MAERSK LINE LTD. SECURES $400 MILLION LMSR CONTRACT

MAERSK LINE LTD. SECURES $400 MILLION LMSR CONTRACT    The U.S. Military Sealift Command awarded a five-year $400 million contract to operate and maintain eight large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships in the Indian Ocean near Diego Garcia.
   MSC is the ocean transportation provider to the Defense Department. The agency’s prepositioning program has 35 strategically located ships laden with military equipment, supplies and fuel for the Army. Fifteen ships carry combat equipment and sustaining supplies for the Army, enough to sustain two Army heavy brigades — up to 8,000 personnel — for up to 30 days.
   The eight LMSRs in the contract with Maersk Line Ltd. are the 'USNS Watson,' 'USNS Watkins,' 'USNS Red Cloud,' 'USNS Sisler,' 'USNS Soderman,' 'USNS Charlton,' 'USNS Dahl' and 'USNS Pomeroy.' These ships carry 33 percent of the Army’s prepositioned equipment.
   Prior to the new contract, Maersk Line Ltd. operated the military’s LMSRs when they started to enter service in October 1997. The company operated seven LMSRs by 2001. The eighth LMSR, the 'UNS Soderman,' joined the MSC fleet in the fall of 2001.
   In addition to the LMSRs, Maersk Line Ltd. also owns or operates other ships for the Defense Department, including five other pre-positioning ships and 12 surveillance vessels. The carrier annually transports about 60,000 TEUs of cargo to support military operations overseas.
Maersk Line Ltd. also participates in the government’s Maritime Security Program and the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement. “Under these programs, Maersk has committed to provide the U.S. military with more intermodal and vessel capacity and capabilities during a mobilization than any other carrier in the world,” said Kenneth C. Gaulden, vice president of government marketing for Maersk Line Ltd., on July 23 before the House Subcommittee on National Security, Veterans Affairs, and International Relations.