Anchorage Daily News
By Loren Holmes, Bill Roth
The Port of Alaska saw the first ship to dock at the new Petroleum and Cement Terminal on Tuesday, as well as container ships from Tote and Matson, and a Crowley fuel barge and its tug boat.
The new pile-supported dock replaced the former Petroleum Oil Lubricates Terminal 1 that opened in 1965, which was severely corroded and suffered structural damage during the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that occurred Nov. 30, 2018. The PCT pilings and concrete deck are designed to last for 75 years, and are part of the first phase of the Port of Alaska Modernization Program.
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https://www.adn.com/visual/photos/2023/05/10/photos-port-of-alaska-sees-first-ship-at-new-dock/
Building to satisfy current and future public needs and market demands
Seaports Magazine
By Steve Ribuffo, Director of the Port of Alaska
First Quarter 2023
If things go well, I’ll spend the next ten years fielding complaints from Port
of Alaska neighbors about construction noise, because our aging facilities need a lot of renovation and replacement.
Depending upon your point of view, Port of Alaska in Anchorage is either a small port, a big port — or a big, small port. It only handles about 5 million tons of fuel and freight annually. But this Municipality of Anchorage-owned and -operated port is Alaska’s primary inbound cargo facility that supports local, statewide, national, and international economic interests. It is one of 18 Department of Defense designated commercial strategic seaports that support U.S. military missions around the world. Its operations are essential for timely disaster response and recovery throughout Southcentral Alaska and across the state. And it handles three-quarters of the fuel used at Ted Stevens
Anchorage International Airport, the world’s fourth busiest air cargo hub.
Port of Alaska markets and cargo logistics are tricky because its service area is huge — the whole state of Alaska — with a small population (only 733,000 residents) and extreme climate, geography, and seismic conditions. The state is a virtual island: with one, mostly two-lane road through Canada to the Lower 48, and no cross-border rail, pipeline, or electric transmission connections. More than 90% of Alaska inbound freight is delivered by ship or barge. Port of Alaska handles half of all Alaska inbound fuel and freight shipped into the state annually, including three-quarters of non-petroleum cargo (think food and consumer goods) transported into Alaska and consumed statewide. Alaska’s small population cannot economically support more than one major inbound cargo port, so Port of Alaska must maintain the flexibility to meet the state’s diverse cargo needs, from containers to break bulk, dry bulk, liquid bulk, RO/RO, LO/LO, military transport, barge service, and cruise ships.
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AAPA Seaports Magazine (AAPQ) - First Quarter 2023 - Small Port, Big Challenges, Extreme Flexibility (seaportsmag-digital.com)
THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MARITIME AND PORT EXECUTIVES
www.iampe.org
For Immediate Release: February 2, 2023
Contact: IAMPE 207.741.7000
The Advisory Board of the International Association of Maritime and Port Executives (IAMPE) named Steve Ribuffo, Director of the Port of Alaska, the new Chairman of the IAMPE Advisory board at its most recent annual meeting. Capt. Kevin Kiefer, Chief for the U.S. Coast Guard Office of Waterways and Ocean Policy at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, DC, was named as the Advisory Board’s Vice Chairman at the same meeting.
Steve Ribuffo, AMPE, is the Port Director of the Port of Alaska. In this capacity he is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day business operations of the Port; interacting with tenants, the U.S. Coast Guard and other branches of the military, and new business prospects for the Port. He has been with the Port since August 2007, when he came aboard as Deputy Port Director. He has been the Port Director since June 2015. Steve retired from the United States Air Force as a Colonel, having served 30 years on active duty. A native New Yorker, he graduated from Manhattan College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing. He also has an MBA from Golden Gate University and a Master of Science degree in Logistics Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology.
Steve is a member of the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation Investors Council. He is the Alaska Representative on the Association of Pacific Ports Executive Committee. Steve is a certified instructor for the IAMPE. He also serves on the University of Alaska – Anchorage’s Global Supply Chain Management curriculum advisory committee and is a UAA adjunct professor for Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
Capt. Kevin Kiefer, AMPE, assumed the position of Advisory Board Vice Chairman at the most recent IAMPE Advisory Board annual meeting. Captain Kiefer is responsible for Ocean and Transportation Policy, Waterways Management, Great Lakes Pilotage, Domestic and Polar Icebreaking, and International Ice Patrol. He develops national policy for Captain of the Port (COTP) authorities, Marine Transportation System (MTS) goals, and other issues such as harmonizing waterways usage with autonomous vessels, marine events, and waterborne space launch and reentry operations. He also supervises the administration of the Great Lakes Pilotage program and serves as the Designated Federal Officer for the Great Lakes Pilotage Advisory Committee. Additionally, he is also the Coast Guard representative/liaison to the U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System, Marine Board, Transportation Research Board, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Previously, Captain Kiefer was the Director of Manufacturing for the Maritime Applied Physics Corporation (MAPC) in Baltimore, Maryland, a research, engineering, and manufacturing company that conceives and builds land, air, and sea vehicles and advanced technology systems. Prior to his time with MAPC, he served 30 years with the Coast Guard which included assignments as Deputy Director of Marine Transportation Systems at Coast Guard Headquarters; Chief of Staff, First District in Boston, Massachusetts; and Captain of the Port, Sector Maryland-National Capital Region in Baltimore, Maryland. He holds a Master of Engineering in Manufacturing and a Master of Science in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor of Science from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.
The IAMPE is a non-profit industry association that provides professional development for coastal and inland port and terminal managers and executives. Programs are reviewed and approved for certification by the IAMPE’s Board of Advisors, comprised of 20 industry professionals. The Association offers professional and accredited programs in Coastal and Inland Port Management and Executive Management, as well as certification programs for Marine Terminal Operator and IMDG/Hazardous Awareness. The Association has over 2,600 alumni worldwide and is the only Association offering professional certification to port managers across the globe.
By Zachariah Hughes
Anchorage Daily News
With support from the mayor’s office, the Port of Alaska is moving forward with an expanded design that could add hundreds of millions of dollars to its already substantial price tag.
Under the new concept, the terminals would be identical: same width, same contiguous tracks, laid down for cranes considerably more capable than the outdated ones currently serving a single terminal. It was approved in a 3-2 vote at a Dec. 20 meeting of the port project’s Design Advisory Board.
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https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/anchorage/2023/02/05/bronson-backs-expanded-port-design-that-could-add-more-than-200m-to-modernization-project/
Coast Guard News
The Coast Guard responded to a fire aboard the tank vessel Atlantic Lily in the Port of Anchorage, Friday night.
At approximately 10 p.m., thick, black smoke was seen billowing from the exhaust stack of the 600-foot foreign-flagged tank vessel, following by a loud boom and flames.
The crew quickly responded to the emergency, deploying fire hoses, and extinguishing the flames. Anchorage Fire Department and Port of Alaska personnel arrived on scene shortly after to provide support.
The vessel was reportedly transferring jet fuel at the time of the incident and cargo operations were suspended until the fire was extinguished and a thorough investigation was conducted.
It was determined that an issue with the vessel’s auxiliary boiler caused an improper fuel-to-air mixture, igniting a buildup of soot in the exhaust stack which resulted in a loud boom and flames.
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https://coastguardnews.com/coast-guard-responds-to-vessel-fire-in-the-port-of-alaska-anchorage/
BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE
On Friday, a stack fire aboard a product tanker startled residents around the port of Anchorage, Alaska with a loud explosion and a plume of smoke.
The foreign-flagged tanker Atlantic Lily was alongside at a fuel pier in Anchorage on Friday and unloading a cargo of jet fuel. For reasons of a technical malfunction, the boiler began to emit unburned fuel vapor up the stack, a dangerous condition that can result in an explosion. At about 2200 hours, the vapor ignited in the stack, producing a loud boom, thick smoke and visible flames.
The vessel's crew responded to the emergency by deploying fire hoses and extinguishing the flames. The Anchorage Fire Department and Port of Alaska personnel arrived on scene shortly after to provide support, but did not need to board the vessel. The cargo transfer operation was paused until the fire was fully out and the cause had been investigated with Coast Guard oversight.
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https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/stack-fire-sends-smoke-plume-over-port-of-anchorage
TradeWinds News
By Gary Dixon
A technical malfunction has been blamed for two separate fires on an International Seaways tanker in Alaska.
The exhaust stack on the 50,000-dwt Atlantic Lily (built 2008) suffered blazes on Friday evening and Saturday morning at the Port of Alaska in Anchorage.
The Anchorage Daily News reported officials as saying both fires were quickly contained by crew members, who were not injured.
There was no damage to the port, but damage to the Hong Kong-flag MR is unclear.
International Seaways confirmed the vessel experienced an exhaust stack fire over the weekend, which was quickly brought under control.
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https://www.tradewindsnews.com/casualties/double-fire-extinguished-on-international-seaways-tanker-in-alaska/2-1-1358148
By Anchorage Daily News
A mechanical malfunction aboard a 600-foot tanker ship docked at the Port of Alaska caused two fires Friday evening and Saturday morning, authorities said. Both fires were quickly contained by the ship’s crew, officials said. No injuries or damage to the port were reported.
The ship was the Hong Kong-flagged Atlantic Lily, the U.S. Coast Guard said Saturday.
Anchorage Fire Department dispatchers responded Friday evening just before 10 p.m. to reports of a “a very, very large backfire boom that everybody heard” at the port, Anchorage Fire Department Assistant Chief Alex Boyd said Saturday.
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https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2022/11/19/fires-aboard-tanker-ship-docked-at-anchorage-port-quickly-contained-after-loud-boom-reported/
KTUU News
By Tim Rockey
A ship docked at the Port of Alaska experienced a boiler fire on Friday night, creating a loud boom and brief billowing smoke.
According to a press release, the oil tanker Atlantic Lily was offloading Jet A-1 fuel at the port when the blast occurred at 10:08 p.m. on Friday.
Port of Alaska Facility Security Officer and Director of Business Continuity and External Affairs Jim Jager said that fuel offloading operations were immediately suspended and the crew responded to the fire, according to Jager. Fueling operations at a nearby terminal were briefly shut down as well.
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https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2022/11/19/engine-backfires-port-alaska/
Anchorage Daily News
By Zachariah Hughes
Congressional and local officials this week welcomed news that the Port of Alaska is set to receive $68.7 million in grant funds from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The money is part of a larger bundle of federal spending on “port-related infrastructure and ferry terminal projects” approved under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that passed last year in Congress, according to U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s office.
“This grant award comes at a crucial time for the Port of Alaska and Municipality, as we work to rebuild and modernize Alaska’s most important piece of infrastructure,” said Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson in a written statement. “Progress like this puts us one step closer to delivering food security for Alaska through a seismically resilient and modern Port of Alaska.”
The federal money unlocks additional funds approved by the Alaska Legislature in its last capital budget. Lawmakers sent $100 million for port improvements, and set aside another $100 million only to be released if they were matched by federal dollars.
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https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/anchorage/2022/10/28/anchorage-to-get-69m-for-port-repairs-as-part-of-federal-infrastructure-bill-spending-in-alaska/
