Seaboard Marine buys multipurpose vessel

Seaboard Marine buys multipurpose vessel Seaboard Marine completed the purchase Friday of the multipurpose vessel 'Karonga,' which the Miami-based ocean carrier has used between the United States, Chile and Peru on charter since August 2002.
   Financial details were not disclosed by either Seaboard or the seller, Germany's Dritte Oceania.
   The 19,456-deadweight-ton vessel was built in 1992 and has been renamed as the 'Seaboard Reliance.' The ship has four holds, seven hatches, three cranes and a molded beam of 23 meters (75.5 feet). It was lengthened to 172 meters (564.3 feet) in March 2002.
   The ship can simultaneously carry more than 1,100 TEUs and heavy cargoes that are often used and generated by the mining industry, Seaboard said.
   'The ship has the proper size and characteristics for the various types of cargoes that we carry in the Chile and Peru trade, and once we had the opportunity to outright purchase the vessel, given the scarcity of multipurpose tonnage, it was important that we consummate the transaction,' said Edward Gonzalez, Seaboard's president.
   'The Chile and Peru markets are important to Seaboard and have been a steady contributor to our success. By purchasing the 'Seaboard Reliance,' it strengthens our commitment to the West Coast of South America trade which continues to grow in both two-way containers and heavy project cargoes.'