Weekly News Summary For October 1-7, 2007:
Putting its stamp of approval on a conference report passed by the House three weeks earlier, the Senate gave its final blessing September 24 to the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (WRDA).
By a vote of 81–12, the Senate sent the measure (H.R. 1495) to the White House and an uncertain fate. President Bush had sent word to the House that he would veto the $20 billion measure “because the conference version of H.R. 1495 significantly exceeds the cost of either the House or Senate bill and contains other unacceptable provisions.”
But the veto threat did not dampen the elation emanating from the inland waterways community, which believes that there are more than enough votes in Congress to override any White House objection.
“Tonight’s Senate action to approve the WRDA conference report is a great victory for this nation’s commitment to remaining economically competitive now and into the future,” said R. Barry Palmer, president of Waterways Council Inc. “Without a modern, efficient system of locks and dams on our nation’s inland waterways, the transport of critical commodities such as grain for export, coal for electric power generation, petroleum and chemical products for pharmaceuticals, and aggregates for building materials simply cannot reach consumers in the United States and around the globe in the most cost-effective way possible.”
Palmer closed his statement by urging the president to sign into law “this important piece of legislation.”
Connie Waterman, director of internal operations for the National Waterways Conference, said the Senate “took a significant step forward in improving our nation’s water resource needs. WRDA 2007 meets many of the most critical water resource needs facing our nation.”…
In a flurry of equipment purchases, a new company this year has assembled a fleet of six towboats and eight tank barges on its way to entering the inland marine transportation field. The venture is named Accumarine Transportation LLC, founded in Mobile, Ala., at the beginning of 2007.
The company was formed by an oil trader from Houston named Henry Wuertz and his partner, Steven Frietsch of Mobile, for the purpose of transporting both clean and dirty oil along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
The two partners and some others started the company as a tie-in to a liquid storage facility they own in Mobile named Dunhill Terminals. The facility is in the midst of expanding through the installation of additional shore tanks.
Bucking the trend toward consolidation in the river business, the start-up’s flagship is a 3,800 hp. towboat named Accu II, formerly the Big D, which Accumarine bought from Florida Marine Transporters. The boat is currently working in the grain trade on the Upper Mississippi River because the company purchased it before it acquired the barges, but it will be brought south to join the rest of the fleet after the harvest….
American Commercial Lines, Jeffersonville, Ind. held a christening in St. Louis September 5 to honor a long-time employee and celebrate the refurbishment of another vessel, the William J. Weber.
Chief Engineer William “Bill” Weber of Ste. Genevieve, Mo., is the namesake of the vessel. He didn’t expect to have a boat named in his honor.
“It actually happened, and I’m just astonished,” he said after the boat’s christening.
Weber’s father, Capt. Ralph L. Hutson, got him a job as a deckhand in 1978 at the age of 20, and he immediately became interested in the mechanics of the boat.
His wife Virginia said she’s gotten used to her husband’s six-week absences when he’s on the river.
“It’s nerve-wracking with three children, but you get used to it,” she said. “It couldn’t have been anybody more deserving than him. He’s done a lot for his company, and he doesn’t think he deserves it, but I do,” she added.
During Weber’s 29-year career at American Commercial Lines, he was promoted from deckhand to chief engineer in October 1980. He was instrumental in the refit and repowering of the mv. Bill Elmer from Electro Motive Diesel (EMD) to Moterhausen Assembly Kiel (MAK)….
Kirby Corporation, Houston, announced last week that it’s earlier-announced earnings projections for the third quarter of 2007 were probably too conservative.
The company had previously issued guidance that its net for the quarter would be in the 53- to 58-cent range, which was in itself well above its 2006 third quarter net of 48 cents per share. Now, the company is saying the net earnings for the quarter will be above 60 cents per share.
The company will release its third-quarter earnings report on October 25.
“Kirby’s marine transportation segment’s basic operating fundamentals remain very favorable, with strong demand in all of our transportation markets: petrochemical, black oil, refined products and agricultural chemicals,” said Joe Pyne, Kirby’s president and chief executive officer. “Our fleet remains essentially fully utilized, creating a favorable environment for fairly pricing our services. Contract and spot market pricing continues to trend upward and we continue to make slow but steady progress in alleviating our towboat and vessel personnel shortage issues.”…
Thomas Griffith, administrator of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Authority and president of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Council announced September 27 that he is stepping down from the organizations. His notice was given to Ken Wheeler of Paducah Ky., vice chairman of the Tenn-Tom Development Authority and to Steve Alley, chairman of the Tenn-Tom Waterway Development Council, and director of sales for the Ingram Barge Company.
Griffith told both of the organization leaders,
“I have enjoyed the past 18 months, and the fact that it has passed so quickly has helped bring me to this decision,” Griffith told the organization leaders. “Time is passing rather fast, and somehow, the older we get, the faster it goes. There are some other things that I want to do while I still can.
”The Tenn-Tom has been a big part of my life. While serving as mayor of Amory (Miss.), the waterway construction began and was completed. I was able to see the Port of Amory completed during that time period. I am proud to have worked with the Weyerhaeuser Company to locate the first industry, a chip mill, on the newly completed waterway. Now I have had the opportunity to serve as the administrator of the authority and president of the council, which I appreciate very much. There are some outstanding people in the water transportation industry. I have known some of them for several years and some only over the past 18 months. It has been a pleasure for me to serve both organizations, and I am grateful to have had that opportunity.“…
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