October 23 - The 34,500 dwt vessel Federal Biscay has been delivered to Fednav from Japan's Oshima shipyard.
The mulitpurpose vessel will be used to ship general cargo to the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System, as well as bulk commodities from the Midwest to world markets, said Fednav.
Federal Biscay is the first of Fednav's ships to be equipped with a ballast water treatment system - BallastAce - which intends to protect the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System against invasive species and preserve biodiversity in the region.
Developed by JFE Engineering Corporation in Japan, the BallastAce system will be effective in both fresh and salt water. It operates through a sophisticated filter and sodium hypochlorite (bleach) injection mechanism in the ship's ballast system.
Fednav will begin using the BallastAce system in the Great Lakes at the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 2016. The company claims that Federal Biscay will be the first ship in the region to be equipped with such a system.
Fednav plans to equip a total of twelve new ships with the same system, in order to meet the upcoming ballast water management requirements.
