AAL Shipping handled the delivery of over 12,800 freight tons of heavy lift cargo from the South Korean ports of Kunsan and Pyeongtaek to Beaumont in Texas.
Shipped onboard its regular Asia to the Americas service, using its 31,000 dwt vessel AAL Brisbane, the cargoes formed part of a major LNG project in Texas. The largest unit was a 607-tonne absorber that measured just under 39 m in length. Some of the other large heavy lift units included a 40 m and 436-tonne HP MR absorber and three dehydrators that weighed just under 200 tonnes.
According to Henrik Hansen, general manager of AAL Americas, the 607-tonne absorber was the heaviest piece ever lifted and carried by the shipping line on that trade lane.
He added: “In addition to the heavy lift cargo, this sailing also carried general and project cargoes to other US destinations and for multiple customers representing varied industry sectors.
“From a technical perspective there were multiple challenges and loading such cargo from and discharging to barge is always a precarious process, during which exacting ballast water techniques are deployed to ensure the vessel remains perfectly upright whilst lifting and transferring the largest components. Total time required to discharge in Beaumont was 113 hours, with three and half hours needed just for the largest unit.”
