| The US Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit (MSU) Port Arthur’s Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) held a Port Coordination Team (PCT) conference call at 1000 hours today to update industry partners on the traffic restrictions and efforts to facilitate the removal of a decommissioned pipeline under the Sabine Pass Offshore Channel. Your WGMA Maritime Affairs team participated on the call and has the following report for our membership:
Project Update, from the Pipeline Project Manager:
(Kinetica / Champagne Energy & Environmental Solutions)
· Currently 700 feet of pipeline has been removed. They’ve been shut down for several days awaiting improved weather conditions.
· They’re scheduled to re-mobilize tonight, putting them on site and ready to resume operations by tomorrow afternoon.
· They still have 3-4 days of work before they reach the edge of the ship channel.
· The next weather front is forecast to arrive Monday, which means they will likely not encroach upon the ship channel until after the next front has passed.
· The next front is only anticipated to interrupt operations by one day.
Navigation interests can plan upon normal operations for the remainder of this week, with possible impacts Tuesday-Wednesday next week.
MSU Port Arthur MSIB’s issued for this operation: MSIB 39-24 & MSIB 41-24
Sabine Pilots:
· No comments made; no ship channel closures anticipated at this time.
· Previous guidance indicates they will enforce a maximum draft limit of 30 feet (9 meters) during pipeline recovery within the ship channel.
Agents are reminded to keep CBP and Sabine Pilots updated with your vessel’s status for movement, and to make sure that the ship’s eNOA/D are kept updated to avoid any problems.
WGMA members are reminded that our partners DTN WeatherOps can provide customized weather reports for your specific area, and their seasonal Fog Forecast gives you a 7-day outlook of fog for every port on the US Gulf Coast. Contact WGMA Maritime Affairs to sign up to receive these reports.
MSU Port Arthur anticipated another PCT conference call on Friday, November 22nd based upon the progress of the pipeline removal. Your WGMA Maritime Affairs team will participate on all PCT calls and report updates to our membership. |
