Container and cruise ships for Lyttelton

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33063, 2 November 1972, Page 3

Container and cruise ships for Lyttelton

The Lyttelton Harbour Board received good news yesterday — a container service beginning in December, and regular calls by luxury cruise ships from late next year.

“A major breakthrough” was the description given by the chairman (Mr J. Brand) of the Scandinavian Lines container senice, and “a big boost to tourism” of the decision of the Norwegian Royal Viking Line to make Lyttelton a call on its South Seas and Pacific cruises.

The container service will begin with the arrival of the Torrens. Thereafter, there will be monthly calls by four new unit-load and container ships.

"The change from conventional cargo handling to container handling by the Scandinavian Lines comes after a long association with the port and particularly Cashin Quay, which their New Zealand representative. Captain <). Anderson, maintains has the best working berths in the country," Mr Brand said. “The inauguration of this service is an important step towards the development of Lyttelton as a container port. Initially containers will be handled by ships’ cranes and taken by trailers to stacking areas in the vicinity of the Cashin Quay sheds where containers with cargo requiring sorting will be unpacked for delivery to consignees. Full containers consigned to a consignee will be forwarded direct to his warehouse. “Empty containers will then be repacked for loading on the next visit by a Scandia vessel. “While initially the containers will be handled at either of the existing two Cashin Quay berths or if necessary at Gladstone Pier, the completion next year of the new heavy duty berth at Cashin Quay will be ideal for the handling and stacking of containers.” LIFTING GEAR The board is buying a 55,0001 b capacity fork-lift truck at a cost of $BO,OOO, and will provide towing units to handle the containers. An area will be sealed to a stan. dard necessary for the handling of heavy equipment and containers. “I am confident that when these facilities have been provided we will see other similar type container vessels calling at Lyttelton,” Mr Brand said.

The ships will have cellular mid-ship section and deck space to carry 200 20ft containers. They will have their own 25-ton shipboard cranes to lift the containers. They will serve Auckland,

Wellington and Lyttelton. It is expected that up to 80 containers will be unloaded on each visit to Lyttelton. THREE LINERS The first of the three new 21,800-ton luxury cruise liners to visit Lyttelton will be the Royal Viking Sky on November 7 next year. The Royal Viking Star, the first of the ships to be built in Helsinki and delivered to Oslo last June, will make a one-day visit on January 27, which is while the Commonwealth Games are being held before sailing to Milford Sound. The third ship, the Royal Viking Sea will make its first call on February 28, 1974, and Lyttelton can expect to see one of the ships every two months.

Each ship costs about s2om. The Royal Viking Star is the only one completed. The others will be delivered next year.

They are 581 ft long 83ft in breadth, have a draught of 24 feet and a speed of 21.5 knots. They have been designed for world-wide cruises of up to three months and will carry 541 passengers, all first-class. “Lyttelton will have an un-

precedented line-up of cruise vessels during the Games,” Mr Brand said. Other ships allotted berths

are the Shaw Savill’s Ocean Monarch, a 26,000-ton oneclass tourist ship, the Dominion Far East Line’s Marco Polo, 9232 tons, and a vessel under charter to Trans Tours, Ltd.

Another application was considered in committee. STEAMER EXPRESS

Not such good news was received on the inter-island service. Mr Brand said he and the general manager (Mr J. A. McPhail) had visited Wellington for discussions with the Union Steam Ship Company, Ltd, and expressed concern about press reports that the service might be curtailed because it was not being well supported.

“I was assured that the company has no intention of curtailing the service and is studying ways of making it more viable,” Mr Brand said. He had pressed reintroduction of the Maori during the Christmas period, but was told it was likely that the ship would be sold, and in any case it would be uneconomic to put it back into service. The picture shows the Royal Viking Star on her handing over voyage to Oslo.