Page 112: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (June 1992)

Proposal Would Lift

Restrictions On Foreign

Cruise Ships

The Bush Administration is pres- ently considering a proposal that would exempt foreign-flag cruise ships from the U.S. Passenger Ser- vices Act of 1886, allowing them to carry passengers between U.S. ports.

West Coast port operators have long been pushing for such an ex- emption, which they believe would greatly increase passenger activity.

Staunchly opposing the proposal,

U.S. shipping operators say that the 1886 Act is a footnote of the Jones

Act, which protects the nation's shrinking domestic U.S.-flag fleet.

The Bush Administration has stated that it strongly supports the

Jones Act and does not believe that a repeal of the 1886 Act sets any precedent towards weakening it.

Under Current legislation, a for- eign passenger ship leaving an Alas- kan port must first stop in Canada or Mexico before it may take pas- sengers to a port in California. As a result, the lucrative Alaskan cruise market is based in

Vancouver, Canada.

Greek Buyers Dominate

Bulk Ship Market

In recent weeks Greek shipown- ers have been dominating a busy ship sale and purchase market, with the sale in early May of the bulk carrier Kapetan Yannis to a Greek buyer at an above market price sparking a series of Greek old and new tonnage acquisitions.

While brokers say that it is still to early to determine if Greek ship- owners have decided to begin re- building their fleets, there have been tentative signs of an upturn in sec- ondhand ship prices and several

Greek owners are making major purchases.

Greek and Norwegian shipown- ers currently control the two largest merchant fleets in the world, with the 43 million-dwt registered Greek fleet standing slightly above that of

Norway's 40 million dwt.

The Norwegians have tended to be net sellers and the Greeks net buyers in the past few months, ac- cording to a London director of Den

Norske Credit-bank, Richard

Keisner. Rather than expanding their fleets, however, it would ap- pear that the Greeks are carrying out fleet upgrades, being content to maintain their merchant fleets at present levels and invest surplus cash elsewhere, he continued.

Asian Shippers Move

To Stem Increasing

Carrier Surcharges

Ocean carriers have been warned by Asian shippers that the continu- ing spread of surcharges must be stopped and have asked the ship lines to stop enacting rate increases without consultations or warnings.

The surcharges are fees being added to the normal freight rates to cover unforeseen expenses such as increases in fuel costs.

The Federation of Asian Ship- pers' Councils have asked govern- ments in the region to clamp down on shipowners in an attempt to "curb the rampant proliferation of sur- charges under all kinds of names."

It further questioned whether car- rier antitrust immunity issued by the European Community extended to surcharges involving inland op- erations.

Carrier representatives disputed the shipper's claims saying that rates in the area are as low as they have ever been. In fact, shipping lines have expressed their concerns over the increase in the amount of paper- work are being asked to manage $56,670 Contract

To Earl Industries

The Supervisor of Shipbuilding,

Conversion and Repair, Portsmouth,

Va., has awarded a $56,670 contract to Earl Industries, Inc., Portsmouth,

Va., for the technical availability of the command ship Mt. Whitney (LCC-20).

Time & Space,

Sea Recovery™

Saves Both! 4000 Gallons Per Day

Two Piece Horizontal Frame

Sea Recovery understands the importance of your valuable rime and limited space. There seems to never be enough of either aboard a commercial vessel. Our entire line of reverse osmosis desalinators are built with this in mind.

In respect for your valuable time, to each Sea

Recovery desalination system we add extensive research & development, rugged designs, dependable components, quality assurance programs, comprehensive testing and extensive documentation.

This effort yields dependable systems that will last years with less maintenance and less downtime.

In consideration ofyour limited space, Sea Recovery desalination systems are engineered and designed in configurations that minimize the area required for installation. Single, two and three piece skids in both horizontal and vertical configurations represent the ultimate in space saving designs.

With system capacities from 200 to 25,000 gallons per day our world wide sales & service dealers are ready to serve you in your watermaking needs. Contact Sea

Recovery for the name of your local dealer.

Sea Recovery™ "The Watermakers That Work"

Toll free within the United States 1-800-354-2000

P.O. Box 2560, Gardena, California 90247-0560 U.S A 1-310-327-4000 • FAX 1-310-327-4350 • TELEX 182598 SEARECOVE

PROTECT THE MARINE

ENVIRONMENT

WITH AN OMNIPURE®

MARINE SANITATION DEVICE.

CRUISE INDUSTRY

PROBLEM: limited space; obsolete existing systems; shipyard availability; untrained operators.

SOLUTION: OMNIPURE

OFFSHORE INDUSTRY

PROBLEM: limited space & weight; strict compliance with regulations; equipment exposed to the elements.

SOLUTION: OMNIPURE

MERCHANT SHIRRING

PROBLEM: limited capital eauip- ment funds; small crews; extended maintenance periods.

SOLUTION: OMNIPURE

NAVAL VESSELS

PROBLEM: adverse operating conditions; NATO compatibility; exacting design criteria.

SOLUTION: OMNIPURE

With 12 standard models to accommo- date crews from 6 to 500+, ELTECH has an OMNIPURE unit just right for you.

Or we can custom design one for larger applications and specifications. Contact us or your nearest ELTECH International representative for more information or a free product brochure.

OMNIPURE is a USCG certified Type II Marine Sanitation device. It is also certified by the IMO and many other regulatory organizations. OMNIPURE is a registered trademark of ELTECH Systems Corporation.

C£O EITECH

ELTECH International Corporation

A subsidiary of ELTECH Systems Corporation 12850 Boumewood Drive

Sugar Land, Texas 77478 Tlx: 796459

Tel: (713)240-6770 Fax: (713)240-6762

Geneva Branch: 18. Chemin des Aulx 1228 Plan-tes-Ouates / Geneva, Switzerland

Tel: 41(22)794 3384 Fax: 41(22)794 4170 116

Circle 165 on Reader Service Card Circle 235 on Reader Service Card

Maritime Reporter/Engineering News