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The Grimaldi Group, the world's leading operator of multipurpose RORO/Container and PCTC (pure car and truck carrier) vessels, announces a new, twice monthly direct RORO and container service between the US East Coast and West Africa commencing in October 2006. This will be an enhancement of the Group's existing monthly RORO service and will supplement the Group's existing North America - West Africa Service, which combines ACL's transatlantic vessels with Grimaldi's Europe-West Africa vessels via Antwerp.
Grimaldi will deploy Repubblica-class container/RORO vessels on this service. The vessels have a capacity of up to 650 TEUS of containers, 300 trucks/tractors/buses and 1600 cars, although the actual capacity will vary based on the particular deck configuration used. The service will call at Jacksonville, Baltimore and in the port of New York. Ships will sail directly from New York to Dakar, Tema, Lome, Cotonou and Lagos, with connecting service on Grimaldi vessels to Banjul, Conakry, Freetown, Monrovia, Abidjan, Takoradi, Douala, Pointe Noire, Luanda and Boma.
Since the mid-1970's, Grimaldi has been the largest carrier of vehicles between Europe and West Africa, and the Group currently operates 21 modern, multipurpose RORO/container vessels in the African trades today. Supporting this fleet, Grimaldi has built a network of offices throughout West Africa, and operates landside logistics and car storage facilities in the main port areas. On August 18, 2006 Grimaldi celebrated the grand opening of its new, purpose-built RORO terminal in Lagos, Nigeria. It is the most modern RORO terminal in Africa and it provides the highest standards for vehicle handling, storage and logistics.
Backing up the new, more frequent direct service will be the four weekly ACL services to West Africa via Antwerp. These vessels will primarily service African cargo via Halifax, Norfolk, Charleston, Savannah and Houston. Customers will also have the option of moving overflow cargo on ACL vessels versus waiting for the next direct Grimaldi voyage. No other carrier can offer this level of frequency, quality and range of logistics options to West Africa.
Atlantic Container Line (ACL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Grimaldi Group, will handle the marketing and operations of this new service in North America and the Group's African offices will handle the marketing and operations at destination. ACL has been a leading RORO/Container/Car carrier on the North Atlantic trades since 1967.
Grimaldi is also the leading operator of PCTC vessels and RORO-passenger (ROPAX) ferries in the Mediterranean, and the leading operator of RORO/container vessels in the Europe-South America trade.
The Grimaldi Group, the world's leading operator of multipurpose RORO/Container and PCTC (pure car and truck carrier) vessels, is proud to announce an expansion of its services to West Africa. The company will establish a new, direct service between the US East Coast and West Africa commencing March 1, 2006. This will complement the Group's existing North America - West Africa Service, which combines ACL’s transatlantic vessels with Grimaldi’s Europe-West Africa vessels via Antwerp.
Grimaldi has been the largest carrier of new and used vehicles between Europe and West Africa for almost 30 years, with a history of operating car and truck carriers in the West African trades since the mid 1970's. The company also transports vehicles between South America and Africa and handles Far East-Africa transshipments via Europe. The Group operates 17 modern multipurpose RORO/container vessels in the African trades. Supporting this fleet, Grimaldi has built up a comprehensive network of offices throughout West Africa, manned by experienced transportation specialists, and operates landside logistics and car storage facilities in most port areas. Grimaldi is currently constructing a new, purpose-built RORO terminal in Lagos, Nigeria which will be operational in the 3rd quarter of 2006. That terminal will be the most modern RORO terminal in Africa and will provide the highest standards for vehicle handling, storage and logistics.
The new Grimaldi service will call at the Northeast Auto Terminal (NEAT) in the port of New York/New Jersey, Dundalk Terminal in Baltimore and the Blount Island Terminal in Jacksonville. Ships will sail directly to Dakar, Lome, Cotonou, Lagos and Tema, with connecting service on Grimaldi vessels to Banjul, Conakry, Freetown, Monrovia, Abidjan, Douala, Pointe Noire, Matadi and Luanda. Cars, SUV's, trucks, construction and agricultural equipment of all sizes can be accommodated. The new service will be operated monthly at first, but the frequency will be reviewed as market demand grows.
Backing up this new service will be the weekly ACL ships to West Africa via Antwerp. Customers will have the option of moving any overflow cargo on ACL vessels versus waiting for the next direct voyage. No other carrier can offer this level of quality and range of logistics options for vehicles to West Africa.
All containers, including Shipper Owned or Leased containers moving on an Atlantic Container Line Bill of Lading, whether in port to port or through intermodal service, must have a high security seal affixed by the cargo interest immediately upon completion of stuffing. This seal must meet or exceed the current PAS ISO 17712 standards for high security seals.
For several years, ACL's policy has been to provide a high security seal for each container that was booked. However, with the recently strengthened "C-TPAT Importer Security Criteria" from US Customs and Border Protection, many of our customers have indicated that they want to use their own seals in order to ensure complete control over the process.
Because of the changing criteria for seal distribution and control, ACL will no longer be supplying seals to its customers as of December 1, 2005. Please find listed below some contact information for seal manufacturers:
Megafortis www.megafortis.com
Brooks Seals www.brookseals.com
Universeal www.universeal.co.uk
For more information about the new C-TPAT criteria, please visit www.cbp.gov
The following Westbound TACA Tariff FMC 053, Rule 2-BE has been filed and will also be filed in ACL's independent rule tariff ACLU 068, effective
September 16th, 2005 "The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service ("APHIS") has issued regulations regarding treatment, marking, and other requirements with respect to solid wood packing materials, regulated wood packaging materials, and other wood articles imported into the United States. See, 7 CFR Part 319. These regulations are being revised effective as of September 16, 2005. See, 70 Fed. Reg. 22585 (May 2, 2005). It is jointly the responsibility of the shipper and consignee on any shipment subject to this tariff to ensure full compliance with these and any other applicable regulations. Any costs incurred by the carrier, including the cost of any inspection, port demurrage, detention, unloading, re-stuffing, re-exportation or other action taken by the Carrier, as a result of a shipper's failure to comply with APHIS regulations regarding the importation of logs, lumber, other unmanufactured wooden articles, and solid wood packing material or regulated wood packing material (whether in actual use as packing for regulated or non-regulated articles or imported as cargo) into the United States, shall be the responsibility, jointly and severally, of the shipper and consignee, and shall be paid to the Carrier prior to the release of the cargo to the consignee."
Effective June 15, 2005
DOCUMENTATION FOR U.S. EXPORT CARGOES
(a) Deadline for Submission of Data for U.S. Export Cargoes. To avoid the imposition of penalties on Carrier by U.S. authorities, to minimize the cost of document preparation, to avoid disruption to Carrier's stevedoring and vessel loading operations, and to preserve schedule integrity, the shipper named on the bill of lading or its agent ("Shipper") must provide the following information to Carrier at least 24 hours prior to ship's loading at each applicable US Port of Loading:
(i) Name and address of Shipper
(ii) Name and address of consignee
(iii) Destination of cargo
(iv) Port of discharge of cargo
(v) Description of cargo, including quantity and weight
(vi) AES Export Citation (External Transaction Number of Exemption Statement)
((b) Consequences of Failure to Provide Data.
The Carrier may refuse to load the cargo for which data described in paragraph (a) has not been timely provided. In the event such cargo is not loaded, then any and all costs incurred by Carrier with respect to cargo in its possession including but not limited to inspection, storage, equipment per diem, port demurrage and/or re-delivery costs, shall be the joint and several responsibility of Shipper, the consignee named on the bill of lading and any other person(s) with an interest in such cargo (collectively, "Merchant"). Carrier shall have a lien on cargo in its possession for amounts due hereunder and may hold cargo until such amounts (and any other unpaid freights or charges) are paid or sell such cargo after a reasonable period. In the event Carrier is forced to take legal action to collect amounts due hereunder, Carrier shall be entitled to recover all costs (including attorneys' fees) incurred in connection with such legal action.
((c) Government Requirements.
Nothing in this rule shall relieve Shipper of its obligation to comply with otherwise applicable advance notice requirements or reduce the period of such other advance notice requirements including, but not limited to: (i) the 72-hour advance notice requirement for exports of used vehicles; (ii) the advance notice requirements applicable to cargo for which an export license is required; and (iii) advance notice requirements established by government agencies.
(d) Indemnification of Carrier.
If Carrier is assessed a penalty or fine with respect to cargo for which it received timely information because the information was false, inaccurate or incomplete, then Merchant shall be jointly and severally liable to indemnify, hold harmless and reimburse Carrier (and by booking a shipment with Carrier do thereby agree to indemnify, hold harmless and reimburse Carrier) for any such penalty or fine and any and all costs, liabilities, damages, losses and cargo claims incurred by the Carrier as a result of such false, inaccurate or incomplete information. Carrier shall have a lien on cargo in its possession for amounts due hereunder and may hold cargo until such amounts (and any other unpaid freights or charges) are paid or sell such cargo after a reasonable period. In the event Carrier is forced to take legal action to collect amounts due hereunder, or to defend any action resulting from actions or events covered by this indemnification, Carrier shall be entitled to recover all costs (including attorneys' fees) incurred in connection with such legal action. For purposes of this paragraph, the indemnification provided to Carrier shall also extend to its agents, affiliates, contractors, employees, vessel- sharing partners, slot charterers, vessel owners, and insurers.
Atlantic Container Line has received their ISO quality certification for its U.S. Customer Service Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia. This recognizes ACL's compliance with the terms of the ISO Registration BS EN ISO 9001:2000
ACL is also ISO 9001 registered in our principal European office locations in the UK, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Sweden, Finland and Switzerland.
ACL is committed to the highest vessel and service standards, complying with all relevant registrations. The line was among the very first to receive ISM safety and environmental certification, when compliance was not yet a requirement. Most recently, the ACL vessels have received ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Certification. The vessels are also in compliance with the mandatory International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS).
ACL and Ecochlor announced that the two companies are collaborating to demonstrate the effectiveness of Ecochlor’s patented Ecopod™ Ballast Water Treatment System
that has been designed to safely and economically eliminate unwanted
aquatic species from ballast water. Trials have begun with the Atlantic Compass,
one of the largest combination RORO/Containerships in the world.
Ecochlor President T. Perlich, “Chlorine dioxide has been used for 50
years to treat industrial water and drinking water, but has never been
used to treat seawater. We have conducted extensive research at the
University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography to prove the
effectiveness of chlorine dioxide against invasive species, and have
worked over the last three years to develop the Ecopod™ System,
designed specifically for marine applications. The worldwide transfer
of aquatic invasive species poses severe environmental, economic and
public health issues and is now a major international concern. For over
a hundred years, oceangoing vessels have been designed to carry ballast
water to facilitate stability and safe maneuverability. Since the
1970’s, however, with the advent of larger, faster ships and the
globalization of trade, the amount of ballast water being used and
discharged around the world has increased dramatically.International
standards requiring the treatment of ballast water are currently being
adopted, and in the U.S. a number of states have passed, or are in the
process of passing, laws mandating the treatment of ballast water. About Ecochlor (http://www.ecochlor.com)
Atlantic Container Line (ACL) is now offering a 6% brokerage, paid
on RORO cargoes from the United States and Canada to the Mediterranean.
ACL offers through bills of lading for uncontainerized cargo to the
above ports as well as intermodal transport services. ACL assumes
accountability for delivering the cargo to its final destination,
processing and tracking shipments via ACL's computer system and
coordinating deliveries through the Mediterranean offices of the
Grimaldi group.
Atlantic Container Line AB (ACL) announced today that, in response to
customer demand, it is starting a new, weekly RORO service from the United
States and Canada to the Mediterranean beginning November 1, 2001. Initially,
the service will be operated on a transshipment basis, together with ACL's
largest shareholder, the Grimaldi Group of Naples, with cargo being transferred
at Antwerp from ACL's North Atlantic service to Grimaldi's Euromed Service.
Eventually, it will be replaced by a direct service with RORO/Containerships
between Atlantic and Gulf ports and the Eastern and Western Mediterranean.
ACL, which has been recognized by Lloyd's List for superior schedule
reliability, has operated a weekly transatlantic RORO/Container service for over
34 years, calling Thursdays in Baltimore, Fridays in Portsmouth, Virginia,
Saturdays in New York and Mondays in Halifax. The ACL vessels arrive Thursdays
in Antwerp, where the cargo is relayed to the Grimaldi Euromed vessel that
departs every Friday. The Grimaldi Euromed vessels serve the ports of
Alexandria, Ashdod, Barrelona, Bilbao, Civitavecchia, Gemlik, Haifa, Izmir,
Koper, Limassol, Malta, Montfalcone, Palerno, Piraeus, Ravenna, Salerno,
Setubal, Tartous, Tunis, and Valencia.
ACL offers through bills of lading for uncontainerized cargo to all of the
above ports as well as intermodal transport services at both ends of the ocean
voyage. ACL assumes full control and accountability for delivering the cargo to
its final destination, processing and tracking shipments via ACL's computer
system and coordinating deliveries through the Mediterranean offices of the
Grimaldi group.
Atlantic Container Line announces the start of a new RORO service from U.S.
and Canadian ports to 16 West African ports.
The service will begin on May 1 and will operate weekly, with fixed day-of-
the-week calls at on Thursdays, , on
Fridays, on Saturdays and on Mondays. Cargo will be relayed in to the
vessels, which call directly at .
ACL will issue through bills-of-lading to all of these ports for all types of
non-containerized cargo, including breakbulk cargo, trucks, construction
equipment and materials, drilling equipment and machinery. ACL will assume full
control and accountability for delivering the cargo to its final destination and
will also offer inland transport service on both ends of the shipment. |
