Weekly News Summary for January 8-14, 2007:
Kirby Corporation announced it has acquired 58 inland tank barges for a total of $34.3 million.
Kirby purchased the stock of Coastal Towing Inc., which owned 37 inland black oil tank barges for $19.3 million. Kirby has operated the barges since October 2002 under a barge management agreement.
The Houston-based marine company also purchased 21 tank barges from Cypress Barge Towing for $15 million. Kirby has leased the barges since 1994, when the leases were assigned to Kirby after the company purchased The Dow Chemical Company’s tank barge fleet.
Steve Holcomb, vice president of investor relations, said Kirby has about 900 tank barges in its fleet, owning about 825 and leasing about 75 of the barges.
“We are operating the same number of barges, since we were leasing the barges that we purchased,” Holcomb said. “All of the leased barges have come through purchases.”…
Palmyra, Tenn., may be the next site for a barge port on the Cumberland River. Queen City Metals narrowly received approval from the area’s Regional Planning Committee to continue with its proposal.
Greg Guinn, part owner of Queen City Metals in nearby Clarksville, Tenn., said the barge port on 11 acres along the Cumberland River mainly would be used to supply the metal recycling facility with scrap metal. However, a nearby industrial site also could benefit from the port, he said.
“We would like to ship to the industrial site by rail (from the port), which would eliminate the need for more truck traffic,” Guinn said. “We could definitely expand to other uses with the rail component. It would be a great way to grow the project.”
The proposal for the port still must be approved by the Montgomery County Commission, probably in the next month or two. Guinn said Queen City Metals asked for a 30-day deferment, as property owners adjacent to the site have claimed the affected area contains an unmarked and unregistered burial site.
Kids describe how the river smells, look for signs of fish and search for barges and boats on the river. Meanwhile, teachers tour towboats and barges, listen to commercial fishermen and ride the river in johnboats. They’re all discovering how today’s rivers impact their lives.
It’s all because American Electric Power River Transportation (AEP) and MEMCO and Living Lands and Waters are helping lead the way in educating the public about the waterways industry.
AEP developed a curriculum, web site and a display for public events that promotes rivers’ history, culture, economy and multiple uses. Some of the material is available at riverworksdiscovery.org.
Meanwhile, Living Lands and Waters, a not-for-profit environmental group in East Moline, Ill., has sponsored free teacher workshops on the Ohio, Illinois and Mississippi rivers since 2003, reaching about 1,200 teachers. In 2006, they had 13 one- to four-day workshops on the Ohio, Upper Mississippi, Illinois and Missouri rivers.
The program developed by AEP has reached about 25,000 children and families nationwide, said Mark Carr, in communications and government affairs for AEP/MEMCO, based in St. Louis….
Perhaps the most well-known race horse of all, Secretariat, was recognized by ESPN as one of the 100 greatest athletes of the 20th century. On December 1, yet another institution honored the thoroughbred when Turn Services Inc. officially named its refurbished vessel the mv. Secretariat.
Built in 1958 by Nashville Bridge Company, the boat has had just four owners. The vessel first ran under the flag of Inland Oil & Transport Company for nearly 40 years before being bought by MEMCO Barge Line in 1995. Johnson Towing Company, Follansbee, W.Va., bought the boat in 1998 and sold it to Turn Services in the summer of 2006. The boat was most recently named the Sarah Nicole.
Physically, Secretariat is the largest horse featured on Turn Service’s nameboards. Likewise, the boat is the largest in the company’s fleet at 131.8 by 30.8 feet. Powered by two GM 12-645CE2 engines, the boat has a total of 2,800 hp.
Recipient of a new steel hull nearly 10 years ago, the boat is reported to be in excellent condition. Many features have been updated. The engines were completely overhauled by Marine Systems Inc., Houma, La., and new John Deere 100 kw. generators, supplied by Southern Power Products, Pampano Beach, Fla., were installed….
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