The striken vessel “Modern Express”
Following Smit Salvage’s spectacular salvage of the stricken ship, Modern Express, in the Gulf of Biscay, another Rotterdam company is now involved in this rescue operation. The Koninklijke Roeiers Vereeniging Eendracht (KRVE) (Royal Boatmen Association Eendracht) are using their innovative ShoreTension system to right the vessel so that unloading can start.
Modern Express, a 164 metre cargo vessel, ran into problems at sea two weeks ago. Fierce waves resulted in its cargo of wood and excavators shifting, which caused the ship to list and become unmanoeuvrable. Tugboat company, Smit Salvage, succeeded in towing the Modern Express to the Spanish port of Bilbao last week. As the vessel also had 300 tonnes of fuel on board, this prevented an environmental disaster.
The vessel is currently awaiting unloading in Bilbao and KRVE assistance has been requested in order to achieve this. The Modern Express will be held in position using six ShoreTensions, with the ShoreTensions absorbing the vessel’s forces on the warps and compensating for the vessel’s movements. This will enable the cargo to be removed from the vessel safely.
It is not surprising that two Rotterdam companies have been involved in the Modern Express rescue operation. As the biggest port in Europe, the Port of Rotterdam places a high priority on innovation and development. Smit and the KRVE are not the only examples of this. The innovative website, Rotterdam Port Connector, makes it easy to find and access over 500 service providers from the Ports of Rotterdam, Moerdijk and Dordrecht.
More information:
www.rotterdamportconnector.com
About Rotterdam Port Connector
The website Rotterdam Port Connector is the online way to bring potential international clients into contact with Rotterdam’s port business community. Rotterdam Port Connector is an initiative of the Rotterdam Port Promotion Council (RPPC), founded in 1933 as the Stichting Havenbelangen Rotterdam-Europoort. The RPPC acts as an intermediary for its 200 members: companies which are active in and for the ports of Rotterdam, Dordrecht and Moerdijk. By bringing these companies into contact with each other and with potential clients, by organising networking events, participation in exhibitions and receptions for foreign delegations in Rotterdam and via the innovative website Rotterdam Port Connector, it helps retain and expand the cargo flows to and from the ports. Together, the RPPC members represent all possible modes of transport, cargo sectors and services.
