Esso Northumbria 1969 - 1982

[Richard Hyett]

Most of us,at least those old enough, can remember the day that the Esso
Northumbria was launched, sticks in your mind, in much the same way that
various other historical landmarks are recalled, mostly assassinations. It
reminds me as well, more cheerfully, of that fateful Saturday in 1973 when
the shops emptied and the people from the south won the FA Cup.
I searched the ULG archive but couldn't find any discussion explanation of
why it got scrapped in Japan in 1982. I see the Hibernia 1970-1983, didn't
last much longer Can someone clue me in? I know nothing. Its all to do
with world markets I'm sure.
Don't know why it came into my head, perhaps because the newish Esso/Tesco
Petrol Station at Billy Mill has been inexplicably closed for two days.
You can be sure of Esso or was it Shell.

[Dave]

On Fri, 24 Oct 2003 21:19:46 +0100, in uk.local.geordie, "Richard Hyett"

Post by Richard Hyett
I searched the ULG archive but couldn't find any discussion explanation of
why it got scrapped in Japan in 1982. I see the Hibernia 1970-1983, didn't
last much longer Can someone clue me in? I know nothing. Its all to do
with world markets I'm sure.

I *think* they were single hulled vessels. Todays regulations in many
countries call for double hulled vessels for saftey reasons ie, less
likely to spill oil if then run aground or have a collision. This means
that single hulled vessels are being scrapped as fewer and fewer ports
will allow them entry.

Dave

[Phil Britton]

Post by Richard Hyett
Most of us,at least those old enough, can remember the day that the Esso
Northumbria was launched, sticks in your mind, in much the same way that
various other historical landmarks are recalled, mostly assassinations. It
reminds me as well, more cheerfully, of that fateful Saturday in 1973 when
the shops emptied and the people from the south won the FA Cup.
I searched the ULG archive but couldn't find any discussion explanation of
why it got scrapped in Japan in 1982. I see the Hibernia 1970-1983, didn't
last much longer Can someone clue me in? I know nothing. Its all to do
with world markets I'm sure.
Don't know why it came into my head, perhaps because the newish Esso/Tesco
Petrol Station at Billy Mill has been inexplicably closed for two days.
You can be sure of Esso or was it Shell.

Probably due to them being planned before the 73-74 oil crisis and after the
oil crisis they weren't big enough to be run economically after OPEC
put the prices up,

cheers

Phil

[Hebburn's Gate]

Richard

Wasn't it something to do with the Suez Canal? When the ships were
commissioned, their 'hugeness' was needed because the canal was closed and
the oil had to take the long way round.

But as soon as the canal re-opened the supertankers were less viable than
smaller vessels. Didn't this change happen before the last supertanker was
actually launched?

That's what I seem to remember anyway - mind that could be something to do
with me being one of the happy people "from the South" (and actually in that
dump of a ground in North London on that 1973 day).

Mike

[Richard Hyett]

Post by Dave
Richard
Wasn't it something to do with the Suez Canal? When the ships were
commissioned, their 'hugeness' was needed because the canal was closed and
the oil had to take the long way round.
But as soon as the canal re-opened the supertankers were less viable than
smaller vessels. Didn't this change happen before the last supertanker was
actually launched?
That's what I seem to remember anyway - mind that could be something to do
with me being one of the happy people "from the South" (and actually in that
dump of a ground in North London on that 1973 day).
Mike

Hi Mike,

I looked it up

The best explanation I could find was on this page
http://baegis.ag.uidaho.edu/~myron/html/tanker.htm

VLCC Very Large Crude Carrier

a.. 1971 Seventy-two new VLCCs are entering service, altogether 208 VLCCs
are in operation.
a.. 1973 OPEC increases the cost of oil by 70%. Yom Kippur War breaks out,
and the Suez Canal is closed again.
a.. Sunderland win the FA Cup
a.. 1974 A crisis situation develops in the tanker sector worldwide, yet
still another 100 VLCCs per year are under construction.
a.. 1975 Worldwide oil consumption decreases by 8%. Newbuilding orders are
being cancelled, 85 tankers are placed into lay-up.
a.. 1976 The 'Batillus' with 550,001 DWT becomes the first tanker to exceed
half-a-million tons deadweight.
a.. 1977 Several tanker owning companies go 'belly-up', shipyards are in
critical situations.
a.. 1978 Some of the the earliest VLCCs are being scrapped
a.. 1980 Hong Kong ship owner C.Y.Tung's 'Seawise Giant' with 564,839 DWT is
the largest tanker and the largest man-made structure in the world. After
just two voyages goes into layup and serves as storage vessel later on. Sold
to Norway and re-named 'Jahre Viking'. Specs: Length 1,504', beam 226',
draft 98', 260,851 GRT, 13 knots.
a.. 1980-88 Gulf War between Iran and Iraq, tankers under attack.
b.. 1984 210 tankers are in layup, representing 43% of the world's tanker
fleet. ULCCs have become uneconomical.
c.. 1986 To this date 283 VLCCs have been sold for scrap.
d.. 1987 Supply and demand for tankers have found their balance; oil
prices and freight rates are on the increase.
e.. 1992 Again a surplus of VLCCs on the market. Freight rates sinking
again.
f.. 1996 The 1,000th VLCC is being delivered, the 'Meridian Lion'.
Altogether six vessels with more than 500,000 DWT have been constructed over
the last 20 years.
The worst tanker accidents, many of them due to human error:
a.. 1967 The 'Torrey Canyon' runs onto a reef and breaks apart, 117,000 tons
of oil are leaked into the sea, resulting in disastrous oil pollution. (see
stamps)
a.. 1968 Newcastle win the 'Fairs Cup' .
a.. 1969 Three tankers explode while in ballast condition, 'Marpessa' and
'Mactra' sink right away, 'King Haakon VI' is heavily damaged.
a.. 1974 'Metula' runs aground in the Straits of Magellan, 50,000 tons of
oil are lost.
a.. 1975 'Berge Istra' with 227,557 DWT explodes and sinks within a few
minutes.
a.. 1976 'Urquiola' explodes and strands near La Coruna. 95,000 tons of oil
polluting the shore.
a.. 1978 'Amoco Cadiz' grounds near Brest and breaks apart, spilling 223,000
tons of oil.
a.. 1979 'Atlantic Empress' and 'Aegean Captain' collide in the Caribbean,
spilling 276,000 tons of oil.
a.. 1980 The burning tanker 'Irene's Serenade' sinks in Navarino Bay,
emitting 100,000 tons.
a.. 1980 Three more VLCCs suffer explosions and immediate sinking, the
'Maria Alejandra', 'Albahaa', and 'Mycene'.
a.. 1989 'Exxon Valdez' runs aground on an Alaskan reef, spilling 42,000
tons, resulting in disastrous pollution. The 'Chark 5' suffers an explosion
off the Canary Islands, losing 89,000 tons of oil.
a.. 1996 The 'Sea Empress' goes on the rocks near Milford Haven spilling
85,000 tons of oil.
a.. 1999 'Erika' breaks apart in rough seas in the Bay of Biscay, spilling
17,000 tons of oil.

Single hull oil tankers are to be phased out in 2015. That was decided by
the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in 1999. Shortly before the
single hull oil tanker Erika had collapsed off the French coast. It leaked
more than 10,000 tons of heavy oil, polluting 400 km of coast of Brittany.