Isabella moves to Port Manatee

Isabella moves to Port Manatee Isabella Shipping Co. Ltd., the shipping company of Colombian banana exporter C.I. Uniban, S.A., will replace Florida calls at Tampa with Port Manatee on its weekly United States Gulf of Mexico service beginning Feb. 2.
   According to Interoceanica Agency Inc., the company’s representative in the U.S., Isabella will call Port Manatee each Saturday with tropical fruits and vegetables from Turbo, Colombia and Puerto Limon, Costa Rica by way of Port Freeport, Texas. Exports to Colombia and Costa Rica from Port Manatee will include baled cotton, linerboard, wood pulp and used automobiles and light trucks.
   The service operates with two sister vessels, Prince of Tides and the Prince of Waves, that can accommodate 30 containers on deck, with 3,500 pallets of chilled capacity in four holds below deck.
   “After exhaustive research and analysis, we selected Port Manatee because it offers the best potential to grow the business,” said Interoceanica Chief Executive Officer Carlos Agudelo. “Port Manatee represents the best fit for our customer base.”
   Federal Marine Terminals will provide stevedoring services to Isabella at Port Manatee with Sawyer Marine Services Inc. providing on-site cargo consolidation and vehicle documentation services.