Ryerson

[Guest]

The fuel burn of a steam boat (even a small one from a carrying capacity at that) on a long run would be brutal.

She might also need to have 4 engineers and 3 oilers. Not too many steam guys left that don't already have a job.

[Shipwatcher1]

When the Ryerson was out and unloading in Lorain in early 2000's, they used shoreside boom cranes to discharge. That can be repeated anywhere. Along the same thread the Ryerson would not sail before the other "Cliffs boats". The Cort will have a delayed start this season. She has operated under charter from ISG/Mittal/Cliffs to be run by Interlake. If it is not feasible to run the Cort on its dedicated run from Superior to Burns Harbor, then the Ryerson will continue to sit on the bench for a while longer. It would be great to be proven wrong, but that is the base facts. TIA

I would argue that the Cort being delayed in her run carrying ore to Burns Harbor is not the same thing as the Ryerson possibly carrying ore to Hamilton or Quebec City.

[Darryl]

Hamilton's two unloading bridge cranes are highly automated and very big. They can unload 27,000 tons of iron ore pellets in less than 8 hours if everything is going well.

[hausen]

and how would they unload this bulker?

There are bridge cranes at the steel mill in Hamilton, Ontario and at the deep-draft transshipment terminal at Quebec City, Quebec. The bridge cranes in both locations regularly unload iron ore pellet cargoes from Canadian-flagged Seaway-sized gearless bulk carriers. If recall serves, during the Ryerson's most recent full season of operation (2008), and/or during her most recent few weeks of operation (spring 2009) some or most of her trips involved carrying iron ore pellets from Duluth to Hamilton.

[Guest]

and how would they unload this bulker?

How does Hamilton unload the gearless Canadian bulkers?

[Guest]

and how would they unload this bulker?

I believe Hamilton still has the ability to unload a gearless carrier, although I don't know if they are a customer of Cliffs' raw materials. As far as the movement of ore down the Seaway for export that would present no problem as it is carried routinely by gearless carriers with ports on the Lower St. Lawrence having shoreside unloading gear. The issue would be in the movement of ore into a US port in which an improvised method of unloading would be required such as was done when the Ryerson was carrying ore into Lorain back in the early 2000s. Although its cargo hold cubic capacity is limited compared to other similarly sized vessels, there is nothing I know of that would prevent the Ryerson from carrying grain. I believe it did come close to doing so on at least one occasion back in the 1990s. Wasn't there some speculation no long ago of the Ryerson being used to move steel coils or slabs? Could it be utilized to carry scrap to electric arc furnaces such as the ones being built at Algoma Steel?

[Guest]

When the Ryerson was out and unloading in Lorain in early 2000's, they used shoreside boom cranes to discharge. That can be repeated anywhere. Along the same thread the Ryerson would not sail before the other "Cliffs boats". The Cort will have a delayed start this season. She has operated under charter from ISG/Mittal/Cliffs to be run by Interlake. If it is not feasible to run the Cort on its dedicated run from Superior to Burns Harbor, then the Ryerson will continue to sit on the bench for a while longer. It would be great to be proven wrong, but that is the base facts. TIA

[guest]

and how would they unload this bulker?

[Guest]

Since shipping ore from the US to Canada does not require a Jones Act vessel, why wouldn't Cliffs just charter a foreign flag bulker for this service?

Wonder if they could use a bulker that might have brought a cargo to the Great Lakes and would otherwise be sailing back empty.

[hausen]

The "will believe it when we see it" philosophy is a good way to approach subjects such as the Ryerson. Not much to add except this observation:

The location where the Ryerson is spending the winter (in the "frog pond" at Fraser Shipyards) does not appear to be conducive to the possibility that any significant work might be happening that is somehow flying under the radar. She's oriented so that most of her hull is angled well away from the nearest dock face & the concordant possibility of easy dockside crane access. She has one narrow gangway linking the dock pad with her main deck aft near her stern, so any equipment or personnel going on and off the ship could theoretically be easily noticed by people driving by the yard or otherwise paying a bit of attention.

So without commenting on rumors or the likelihood of her returning to service this season, it can be said that if any significant preliminary work were to commence in preparation for an eventual dry-docking and return to service, the Ryerson would probably first have to be moved to a different berth at Fraser Shipyards, something that would catch the attention of local observers. Or, more obviously, she could be moved straight into the graving dock there & go dry, which would be a very strong sign that things are happening. Photographs and/or discussions of either of those possible scenarios would be all over social media and this fine website if they were to occur.

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On a more speculative note: two factors to look for that might influence the Ryerson's prospects as a viable carrier in certain iron ore pellet trades:

- Whether/when the two ships that have been carrying a lot of iron ore pellets from Lake Superior to Hamilton/Quebec City in recent years, Algoma Discovery & Algoma Guardian, end up being retired.

- Whether there's strong demand for grain movement on the Lakes/Seaway, which could occupy other 740' x 78' / 225.5m x 23.8m gearless bulk carriers (such as Algoma Equinox or CSL St-Laurent) which tend to dip into the Welland/Seaway iron ore pellet moves when the grain trade is soft.

[Andrew]

A while back, there were a couple rumors of an engineering company coming onboard the Edward L. Ryerson for an $8 million electric job for a return to service. The idea was that the ship would take on some tonnage for Cliffs delivering ore to the seaway, much like she did in 2007-2008. I'm just curious if there were any updates by anyone closer to the industry. I don't really expect a return to service, it just struck me as a slightly more plausible reason for her to come back out. With ore prices up (but also fuel costs) and Cliffs doing well financially, it seems like it is certainly more plausible than it was three or four years ago. I don't really fall for the clickbait on Facebook and tend to be more old school when it comes to the rumor mill (meaning I usually don't believe it until I see it!), but was curious since this rumor had the name of an electric company supposedly doing the work and some supposed intel from the waterfront; additionally, there was a reason to use her hull as opposed to others. I tend to think Cliffs will make a decision about the Ryerson soon, considering their recent purchase of Arcelor Mittal, but maybe we have another Sherwin on our hands.