Four companies confirmed they had received licenses from the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control to provide ferry travel
May 6, 2015 - AFP
WASHINGTON DC, USA – The United States authorized commercial ferry services to Cuba for the first time in more than a half-century on Tuesday, May 5, another major step in improving relations between the two countries.
In what was hailed by ferry operators as "a historical event," the US Treasury lifted a decades-old ban and at least 4 Florida companies said they had been licensed to launch boat services to the island.
That adds to the charter air services that had been permitted until now, focused on enabling Cuban-Americans to visit their families.
The ferries will also be allowed to carry cargo to the communist island of 11 million, which sits just 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the southern tip of Florida.
Four companies confirmed they had received licenses from the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control to provide ferry travel.
"Today's action was a great step forward," Joseph Hinson, president of Miami-based United Americas Shipping Services, told Agence France-Presse.
Havana Ferry Partners of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said on its Facebook page that it too had received a Treasury license for ferry services from four Florida ports.
"This is a historical event. Thanks to President Barack Obama, to whom we are very grateful, for his leadership," the firm wrote.
Two others, United Caribbean Lines and Airline Brokers, a travel agency, said they also received licenses.
But Hinson suggested the first trip would still take some time, because other permissions were still needed from authorities in both countries.
Travel permits still needed
Whether by plane or ferry, American travelers to Cuba still have to come under one of 12 categories permitted in the landmark easing of US sanctions announced by the White House in December – including family visits, official government business, humanitarian projects and sports gatherings.
But even under embargo restrictions, the number of Americans traveling to Cuba has surged in recent years, with many going via third countries.
And in a coincidental announcement not tied to the new Treasury rules, US airline JetBlue announced Tuesday it would begin direct charter flights to Havana from the New York City area, home to the second largest population of Cuban-Americans after Florida.
The moves come amid a landmark thaw in relations initiated by Obama on December 17, when he broke a nearly 6-decade Cold War-rooted estrangement between the two countries by lifting sanctions on travel and some trade, as the first step toward normalizing relations.
In another event marking the thaw, Obama and Cuban leader Raul Castro spoke together for an hour at the 35-nation Summit of the Americas in Panama.
Obama thanked Castro for his "spirit of openness and courtesy," while Castro, addressing his fellow Latin American leaders, labelled the US president "an honest man."
A week after that event, the White House took the first step toward removing Cuba's longstanding designation as a "state sponsor of terror," which had added to the tough commercial embargo on the island since the beginning of the 1960s.
Cuba was added to the US terror list in 1982, originally designated for its support for armed revolution in Latin America. – Paul Handley, AFP
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Transport Canada has released 2 updated Ship Safety Bulletins.
Regulations for Vessel Air Emissions: Fuel Oil Change-Over Operations SSB No.:04/2015. Click ici pour.
Regulations for Vessel Air Emissions: Criteria of an "Identical Engine" SSB No.:05/2015. Click ici pour.
The Manitoulin Expositor - April 29, 2015
OWEN SOUND—Although there is still plenty of ice floating about in Manitoulin waters, the Owen Sound Transportation Company (OSTC) remains confident that the ferry linking the Island to Tobermory on the Bruce Peninsula will begin the season schedule, sailing from Tobermory at 8:50 am on Tuesday, May 5.
When the ferry arrives in South Baymouth at 10:50 am it will be sporting a fancy new paint job on its smokestack and sides, with a more detailed and intricate bow design slated to be applied after the ship is finished being sandblasted in dry dock in 2017.
“The cold weather has not been helping in getting the design applied,” said OSTC President Susan Schrempf. “But we will have it in place by the time we sail.” Since the paint on the hull will be completely stripped in the first sandblasting the ferry has received since it went into service, the OSTC “decided that it wouldn’t be prudent to put the bow design on until that work is done.”
The paint on the vessel’s hull has been boiling up, noted Ms. Schrempf. “It is something that has to be done.”
More good news will be found on ticket stubs, as the cost of taking the ferry will remain unchanged this year. Although the ferry had been following a policy of incremental increases to fare prices for several years, that policy has been suspended.
“It went by the wayside when we did the feasibility study,” said Ms. Schrempf. “It simply did not make sense to raise fares while we are going through a product development phase.”
Ms. Schrempf said that she had doubts the fares would rise significantly even after the marketing push was completed. “We are concentrating on increasing the ferry ridership,” she said. “If the number of passengers on the ferry increases, that will go a long way toward decreasing the operating deficit.”
OSTC and participating accommodations on Manitoulin Island have joined forces to provide travellers with a 10 percent discount on their ferry fare that includes a $5 discount per accommodation reservation. It is important to note that reservations are required for both the ferry and the accommodation to take advantage of the program discounts.
The process is to make your reservation at the accommodation first to receive your tag number and then to call 1-800-265-3163 to book your vehicle space on the ferry.
The popular Frequent Sailor Loyalty Cards are not only once again available, they are now transferable between family members. The cards are colour coded according to the size of the vehicle and can be used for up to three different vehicles of the same size, per family or business, exclusive of trailers. Riders can request a card from the terminal ticket booth agent on their first crossing of the season. If a passenger makes nine one-way trips, the tenth trip is free. But be aware, there is no carry-over to next season.
The complete schedule for the Chi-Cheemaun ferry and more information on the Destination Manitoulin and frequent sailor programs can be found online at ontarioferries.com.
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Yesterday, during Question Period, Minister David Brazil made reference to meeting with CFA executives about the passenger vessel import tariff.
“MR. BRAZIL: As of tomorrow morning at 8:00 o’clock, I will be meeting with the senior executives of the Canadian Ferry Association, and one of the key discussions will be around tariff reductions for ferry users and those who manufacture in this Province. I will be making sure that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador get their due justice.”
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Globe and Mail - 24/04/2015
Still an intimidating and skilled hockey player, British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. president and CEO Mike Corrigan knew early that he wanted more than an unpredictable NHL career.
“I didn’t want to be a mediocre hockey player in my late 20s with nothing to fall back on,” said Mr. Corrigan, 53. “As good a junior hockey player that I was, I learned how insignificant you can be in life, fairly quickly.”
Since 2012, Mr. Corrigan has been the head coach at BC Ferries, one of the world’s biggest ferry systems, with 35 vessels, 47 terminals and 184,000 annual sailings that carry 20 million passengers and eight million vehicles. He joined the company in 2003, after being recruited for a job as vice-president of business development from an executive position with Westcoast Energy. “I immersed myself in the business,” he said, admitting he knew little about marine operations. By 2006, he was second-in-charge, as chief operating officer.
As chief executive officer, he remains on 24/7 alert, ready to stick-handle unpredictable events, such as on-board medical emergencies or vessel breakdowns. “The last thing I do at night and the first thing I do in the morning is look at my e-mail,” he said. “I’m more confident knowing than not knowing.”
Mr. Corrigan’s journey from ice to sea has been marked by astute self-awareness, a blue-collar backbone and the smarts to manage $3-billion in capital spending over the next 12 years while taking hits, not from defencemen, but teams of critics who scrutinize ferry fares and executive salaries, shipbuilding contracts and cancelled routes.
His early hockey career has helped him navigate the routinely rough seas.
“By 17, I was living away from home. I learned to stick up for myself. To survive and flourish at that level is very, very hard to do. It’s all about the mental and having faith and being positive. When things aren’t going well, you can overthink and get into a negative mindset.”
Today, the hockey right-winger dons a helmet in a recreational league at North Saanich’s Panorama Recreation Centre.
“Mike calls it as he sees it. He’s fair but firm, and that’s how he plays hockey,” said Chris Cheadle, Mr. Corrigan’s Shoreline Canadians’ teammate. “He plays with an awareness and intelligence which manifest themselves in how he runs BC Ferries. There’s no trepidation with Mike. He’s a straight-ahead guy.”
Back in his early hockey days, Mr. Corrigan could shine, when motivated. “Problem was, I wasn’t consistent enough. I didn’t want it bad enough every night. I was what they called a grinder or power forward. I had to work hard and play very physical and not be afraid to fight, and come every night with a high level of intensity. As I got older, I realized I wanted to do other things.”
The son of a contract miner, Mr. Corrigan was born in Timmins, Ont. His father, Jack, left school at 14 to work in the mines to help his widowed mother support the family. Jack, who rose to be a mine superintendent, died a decade ago at 67, a death Mr. Corrigan said was related to workplace hazards.
He recalled his father’s experience in 1984 when four men died in an underground rock burst at a Sudbury mine. To reach one of the miners, Jack made his way about 1,200 metres down ladders and then crawled in the dark. Through the huge boulders that blocked freedom, Jack managed to hold the hand of the 22-year-old until he died. As Mr. Corrigan’s career advanced, Jack reminded him to “make damn sure you look after the men and their safety.”
“I try to spend a considerable amount of time on the health and well-being of employees,” Mr. Corrigan said of BC Ferries’ 4,500 employees. “Nothing gives me greater satisfaction than going out on the vessel and talking to employees about everyday situations.”
One of his leading initiatives as COO was the SailSafe program, which targets injury prevention and employee wellness. Since 2007, BC Ferries has had a 60-per-cent reduction in time-loss injuries, earning awards and workers’ compensation rebates.
As for his own hurts, “I sustained a lot of injuries earlier that come back to haunt me now, mostly wear and tear,” Mr. Corrigan said. “I’ve had surgery on both knees, separated shoulders a couple of times, lost a portion of my teeth. I never took a stick in the eye, but I’ve got lots of scars around the eyes.”
At 17, he left his Sudbury home to play junior hockey with the Cornwall Royals, who in 1980 won the Memorial Cup. Mr. Corrigan’s line included Marc Crawford and Dale Hawerchuk.
Teammate Newell Brown, who grew up on a Cornwall dairy farm, and is today assistant coach of the Arizona Coyotes, remembers his friend as a straight-shooter. “He was a big, strong right-winger who could intimidate. I can see that coming out in his job as CEO. He liked to have fun off the ice, but on the ice, he was a really serious player.”
Mr. Brown, who gets together with Mr. Corrigan when in Vancouver, was somewhat surprised that he didn’t stick it out longer after he’d been signed to the Detroit Red Wings organization. “But, he was typecast in the tough-guy role. He didn’t like it. He didn’t want that to be his calling card,” Mr. Brown said. “He was a smart guy. I knew he’d go back to school.”
While playing out his contract with the Kalamazoo Wings, Detroit’s farm team, Mr. Corrigan attended Kalamazoo Valley Community College and later, Western Michigan University, where he earned a business administration degree. He married Shari, a Michigan native, in 1984.
His first business job was mail-room clerk for a Michigan utility company. In 1989, the Corrigans moved to Northern Ontario before eventually settling in Victoria in 1996 when Mr. Corrigan was working for Westcoast Energy. In 2000, he earned his MBA from the University of Victoria.
Beyond realizing that he wasn’t a “one-dimensional human being,” hockey netted other revelations. “For teams to be successful in hockey, you need your fourth line and last two defencemen,” he said. “It’s the role players and what they can provide. Superstars are expected to perform.”
He admits that as a manager, he once focused on individuals’ shortcomings instead of their strengths. Now he seeks staff who complement one another. “You won’t turn a checker into a goaltender.”
At work, from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday to Friday, Mr. Corrigan also spends time each day at the gym. He also walks his black Lab, Ace, each evening with Shari, a business teacher at Victoria’s Camosun College, and plays golf at the prestigious Victoria Golf Club on weekends with a close group of business people.
Mr. Corrigan is also treasurer for the 225-member Interferry association, which represents the international ferry industry. In 2014, he was Interferry’s president.
His charitable work includes BC Ferries’ Media Charity Golf Classic, which since 2006 has raised $550,000 for children’s programs. One recipient was Community Living Victoria, which supports people with developmental disabilities. Mr. Corrigan was also a three-year board member for the organization.
“We could count on him,” said John Stevenson, who has been involved with Community Living for more than 25 years. “He had good ideas and also challenged our ideas. After he stepped back, he never forgot us. I’d ask him for help and he helped, contributing significantly.”
And for nine years, Mr. Corrigan was volunteer head coach for the South Island Breakers midget AAA girls hockey team, where his daughters Jacqueline, 26, and Mika, 24, played. The team won four provincial junior championships in the mid-2000s.
While his big-league hockey days are behind him, Mr. Corrigan harbours one regret.
“I never did get a chance to put the Red Wings’ jersey on for an actual NHL game,” he said.
But still, as Mr. Cheadle said, “Mike plays hockey like he plays life, really well.”
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CBC - April 24, 2015
The Princess of Acadia ferry's replacement will go into service some time this spring, according to Transport Canada.
Work to refit the $44.6-million ship for service in the Bay of Fundy, between Saint John and Digby, N.S., is ongoing in Halifax, officials said.
The new ship will be faster and more efficient than the old Princess of Acadia. It will also offer improved onboard amenities, including various passenger lounges and a cafeteria.
Canada purchased the 124-metre vessel, formerly known as Ithaki, from a Greek ferry operator last fall.
A contest to name the ferry, now referred to as Canada 2014, closed in February.
Federal Transport Minister Lisa Raitt was to make the final decision on the new name, but the winning choice has not yet been announced.
The 43-year-old Princess of Acadia will go up for sale when the new ship arrives.
If a new owner can't be found, the ship will likely be scrapped.
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Hill Times - April 20, 2015
David Akin
OTTAWA—The late Jim Flaherty had a great sense of humour and one is reminded, on the eve of the first budget since his death last April, of the neat trick he tried to play on us in the 2013 budget.
You’ll recall that ahead of the budget there were some leaks that the government would cut the import taxes—tariffs—on porting goods and on baby clothes.
This would save those “hard-working families” that every politician is keen to impress about $76-million a year. This consumer-friendly initiative got good press in the news cycle leading up to the budget.
But inside the budget lockup, reporters, economists, and analysts started poring through the detailed budget plan and discovered something the government had not bothered to flag for us: That while Canadian consumers were getting a $76-million break on hockey skates and golf clubs, they were going to be paying an extra $330-million a year in tariffs on hundreds of consumer items—cans of tuna, for example—made in places like India, China, and Brazil. Those countries had enjoyed a “preferential tariff” rate but, that year, in Canada’s judgment, the economies of six-dozen countries were doing well enough that they no longer needed help from that preferential tariff.
I raise this point because Finance Minister Joe Oliver, in his first-ever budget Tuesday, should move to reduce tariffs, a move which, in the long run, is good for Canada’s economy and prosperity.
Canada, more than almost any other developed country, depends heavily on foreign trade for its prosperity and if it wants access to foreign markets for Canadian goods and services, it must demonstrate that it is prepared to open its market to foreign goods and services. The government itself often makes this point as it points out how active it has been negotiating new trade deals.
Indeed, just about every budget document in the last few years, had language about how the Harper government has been busy doing trade deals from Jordan to Peru to Lichtenstein.
In the 2009 budget, the Harper government unilaterally dropped tariffs on all machinery, equipment and all manufacturing inputs, a good sign that Canada was not only talking the talk on free trade, it was walking the walk. The boost in tariffs on consumer items in 2013 sent a different message.
And now, with the news last week that U.S. President Barack Obama has got the green light from Congress to fast-track negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, it’s more important than ever that Canada demonstrate its good faith as a free-trader.
The TPP has the potential to be huge free-trade zone for Pacific Rim countries and could be of immense benefit to Canada. But already reports are emerging that Canada refuses to even consider dropping the illogical and unhelpful tariff walls that protect our dairy, egg, and poultry sectors. This so-called supply management system has been shown to be not much more than a system to transfer wealth from Canada’s poorest families to a few thousand relatively well-off farm households. And now it threatens our chances to be part of the TPP.
But here’s one thing Oliver could do to demonstrate Canada’s commitment to free trade: Drop a tariff on medium-sized ferries.
Right now, any ferry operator who wants to buy a ship under 129 metres long, has to pay an import duty of 25 per cent. The province of Newfoundland and Labrador is having two ferries built in Romania right now to service Fogo Island and the Change Islands. St. John’s will cut a cheque to the Romanians for $100-million and, at the same time, have to cut a cheque of $25-million to Ottawa.
Why? Ottawa put this tariff in place to protect the one and only domestic shipbuilder who could make these medium-sized ferries. But that one and only shipbuilder, in Welland, Ont., has been out of business for a few years so this tariff is not protecting any Canadian business while hurting taxpayers in Newfoundland.
Indeed, the government scrapped the tariff on big ferries, over 129 metres, long ago because there was no domestic industry to protect.
This ferry tariff is going to disappear, in any event, when the free-trade deal with Europe is ratified. And the government in St. John’s has already filed an application with Oliver’s department to drop this needless tariff.
Oliver can halt those negotiations, save the province of Newfoundland and Labrador a pile of money, and help improve Canada’s reputation as a free trade by dropping this and other needless tariffs in Tuesday’s budget.
Joe Oliver can halt those negotiations, save the province of Newfoundland and Labrador a pile of money, and help improve Canada’s reputation as a free trader by dropping this and other needless tariffs in Tuesday’s budget.
Hill Times - David Akin
April 20, 2015
OTTAWA—The late Jim Flaherty had a great sense of humour and one is reminded, on the eve of the first budget since his death last April, of the neat trick he tried to play on us in the 2013 budget.
You’ll recall that ahead of the budget there were some leaks that the government would cut the import taxes—tariffs—on porting goods and on baby clothes.
This would save those “hard-working families” that every politician is keen to impress about $76-million a year. This consumer-friendly initiative got good press in the news cycle leading up to the budget.
But inside the budget lockup, reporters, economists, and analysts started poring through the detailed budget plan and discovered something the government had not bothered to flag for us: That while Canadian consumers were getting a $76-million break on hockey skates and golf clubs, they were going to be paying an extra $330-million a year in tariffs on hundreds of consumer items—cans of tuna, for example—made in places like India, China, and Brazil. Those countries had enjoyed a “preferential tariff” rate but, that year, in Canada’s judgment, the economies of six-dozen countries were doing well enough that they no longer needed help from that preferential tariff.
I raise this point because Finance Minister Joe Oliver, in his first-ever budget Tuesday, should move to reduce tariffs, a move which, in the long run, is good for Canada’s economy and prosperity.
Canada, more than almost any other developed country, depends heavily on foreign trade for its prosperity and if it wants access to foreign markets for Canadian goods and services, it must demonstrate that it is prepared to open its market to foreign goods and services. The government itself often makes this point as it points out how active it has been negotiating new trade deals.
Indeed, just about every budget document in the last few years, had language about how the Harper government has been busy doing trade deals from Jordan to Peru to Lichtenstein.
In the 2009 budget, the Harper government unilaterally dropped tariffs on all machinery, equipment and all manufacturing inputs, a good sign that Canada was not only talking the talk on free trade, it was walking the walk. The boost in tariffs on consumer items in 2013 sent a different message.
And now, with the news last week that U.S. President Barack Obama has got the green light from Congress to fast-track negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, it’s more important than ever that Canada demonstrate its good faith as a free-trader.
The TPP has the potential to be huge free-trade zone for Pacific Rim countries and could be of immense benefit to Canada. But already reports are emerging that Canada refuses to even consider dropping the illogical and unhelpful tariff walls that protect our dairy, egg, and poultry sectors. This so-called supply management system has been shown to be not much more than a system to transfer wealth from Canada’s poorest families to a few thousand relatively well-off farm households. And now it threatens our chances to be part of the TPP.
But here’s one thing Oliver could do to demonstrate Canada’s commitment to free trade: Drop a tariff on medium-sized ferries.
Right now, any ferry operator who wants to buy a ship under 129 metres long, has to pay an import duty of 25 per cent. The province of Newfoundland and Labrador is having two ferries built in Romania right now to service Fogo Island and the Change Islands. St. John’s will cut a cheque to the Romanians for $100-million and, at the same time, have to cut a cheque of $25-million to Ottawa.
Why? Ottawa put this tariff in place to protect the one and only domestic shipbuilder who could make these medium-sized ferries. But that one and only shipbuilder, in Welland, Ont., has been out of business for a few years so this tariff is not protecting any Canadian business while hurting taxpayers in Newfoundland.
Indeed, the government scrapped the tariff on big ferries, over 129 metres, long ago because there was no domestic industry to protect.
This ferry tariff is going to disappear, in any event, when the free-trade deal with Europe is ratified. And the government in St. John’s has already filed an application with Oliver’s department to drop this needless tariff.
Oliver can halt those negotiations, save the province of Newfoundland and Labrador a pile of money, and help improve Canada’s reputation as a free trade by dropping this and other needless tariffs in Tuesday’s budget.
Gemini Award winner David Akin has been reporting from the Hill for a decade for CTV National News, Global National, Canwest News Service and, most recently as bureau chief for Sun Media. Contact information and disclosures at www.davidakin.com
The Hill Times
We are pleased to announce that the Township of Frontenac Islands has joined CFA.
Township of Frontenac Islands operates ferries between Wolfe Island, Howe Island and the United States.
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Times Colonist - April 14, 2015
Polish shipyard workers have started building the second of three new intermediate-class vessels for B.C. Ferries.
The three ferries will operate on liquefied natural gas, considered a lower-cost and cleaner-burning fuel, but will also have the ability to use low-sulphur diesel fuel. B.C. Ferries’ two Spirit-class vessels, biggest in its fleet, are being converted to LNG.
“Obviously, liquefied natural gas is our game-changer,” said Mike Corrigan, Ferries president and chief executive.
Running the two Spirit class and three intermediate class ferries on LNG is expected to save the corporation millions in fuel costs, Corrigan said. The Spirit ships burn about 20 per cent of the fuel in the entire fleet during a year, he said.
The second intermediate-class ferry’s official steel-cutting event, the traditional start of construction, took place Friday at Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. in Gdansk, Poland.
The ship is expected to be delivered in October 2016, replacing the 51-year-old Queen of Nanaimo, used on the Tsawwassen-Southern Gulf Islands route.
Construction began on the first intermediate-class ferry in January. It is due to arrive in August 2016, when it will take over from the 50-year-old Queen of Burnaby on the Comox-Powell River route.
The third ferry will be started in early July for delivery in February 2017. It will run during busy periods on the Southern Gulf Islands route and used on other routes when vessels go in for refit.
B.C. Ferries has contracted with the Polish shipyard to build, design and deliver the three intermediate-class vessels at a cost of $165 million. Each will be 351 feet long with capacity for 145 vehicles and 600 passengers.
B.C. Ferries expects the vessels will be in service for about 40 years.
“These new ferries will not only reduce our impact on the environment, but will also bring us one step closer to standardizing our fleet for better inter-operability on all our routes,” Corrigan said. “Having these new ferries that are the right size for their routes will create greater efficiencies and save costs.”
B.C. Ferries operates
35 vessels in 17 classes. The new intermediate-class ships “will be the standard going forward for intermediate-sized ferries,” he said.
At the same time, Ferries is adjusting docking designs as it can be difficult to move ferries to different routes because they might not be able to pull into existing docks.
Meanwhile, a new cable ferry for Buckley Bay-Denman Island route is expected to be in service by late summer. The cable ferry is expected to save the corporation $2 million per year.
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