PMM Online News – Pacific Maritime Magazine

21 Jan

New Navigation Aids Being Installed in BC’s Eastern Burrard Inlet

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online NewsBurrardInlet, VancouverFraserPortAuthority

New navigation aids are set to be installed in British Columbia’s eastern Burrard Inlet to help vessels move through the busy Second Narrows waterway at night, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority announced Jan. 8. The aids, which consist of installation of a pair of solar-powered range lights and a sector light off Berry Point, and lighting the Second Narrows Rail Bridge’s pillars, aims to improve visibility for the more than 500 cargo vessels that annually call to the seven marine terminals in the inlet. “The new navigation aids will enhance marine safety and offer ship operators moving through the Second…

21 Jan

Rail Dwell Time Down at Los Angeles-Long Beach Seaports Amid Busy Season

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsdwelltimes, pmsa, pola, polb

The length of time cargo sits at the Los Angeles and Long Beach seaports before departing by rail actually fell in December despite record volumes of containers moving through the ports, according to data released Jan. 15 by the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association. The nation’s two busiest seaports saw the average dwell time for rail-bound cargo in December drop from 7.67 days in November to 6.53 days in December. It’s a significant decrease from the 9.86 day-average dwell time in October, PMSA data show. Meanwhile, the average dwell time for truck-bound cargo held steady with an average of 3.11 days…

21 Jan

Coast Guard Adds 1st Polar Icebreaker to Fleet in 25 Years

Mark Edward NeroNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsicebreaker, storis, uscgc

The Coast Guard has officially welcomed its first polar icebreaker in more than 25 years – the recently acquired Aiviq, a commercial vessel that’s being renamed CGC Storis, the Guard said Dec. 23. Storis, which means “great ice” in Scandinavia, is a nod to the original CGC (Coast Guard Cutter) Storis, a legendary light icebreaker and medium endurance cutter commissioned in 1942 that patrolled for submarines and ran convoys during World War II and led the first American transit of the Northwest Passage. In 1948, the original Storis was moved to Alaska where she conducted law enforcement, search and rescue,…

21 Jan

POLB CEO Marks 20 Years of Environmental Stewardship During Speech

Mark Edward NeroNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsenvironment, polb, zeroemissions

The Port of Long Beach is accomplishing its environmental, operational and commercial goals and is setting its sights on even greater achievements in the years ahead, POLB CEO Mario Cordero said during his annual State of the Port address on Jan. 16. Cordero recounted that it was in January 2005 that the Long Beach Harbor Commission adopted its Green Port Policy as a promise to reduce harmful impacts from port operations and safeguard the health of people living in Long Beach and surrounding communities, protect wildlife and the natural habitat, and engage the community to ensure that the Port lives…

21 Jan

Prince Rupert Port Authority Adds Ex-CN Rail Chief to Board

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newscnrail, newsmakers, prpa

Retired CN Rail CEO Jean-Jacques “JJ” Ruest is the newest member of the Prince Rupert Port Authority’s seven-member Board of Directors, following his appointment by Canada’s Minister of Transport, Anita Anand, the Port Authority announced Jan. 8. Ruest, whose three-year term began Dec. 17, brings more than 40 years of transportation, logistics, international trade and chemical manufacturing industry experience. That includes his leadership at CN Rail, where he was CEO, president, and chief marketing officer. Ruest was inducted into the International Maritime Hall of Fame In 2017, and in 2021 he received Progressive Railroading and RailTrends’ Railroad Innovator Award. He…

14 Jan

San Francisco Bay Ferry Touts Heightened Passenger Numbers

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsferries, sfbayferry

About 2.6 million passengers rode the San Francisco Bay Ferry in 2024, 16% more than in the previous year, according to data released by the transit agency Jan 6. An average of 7,148 passengers used SF Bay Ferry daily last year, reflecting a 90% recovery of daily ridership numbers before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the agency. During the second half of 2024, ridership rose to 97% of pre-pandemic levels, data show. Gains in ridership were experienced in several areas, including a 14% growth during the peak morning commute from 2023 to 2024, a 12% increase in weekend ridership and…

14 Jan

Vigor Names New VP of Marine Fabrication

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsnewsmakers, shipbuilding, titan, vigor

Mark Norris has been named vice president of marine fabrication for Portland-based Vigor Industrial, leading the shipbuilding and repair company’s most cutting-edge marine fabrication projects, the company announced Jan. 6. Norris, who’s expected to be based at Vigor’s Vancouver, Wash. facility, brings with him almost 40 years of experience overseeing major defense programs, including 25 years at Lockheed Martin, where he served as vice president of joint programs for the U.S. Army and Navy. He also worked with Italian shipbuilding company Fincantieri, where he oversaw strategy and business development for BAE Systems Inc.’s F-35 Lightening II program. “We are fortunate…

14 Jan

Port of Woodland Seals New Contracts, is Now 100% Leased

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newscontracts, portofwoodland

Officials at the Port of Woodland in southern Washington state are celebrating the recent growth of industrial business coming to the region in 2025, lauding the approval of four leases. They welcomed Woodland’s fifth fishing rod manufacturer with the October signing of Rajeff Sports, LLC, the Echo fly fishing rods manufacturer relocating its growing operations from Vancouver into the newly built Rose Way Industrial Park. Also coming to Woodland is Van Raden Industries, which is known for handling heavy haul equipment. The company is expected to move from its Vancouver location to Schurman Way Industrial Park in early 2025. Van…

14 Jan

U.S. Shipbuilding and Commercial Maritime Legislation Introduced

Mark Edward NeroNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsmerchantmarine, shipbuilding, shipsact

On Dec. 19, U.S. Senators Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Todd Young (R-IN), along with Congressmen John Garamendi (D-CA) and Trent Kelly (R-MS) introduced the SHIPS for America Act in response to a perceived need to bolster America’s maritime industry. The bill aims to revitalize the U.S. Merchant Marine to transport vital goods and military cargo during times of conflict while reinforcing American supply chains in peacetime. Currently, about 80 U.S.-flagged ships are engaged in international commerce compared to over 5,500 China-flagged vessels, and U.S. shipyards’ growing industrial base cannot produce oceangoing vessels at scale, the officials said in a statement.…

14 Jan

Tacoma Port, School District Break Ground on Port Maritime Center

Karen Robes MeeksNews, News Briefs, PMM Online Newsmaritimecenter, portoftacoma, training

The Port of Tacoma and Tacoma Public Schools on Jan. 8 held a groundbreaking ceremony for the future Port Maritime Center, a 20-acre project that includes a new business office for the port and the Maritime|253 skills center. “The Port Maritime Center will be the new front door to the Port of Tacoma, allowing us to better connect with the community and bringing new life to the east side of the Foss Waterway,” Port Commission President John McCarthy said. “Our unique partnership with Tacoma Public Schools makes this a transformational project that will help inspire and grow the future of the maritime…