American Fortitude Updates?

[jzcleve]

If it is Durochers Champion, that tug would seem a little light for an open lake tow with a large ship. She is twin screw, 65 feet, good horsepower for its size, but I think still light for the job as far as weight of the tug. Probably would be teaming up with another, I can't see solo.

[Rob]

Champion is on her way to Oswego as we speak. Wonder if that's the tug for the tow.

[guest1]

Haven't seen any tug activity on AIS around Oswego. Anyone know what tugs are supposed to do the tow and when it's going to happen?

[guest 5]

I saw this posted on WDIO news online and thought I would share.
http://www.wdio.com/article/stories/s3780790.shtml

[Guest]

Port officials have told the Post Standard of Syracuse that she will leave this coming weekend to be scrapped in Canada. I presume that this means IMS.

http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/ ... rt_m-rpt-1

Too bad

[jzcleve]

Anyone hear any updates? Still at Oswego? My gut feeling is it won't be going anywhere for awhile, if ever off the lakes.

[Guest1]

The docking lease with Oswego, NY is up tomorrow-last I heard anyway.

Anyone know if the lease was extended or if the fortitude is on the move soon?

[Guest]

Bay Bridge has an even better chance of getting additional hulls now that their cross-town rival, ESCO Marine, has filed for bankruptcy and is shut down. Major, multi-million $ lawsuit pending. ESCO borrowed money from a Canadian finance co at high interest using US Navy and MARAD ships it didn't actually own as collateral. This includes the former Navy supercarrier USS Saratoga. As for Teakglen and Algocen being sold for scrap and resold for return to service, both were Canadian ships. Were the cases that reportedly voided the no-resale clauses decided in courts of Canadian or US jurisdiction? American Fortitude is a US-flagged vessel, so the circumstances may be different than the previous cited cases. MARAD would also have given its blessing already for the scrapping. Insurance is important in this case for adequate coverage of pollution remediation in the event of a casualty during the scrap tow.

[Guest]

I really doubt that the owner of this ship is worried about losing out on bidding for the American Victory (The Valor is too long, even if an exception were to be made, since locks on the Seaway system are 766' long, as I recall).

They have bigger fish to fry. Taking a profit off the Fortitude by selling her for reuse and discouraging ASC from selling another ship to them in the process for dismantling, even if if deters sales of any other laker to them in the future from other US and Canadian fleets, hardly matters.

They easily could've never bought another one, regardless. They're not like IMS is where taking the money and running could put them out of business in the long-run by losing out on being able to buy more retired lakers in the years ahead, which represent the core of their entire business.

Where ship scrapping is concerned, they mostly deal with ocean going hulls and naval vessels down there at this facility. Ocean going fleets aren't worried about this like laker companies are in the face of the success of Lower Lakes Shipping and don't care what happens after they sell a ship.

And naval ships can't just be resold willy nilly, so the government is hardly going to be deterred from dealing with them as well.

If someone offers them more than they'd make in following through with their plans with the Fortitude, it's very likely that they're going to take them up on it since there's no solid legal mechanism for this vessel's former owner to stop this sale.

[wlbblw]

Just curious, what was ghe issue with the Manitoba in court?

[Guest1]

Basically the scrapping of the Fortitude, as has been posted here before, is about money and driving rates up. That hull, as has also been posted here, is in great shape. It is a waste to get rid of a perfectly good, jones act compliant, vessel. ASC has "keeping the great lakes great" painted on the Indiana Harbor. Keeping the Great Lakes great and scrapping a perfectly good ship don't seem to go together.

Language in the scrapping contract about not reselling has not held up in court (the Manitoba is an example).

As far as Bay Bridge worrying about future work with ASC (the Middletown). IMS was expecting to get the American Fortitude and then ASC sold to Bay Bridge. ASC proved that they will sell to someone else at the last minute so if I were Bay Bridge I wouldn't be too concerned about getting future business from ASC.

[hayhugh3]

Who ever owns her must have some kind of insurance on her! To travers the seaway she will have to be insured. For her to be towed she will have to have some kind of insurance. What makes having insurance mean she will be resold?

[Guest]

I think the american victory is 730 long 75 wide which easily fits the locks anything longer then 740 just doesn't fit if they did they would certainly have bigger ships all the time the more ships the more money they make

[Guest]

Where do you find the info on the insurance certificate?

Hopefully Bay Bridge does the right thing and sells the Fortitude for further use.

They entered into a contract to purchase it for scrap. How is reselling it for further use legally "the right thing" to do?

I agree. Although I hate to see this beautiful ship go to scrap the "right thing" for Bay Bridge to do is to fulfill the terms of the sale contract. I would imagine ASC had some wording in this agreement concerning not selling the ship to another operator. This may in fact have been one of the factors involving its sale for scrapping off the lakes. In addition, the scrappers may be in line for the American Victory when ASC disposes of that vessel as its size does not prohibit it from leaving the lakes. That brings up another question: Is it possible to move the 767 foot American Valor through the locks on the Welland Canal Seaway under a special arrangement? I know the back in the 70s at least one of the USS's 767 foot ships was allowed to pass through the MacArthur Lock after the Poe Lock was put out of service. Or are the Welland and Seaway locks dimensionally too small to allow such a transit? It is, however, a shame to see a US flagged vessel go to scrap with the potential of proving several additional years of service. Is this a result of many power plants switching from coal to natural gas?

[Guest]

Where do you find the info on the insurance certificate?

Hopefully Bay Bridge does the right thing and sells the Fortitude for further use.

They entered into a contract to purchase it for scrap. How is reselling it for further use legally "the right thing" to do?

[Guest1]

Where do you find the info on the insurance certificate?

Hopefully Bay Bridge does the right thing and sells the Fortitude for further use.

[Guest]

Insurance certificate still lists Bay Bridge of Brownsville, Texas, as owner.

[guest]

I live just 40 miles south of Oswego and am trying to also find that information. Did visit her a week ago, but the storage ends April 15.
Perhaps this will help; e-mail shipping@portoswego.com, phone number 315-343-4503 ext 111. The director is Zelko N. Kirincich but an e-mail directly to him doesn't work (or at least for me)

[Guest]

News regarding the American Fortitude scrap tow has been very quiet since she eas docked in Oswego last December. Has anyone heard anything?