TOTE launches second containership for Puerto Rico trade

Sea Star Line will begin operating the first of the two ships from Jacksonville later this year, according to a statement from TOTE Maritime.    The second new LNG-powered containership that TOTE Shipholdings built to serve the trade between Puerto Rico and the mainland U.S. was launched Saturday at the NASSCO shipyard in San Diego.
   Perla del Caribe, “pearl of the Caribbean” slid off ways in a spectacular nighttime launch.
   It is the second of two ships that TOTE Shipholdings is building for sister company Sea Star Lines that will be powered using liquid natural gas.
   The first of the two ships, Isla Bela, was launched in April and will enter service later this year. The Perla del Caribe will enter service in the first quarter of 2016 between Jacksonville, Fla. and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
   TOTE said by moving to natural gas, the two ships will reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides by 98 percent, sulfur oxides by 97 percent, carbon dioxide by 72 and particulate matter by 60 percent over the ships currently serving the trade.
   Tim Nolan, president of Sea Star Line, said of the vessels, “The ability to innovate and lead in the maritime sector is something that comes along once in a lifetime…These ships and the technology they employ will redefine what is possible in the shipping industry both here in the United States and abroad.”