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BOYD |
STEAMSHIP CORPORATION
AGENTS AT THE
PANAMA CANAL FOUNDED
IN 1909 |
Web: www.boydsteamship.com Email: operations@boydsteamship.com
PANAMA
CANAL NEWS
September 3rd, 2007
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LOCKS LANE OUTAGE AND PANAMA
CANAL AUTHORITY TRANSIT RESERVATION SYSTEM: There will be restricted lockages
in the west lane of Miraflores Locks, from September 5th to 15th,
2007. |
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LOCKS
LANE OUTAGE AND PANAMA CANAL AUTHORITY TRANSIT RESERVATION SYSTEM
Beginning
Wednesday, September 5, 2007, at 0600 hours through Saturday, September 15,
2007, at 2359 hours (approximately 10 days), there will be restricted lockages
in the EAST lane of Gatun Locks. Relay operations will be conducted in the WEST
lane. These restricted lockages are necessary in order to perform tow track
repairs on the sidewall close to Miter Gate 13.
In
addition, beginning Wednesday, September 5, 2007, at 0001 hours through
Tuesday, September 11, 2007, at 2359 hours (7 days), the EAST lane of Pedro
Miguel Locks will be out of service. Closing the East lane of Pedro Miguel
Locks is necessary in order to perform dry chamber work on Miter Gates 50, 51,
62 and 63.
As a
result of this work and pursuant to the rules governing the Transit Reservation
System (MR’s Notice to Shipping No. N-7-2007), a reduction in the number of
available booking slots will be in effect during this period, as follows:
• From
0001 hours on September 5, 2007 through 2359 hours on September 11, 2007,
Condition 2 will be in effect;
• From
0001 hours on September 12, 2007 through 2359 hours on September 15, 2007,
Condition 1.a will be in effect.
The
number of slots per direction and restriction during Condition 1.a will be
limited as follows:
• No
more than eight (8) supers may be booked for transit in the southbound
direction, and of these, no more than six (6) with “full daylight-hour” restriction.
Similarly, no more than seven (7) supers may be booked for transit in the
northbound direction, and of these, no more than five (5) with “full
daylight-hour” restriction.
• The
total number of “full daylight-hour” restricted supers shall not exceed eight
(8) vessels per day.
• No
more than four (4) regular vessels may be booked for transit in the same
direction.
• Of the
six slots available for regular vessels, no more than two (2) may be allocated
to regular vessels transiting under restrictions.
Applications
for reserved transits under these conditions will be received commencing 0900
hours September 2, 2007. The booking slot available through the Auction Process
will continue to be offered during this period
or by
telephone to (507) 272-4635.
PANAMA
CANAL BEGINS PROCESS TO SELECT FIRM THAT WILL DESIGN AND BUILD NEW LOCKS
In
another sign that Panama Canal expansion is moving forward at a steady,
methodical pace, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) released yesterday a Request
for Qualifications (RFQ) for the construction of the new set of locks to be
built under the Canal's Expansion Program.
The
document is available at: http://www.pancanal.com/eng/procsales/buy.html.
The release
of the RFQ is part one of a two-phase process to determine the firm that will
ultimately design and build the new locks. During this first prequalification
stage, the ACP will evaluate responses (also called SOQ or Statement of
Qualification) from prospective firms based on a combination of pass/fail
criteria and capabilities. The four firms that meet the ACP's needs with the
highest number of points will move to the second and final round. The
short-list-selection is expected to be announced by the end of November
2007.
"We
expect firms from all around the globe to respond; this is the most important
contract within the Expansion Program. Over the last several months we have
seen a number of international consortia being formed to participate in our
contracting process, all with a keen interest to undertake the design and
construction of this project of global significance. There are many talented
and creative firms out there that have the technical and financial strength to
carry out this work successfully. We look forward to selecting, towards the end
of next year, the consortium that submits the best proposal," ACP
Executive Vice President of Engineering and Program Management Jorge L. Quijano
said.
In the
second and final round, the ACP will release an RFP and respondents will submit
a bid proposal. Other important dates in this process are: a site visit
September 12, 2007 and a project information meeting September 13, 2007.
The
Expansion Program will build a new lane of traffic along the Panama Canal
through the construction of a new set of locks, which will double capacity and
allow more traffic and longer, wider ships.
IMPORTANT
PROCUREMENT INFORMATION:
Except
for the public information meeting and the optional site visit, all information
between the ACP and the prospective proposers will be provided in written form
through the designated ACP Contracting Officer. The ACP will share all
submitted queries and ACP responses with all parties preparing a response to
the RFQ. The ACP will not divulge the names of those parties submitting queries
PANAMA
CANAL AWARDS EXPANSION PROGRAM MANAGER CONTRACT TO CH2M HILL
After a thorough evaluation of the
received proposals, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) awarded the Program
Manager contract to CH2M Hill last Wednesday. The leading full-service global
firm and number one program management firm in the United States will assist
the ACP in the management of numerous contracts including those for design and
construction of the two post-Panamax lock structures under its Expansion
Program.
The procurement process began June 1,
when the ACP released its request for proposals seeking a top-tier firm with a
strong reputation in program management and with experience working on a
variety of major international construction projects.
On July 17, the ACP began reviewing the
three bid submissions from CH2M Hill, Parsons Brinkerhoff and URS Holdings,
Inc. The winning proposal was selected based on the best value and not the
lowest price; additionally, each firm was also required to give an oral
presentation. Over the course of a month, the ACP conducted careful evaluation
and review to ensure that the chosen firm would best meet the project's
needs.
"We look forward to having CH2M
Hill as a partner during this historic journey. We are certain that its proven
experience in the international program management arena will substantially
strengthen and add tremendous value to our Expansion Program to deliver the
projects on time, quality and budget," said ACP Engineering and Programs
Management Executive Vicepresident Jorge L. Quijano.
The ACP Board of Directors approved the
use of an integrated program management model, wherein the Authority will
designate tasks between its own staff and CH2M Hill. The firm will begin work
as early as next week and will interface with both design and construction
teams. Moreover, the bulk of the Program Manager duties will focus on the new
locks contracts while also interfacing with other contracts.
U.S.-based CH2M Hill has more than
19,000 employees in offices worldwide. If offers full-service engineering,
consulting, construction and operations expertise.
Expansion will build a new lane of traffic along the Panama Canal through the construction of a new set of locks, which will double tonnage capacity and allow the transit of much longer, wider ships through the waterway.
PANAMA
CANAL TIES TRANSIT RECORD FOR THE THIRD TIME
For the third time in the last 14
months, the Panama Canal tied its record for the total number of daily transits
that have an overall length greater than 900 feet. Demonstrating its capability
to manage the growing demand for its waterway, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP)
announced today that nine vessels with an overall length greater than 900 feet
transited the Canal on Tuesday, August 7 - tying the record achieved in May
2006 and matched in April 2007.
On average, 39 vessels transit the
waterway each day and, of those, usually five vessels are greater than 900
feet.
"Setting this record for the third
time is evidence of the ACP's hard work and dedication. Everyday, as demand
continues to grow, we are increasing the efficiency and reliability of the
waterway," said ACP Vice President of Operations Manuel Benitez. "We
are proud of this accomplishment and will continue to build upon our successes
to provide the best service to our customers - which is our top priority."
All of the record-tying vessels were
container vessels and, due to the size of the vessel (greater than 900 feet),
require more time and resources to transit the waterway. Of the nine, Maersk
and Evergreen own two vessels each and the remaining belonged to MSC, ZIM,
CMA-CGM, HAPAG-LLOYD and COSCO.