Gregoria Cokaliong, Cokaliong Shipping Lines chairperson and president (above photo, 8th from left), leads the shipping line’s officials and selected guests in the ribbon cutting ceremony during the inauguration of the M/V Filipinas Surigao del Norte (left photo) at Pier 5 in Cebu City. The guests included Toshiki Ishihara, Kunimori Engineering Works Co. Ltd. director; Takanori Tsutai, Heart Land Ferry president; and Giosure Vezzuto, Registro Italiano Navale Asia Singapore director. (CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)
COKALIONG SHIPPING LAUNCHES 12TH RORO VESSEL
Trade and the shipping industry in the Visayas and northern Mindanao got a big boost with the inauguration on Saturday of Cokaliong Shipping Lines’ 12th roll-on-roll-off (roro) vessel, the M/V Filipinas Surigao del Norte.
Since shipping is a vital component of the country’s supply chain, Cokaliong Shipping’s addition of another passenger cargo vessel is expected to help boost trade in these areas and the country. In fact, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that in 2016, 99 percent of the country’s total value of traded commodities placed at P871.67 billion was moved through water transport.
Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella, who attended the inauguration of the new roro vessel, cited the importance of the shipping sector since the Philippines is an archipelago and separated by bodies of water.
Labella lauded Cokaliong Shipping for providing modern transportation that is safe and clean.
NEW COKALIONG VESSEL INAUGURATED/OCT. 14, 2017: The new MV Filipinas Surigao del Norte of the Cokaliong Shipping Lines was inaugurated yesterday afternoon in Pier 5 Cebu City.(CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)
Cebu City Rep. Raul del Mar, who also graced the event, also encouraged other shipping companies to follow the lead of Cokaliong and invest in vessels with similar quality.
The shipping firm acquired M/V Filipinas Surigao del Norte, formerly named M/V Avrora Okushiri, from Japanese company Heart Land Ferry at P260 million, said Chester Cokaliong, founder, chief executive officer and chief operating officer of Cokaliong Shipping Lines.
M/V Avrora Okushiri earned its classification from Italy-based Registro Italiano Navale (RINA), a founding member of the International Classification Societies.
The RINA company website explains that the goal of ship classification is to approve the operations of ships and to maintain this authorization over time by carrying out periodic inspections and laboratory tests. RINA remains focused on the fundamental requirements of safety and protection of people and property.
M/V Filipinas Surigao del Norte, which has a passenger capacity of 695 and a big cargo hold, is the third vessel in the Cokaliong fleet with a computerized engine monitoring system, which helps ensure safe and trouble-free trips.
The system will enable the ship’s engineering crew to ascertain if one of the engines is heating up or if it needs additional water or oil, so they could take immediate action.
Two other ships in the Cokaliong fleet, the M/V Filipinas Cebu and M/V Filipinas Jagna, also feature this system.
The ship’s navigational equipment include a Global Positioning System (GPS), Automatic Identification System (AIS), Doppler Log, Echo Sounder, Color Plotter, two radars, SSB Radio telephone and VHF Radiotelephone with digital selective calling (DSC).
Initially, M/V Surigao del Norte will ply the Cebu-Dumaguete-Dipolog route and other routes starting Tuesday next week, Cokaliong said.
However, starting November, Cokaliong’s newest vessel will serve the Cebu-Surigao route together with M/V Filipinas Cebu on a daily basis, including Sundays.
The shipping firm’s strategy of investing in technology for its fleet has made it one of the most reliable in the local shipping industry. Cokaliong Shipping has established a record of not losing a ship in disaster at sea since it started operations in 1989.
New tugboat
The shipping company also inaugurated its second tugboat, the M/T Cokaliong Tug 2, formerly named M/T Shinho Maru.
Cokaliong said that there is a need for an additional tugboat to assist in the docking of company’s ships at the Cebu port because of the strong sea current in the area.
The P40-million tugboat also has firefighting equipment and could put out fires on vessels at sea, the only one with this capability here in Cebu.
The tugboat’s previous homeport is at Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The tugboat, which has a 198-gross tonnage, is 34 meters long and 9.2 meters wide.
Built in 1987, its main engine is a 2-unit, 1,700-horsepower Fuji Diesel. It also has an auxiliary engine comprised of a 150-HP Yanmar and a 50-HP Yanmar. It has a maximum speed of 11.5 knots and a service speed of 11 knots.
Cokaliong said they would get a Registro Italiano Navale classification for the tugboat.
With the additional vessel, Cokaliong hired another 50 employees to add to its workforce. The company has around 500 regular employees and 300 apprentices.
Cokaliong Shipping’s ports of call include Calbayog, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Dapitan, Dumaguete, Iligan, Iloilo, Jagna, Maasin, Masbate, Nasipit, Ozamiz, Palompon, Surigao and Tagbilaran.