MARCH 2017

www.endeavourmagazine.com

GIBRALTAR PORT AUTHORITY

The Gateway To The Mediterranean

INSPIRED BY YOUR SUCCESS

 GIBRALTAR PORT AUTHORITY
WWW.GIBRALTARPORT.COM
350 200 46254

www.littlegatepublishing.com

THE GATEWAY TO
THE MEDITERRANEAN
WRITTEN BY DJAMIL BENMEHIDI

The sight of Gibraltar, fondly nicknamed ‘The

Rock’ after the 1,398-foot high limestone rock
foundation that has awed mariners and sailors
since the time of the Ancient Greeks, is one
which continues to evoke powerful feelings in
those who set eyes upon it even now, more than
3,000-years later.
GIBRALTAR PORT AUTHORITY

Located near the south-western tip of Europe on the Iberian

Peninsula, Gibraltar is a place with a maritime heritage that few other such
locations in the world can equal. Former glories and nostalgia from the old
days of empire have little bearing on Gibraltar’s relevance today, however
- in so competitive a globalised world, there is no room for such sentiment.
Where once the peninsula’s value was entirely military in nature, serving
as a bristling naval fortress and defensive gateway into and out of the
Mediterranean, today, Gibraltar’s strategic usefulness is built upon its
considerable commercial value.

I t is perhaps only natural how, in keeping with The Rock’s unique

history, Gibraltar remains a magnet for maritime traffic. Gibraltar
is a bustling hive of commercial activity and a fast-growing
tourism hub, but it is thanks to the same quirk of geography that
once made it so coveted a military asset that has seen the territory
grow to become a prime location for bunkering – the principal
activity for which the Port of Gibraltar is best known. Great volumes
of maritime traffic pass through the Strait of Gibraltar as they set
sail for the world’s arterial shipping lanes, and of this passing traffic,
somewhere in the region of 9,000 ships call into port with over
63% of those for bunkering.
“Gibraltar is a bustling commercial centre, and with approximately
60,000 vessels transiting the Strait of Gibraltar each year, of which
approximately 15% call into the port, the Rock has developed into a
major bunkering port – the largest in the Mediterranean,” said Bob
Sanguinetti, the CEO of Gibraltar Port Authority and Captain of the
Port of Gibraltar. He continued: “Gibraltar is a maritime ‘Centre of
Excellence’, located at a crossroads between the Mediterranean
and Atlantic shipping lanes. The Port of Gibraltar is ideally placed
to provide a wide range of services to vessels of all sizes and types,
including bunkering, crew changes, hull cleaning, surveys, provision
of stores and spares, among others - and with over 245 million
gross tonnes of vessel calls per year, this is clearly the case.”
Even in spite of the slowdown in global economic activity and
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GIBRALTAR PORT AUTHORITY
the overcapacity of cargo shipping which continues to blight the
sector, it is telling that in 2016 the Gibraltar Port Authority (GPA)
reported an increase in the number of vessels calling at port for the
second successive year – a doubly impressive achievement, taking
into account the stiff competition from rival ports in the region. This
positive trend doesn’t only reflect the number of vessels calling to
bunker, however, but also the sharp rise in the number of visiting
cruise ships and super yachts: clear evidence that a far-reaching
marketing campaign designed to increase tourism numbers, and a
number of multi-million-dollar investments aimed at modernising
and upgrading Gibraltar’s amenities and attractions have borne
fruit.
On this, Sanguinetti said: “An increasing number of superyachts
have taken advantage of the new berths at the recently
commissioned Mid Harbour Marina to extend their stay on the
Rock. The GPA also recorded a rise in ship-to-ship transfers in the
bay, off-port limit transfers, and in occupancy rates at the Eastern
Anchorage. The challenge will be to continue the growth trend, and
an aggressive marketing campaign and direct engagement with ship
owners to better understand their needs, will continue throughout
2017 to ensure that the Port of Gibraltar keeps providing the best
possible support to the shipping community.”
The matter of meeting such challenges whilst overseeing the
day-to-day management of one of Europe’s most iconic ports has
fallen to Gibraltar Port Authority (GPA), which was established
in 2005 to consolidate and further develop the port’s standing
as a maritime centre of excellence. In-line with its remit, ”to
build on Gibraltar’s unique geographical position, and provide
a vital link between all shipping stakeholders in order to deliver
the best possible service to visiting ships,” GPA provides an
extensive portfolio of shipping services. Suffice to say, the list of
responsibilities that are required of the Port of Gibraltar and the
Gibraltar Port Authority is exhaustive, and to ensure their effective
and efficient delivery requires a superior level of commitment,
flexibility, and transparency from Gibraltar Port Authority and its
54 highly-trained staff. Furthermore, the sheer number of vessels
that enter and leave Gibraltar’s territorial waters means that a
strong emphasis must be placed on safety of navigation, through
the Authority’s monitoring and direction.
Meet these responsibilities it does, and it does so through its
commitment to professional excellence. Gibraltar Port Authority
and Port of Gibraltar have a strong reputation in this respect,
and cooperates closely with stakeholders and the wider maritime
industry in Gibraltar, as well as with a number of global partners,
including ship owners, operators, and cruise operators. The forging
of such strong relationships has proved to be fundamental to
GPA’s success over the decade since it was established, as has
the strong support from the Government of Gibraltar which has
facilitated much-needed infrastructure and facilities improvement.
Additionally, the Gibraltar Port Authority is also a long-standing
committed member of the International Bunker Industry
Association (IBIA), which acts as the voice of marine fuel suppliers
and the end-user, for which the Port Authority recently hosted a
prestigious conference.
In terms of what the future holds, there are a number of plans
which, upon their completion, will further enhance the Port of
Gibraltar’s operations and capabilities. Summer 2017 will see the
installation of a state-of-the-art Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) system
which will greatly enhance the port’s safety of navigation operations.
The system, which is being installed by Kongsberg Norcontrol, will

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GIBRALTAR PORT AUTHORITY

be housed in a new four-storey port tower, designed to provide
sweeping views over the busy Strait of Gibraltar and entrance
into the Bay of Gibraltar. When asked to elaborate more on the
project, Sanguinetti said: “In addition to increased functionality, the
contract (for the VTS system installation) includes a comprehensive
maintenance package, together with the benefits of software
updates/upgrades over the course of the next five years, with
future-proofing for the proposed introduction of e-Navigation.
It also includes four high-specification infra-red CCTV cameras
further-enhancing the port’s VTS team’s ability to monitor and
control shipping in British Gibraltar Territorial Waters.”
The most exciting development in the pipeline, however, is a plan
for the design and construction of an LNG bunkering facility, which
upon its completion will allow the Port of Gibraltar to deliver LNG
as a bunker fuel to ships at anchor – a move which will set Gibraltar
and its service offerings apart from any of its Mediterranean rivals.
Interest in using LNG as a bunker fuel has risen following the
implementation of EU policies aimed at increasing the use of this
clean, low-emission fuel across all forms of transport.
“HM Government of Gibraltar and the Gibraltar Port Authority
made an announcement last year on the signing of a bunker
market development agreement with Shell, a significant milestone
on the road to delivering LNG as a bunker fuel to ships at anchor
in Gibraltar. This is also part of the Port of Gibraltar’s strategy
to provide the widest range of marine services as it looks to the
future,” concluded Commodore Sanguinetti. He finished by saying:
“In March 2016, the Government of Gibraltar invited proposals
for the design and construction of a land-based marine fuels
storage and bunkering facility with a minimum storage capacity of
225,000cbm in the Mediterranean bunkering hub. This once again
reinforces the Port of Gibraltar’s green credentials and aspirations
to remain the premier bunker port in the Mediterranean and, more
widely, a ‘centre of maritime excellence’ at the strategic gateway to
the Atlantic Ocean.”

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