Northport is handling an unscheduled call from a roll-on/roll-off vessel which demonstrates its ability to receive more car carriers in the future, it says.
The Istra Ace vessel which is normally used to transport cars and trucks is calling at Northport to load around 5000 cubic metres of triboard from the Juken Mill in Kaitaia.
It sailed from South America and is destined for Japan, scheduled to depart Northport late Thursday or early Friday.
The PCTC (pure car, truck carrier) is a purpose-built vessel for the transportation of different types of rolling cargo, such as cars and trucks, heavy construction equipment and other heavy loads.
Such vessels are usually configured with 10-13 decks for the loading of different vehicle types with axle loads from 1.2 tonnes to more than 22 tonnes.
The Istra Ace will load the triboard on the main cargo deck, which is designed for heavy loads, providing the vessel with a ‘backload’ to Japan rather than having to sail the entire route empty.
A fleet of four trucks operating in rotation will drive loads of triboard up the vessel’s stern ramp into the ship where they will be unloaded. There the cargo will be stowed and secured by Northport staff and equipment.
“We have been talking to vehicle importers for some years now about how they could restructure and future-proof their business model using Marsden Point as a single hub for vehicle arrival, storage, preparation and distribution,” Northport chief executive Jon Moore says.
“We have used our port and harbour simulator to demonstrate how we might handle vessels such as the one arriving so we’re looking forward to putting the modelling into practice,” Moore says.
