany)-Amsterdam. Sometimes, the Corrib-managed fleet will load the zinc in Dublin and discharge in Kokkola and return from the Scandinavian port loaded with refined slabs.
Besides carrying mined minerals, the ship’s hold has a capacity of 329.633 (cbft) for grain/bale cargoes and can carry containers within the hold or the upper hatch covers.
As for the propulsion powerplant, this is generated from a main MAK 8M engine and, for maneuverability, a bow thruster of 300 bhp.
