Here is the link to my latest video, of how a ship is beached and broken up at Gadani! A ship as large as this one, called the FRONT DRIVER (which was a 90,000 ton supertanker), is devoured in about 90 days (or less)! It's really like kids playing with a pinata that holds candy inside - Only over here we are mainly after the steel, and whatever else the ship may contain inside, is a windfall! Yes, I really do feel like a pirate now! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this video from me!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8wCecMTbRQ
Yeah, that is the normal lifespan for a commercial supertanker. I guess cruise ships can last for 4 or maybe even 5 decades (as they are very well maintained and loved by all) - But when it comes these ocean giants, accountants always decide that it is more profitable to scrap this ship and order another new one to be built - Instead of wasting time and energy maintaining this one. And of course Pakistan's ship breaking industry is the largest in the world - So we offer the best price for all types of ships! Nowadays there is also some international regulation that no ship older then 25 years can be allowed to carry cargo - Unless it has been overhauled and retrofitted from one end to the other. Otherwise this sort of thing would happen more often (see link below). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43lBiJIzEPk And since these ships are some of the largest moving objects ever built by man. Upgrading and maintaining them can be extremely costly. So after 20 or so years, it is far better and profitable to send the ship off to Gadani Pakistan!
I knew it was a big operation, but not until towards the end when the view showed all those cranes in the distance did I realize that this was not some fly-by-night operation. Again, thanks. It has left me with a lot of other questions to ponder.
OK, fearlessly fire away - As I'm ready to answer each and every single question! And yes, there is a giant ship beaching almost every other day at Gadani - Sometimes 2 or even 3 in a day! It really is exactly like kids playing with a pinata that holds candy inside... You literary see nothing but ships after ships, from horizon to horizon - Endlessly being devoured! OK, so feel free to ask all your questions, after which I'll show what I got for myself!
I think that has got to be the biggest recycling operation I've ever seen!! It looks as though absolutely nothing is wasted. Much better than leaving these giants to rot away on some beach. Many thanks for taking the time to film this for us.
Sh, That was interesting. NOT the kind of thing I would have searched you-tube for, but it was incredible to learn of it. I never thought about what happened to ships, how long they are in operation etc. That chain was mammoth. How long do those winches, cables, pulleys,equipment, etc last with the abrasive sand constantly in the works? Replaced rarely or yearly? Do they buy these ships through a contract is there an auction where they are bid on??? or is this the only place they are recycled?
You're welcome Eilen! Yes, that is indeed the largest ship breaking site in the world (that I know of). However there are 3 more such places in the world where this sort thing takes place now - In China, in India, and in Bangladesh too. But they are all newcomers to this game (while we in Pakistan have been doing this since the early 70s)... Pakistan's ship breaking industry benefits the country in more then just one way. As aside from providing almost 30% of the nation's steel - They all together pay almost five billion in tax annually. Steel from this source also is of a very good quality. And so it competes very well with the local steel mills (forcing them to keep their prices low). Another great environmental benefit is that when this steel is recycled, only a tiny fraction of our natural resources (like coal and gas) is used - Whereas making steel out of iron ore requires a great deal of fuel/energy... And yes, absolutely nothing is wasted! All the steel (which is 98% of the ship) is totally recycled. Machinery (like power generators and pumps) are sold to different industries. The engines too are cannibalized for spare parts. The wood is also used up, as many of the workers have built their own shacks from it near by. Gadani beach is actually a very unforgiving place. It's basically a rocky coastal desert, where there is no drinking water, and where nothing ever grows... However the continental shelf is very steep in this area - Which is why extremely large ships too have no problem beaching themselves over there! The workers over here are a totally different breed also, as no loafer is tolerated at this place. At first glance it may seem as if these men don't have any luxuries - But it is worth noting that they are being payed over twice the amount they would get elsewhere! But it is a very hard lifestyle, which not everybody can do... The chains, the cables, the heavy duty winches - All are extracted from other ships which have been broken over here in the past. And so whenever something breaks down or becomes worn-out - It is over 90% of the times instantly replaced through the breaking of some other giant ship! Which is why it is said that Gadani supports itself. They are not even dependent on fuel, as each new ship has loads of it in it's tanks - Which is more then enough to power all the ship breaking equipment (like bulldozers and cranes). Each crane however lasts for about 5 years maximum. Only commodities which Gadani beach is dependent upon, is liquid oxygen and LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) - Which are used by those welding torches to cut all that steel. But now there is a liquid oxygen plant built over there also! Now a little about how these giant ships come to Gadani beach... Well, first there is an international auction (in places like Luxembourg, London, or some other off-shore territory). All the ship breakers have their agents over there, and so they each place a bid for the ship. The ship breaker who offers the highest price gets the ship, however it is still not so easy. Because this is where the banks then step in (to cover all the financial issues). So they all then sign an MOU (memorandum of understanding). At this very same time the captain of the ship is making his final delivery. So his last orders are to leave that port empty, and head straight for Gadani - And also get a certificate from that port's authority that the ship is totally empty, and is not carrying any hazardous cargo. Without this certificate, Pakistan's environmental protection agency will not allow the ship to get beached at Gadani shore. So when the ship is totally empty and clean, is when it comes near our coast. But here it waits until the ship is first boarded by party. Which consists of officers from Pakistan customs (to see if there any contraband on it). And the ship breaker himself, along with officials from the bank who will be holding the LC (letter of credit). So after the bankers and the ship breaker are satisfied that this indeed is the same ship they had paid for - Is when the beaching captain and his crew take charge of the ship (as the regular captain is not qualified for beaching). In the case of the FRONT DRIVER, it was captain Siddique (the most popular guy at Gadani) - Who took charge along with one engineer, and a navigator, (and few helpers, including the 2 welders who will have to cut their way out of the ship in the end. All of this happens just a day before the beaching is to take place. So once the all clear signal is given by Pakistan's Maritime Security Agency, the red target flag is placed on the beach - And captain Siddique then moves forward at high tide - While the original captain and crew of the ship oversee other duties, (like packing their bags). However the deal is still not fully done, as the ship needs to beach itself. And so that is the most tense period, from where I started filming! Because if something goes wrong now, then it would amount to a very heavy financial loss... But when the ship is beached safely, they hoist the Pakistani flag on it - At which moment the bank instantly releases the LC (letter of credit). And so the original owner of the ship, (which in the case of FRONT DRIVER was Frontline Management shipping of Norway) gets paid in full! It however does not show in the video - But when the ship hits the beach, a small earthquake is felt by everyone standing on the ground!!! The engine is still kept running until the ship is fully secured on shore at the front - Also, they then fill the tanks with sea water (to make the ship heavy, so that it gets firmly wedged into the sand). And once beached, the ship (legally speaking) is no longer a ship. As it has now become a part of Pakistan's territory - And so without wasting any time, ship breaking then starts!!! By the way, no one has anything nice to say about the animations I made for this video? :'(
I said something good! If you notice, my first entry topic says Excellent. That covers it all. You answered a lot of my questions, especially thorough with how the ship goes through the legal and financial channels to do this. I thought maybe just a phone call saying, Yeah, come on over and beach today, would be all there is to it. 8) What's your next project?
Well, my next project will be installing all the solar panels I got from Gadani beach! Got them at a throw away price (by weight) - They were never used, kept in a ship's compartment, still in their original packing, (to be used in an emergency that never came). And so when that ship got beached, I guess they forgot that it had a few 100 solar panels in storage - So now it's finders keepers!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I swear, breaking these giant ships is exactly like kids playing with a pinata which has candy inside!!! Me and my Solar Panels! ( photo / image / picture from S-H's Garden )
That was an excellent explanation of my questions S-H. Thanks you. It was all very interesting! An yes you did a fine job on the animations, but really the topic was so different that I really was engrossed in the actual filming of the process. I was glad to see your trajectory was spot on when the ship hit its target on the computer. You did fine! Great score on those solar panels, by the way!
By the way, all the lifeboats that are hanging from the ships - They are all bought by the local fishermen, and so used as regular fishing boats. And since they are lifeboats, they are designed not to sink (even when the sea is rough)!
Of all the questions I have concerning this video production, it is the prayers given for a safe and successful beaching that interest me the most. What if it doesn't turn out successful? Were they ignored or not prayed with enough intent? I am not attempting to be iconoclastic. I just find it extremely interesting how all that metaphysical view of existence works.
Well, if the ship beaches itself at the wrong angle, or ends up leaning to one side (which in maritime lingo is called *listing*) - Then cutting the ship takes up a lot more effort. Which is counter productive, as you have to break the ship up quickly, because you don't want to pay the labor cost if the cutting drags on and on... So a safe and proper beaching eventually means that work on it will continue swiftly, safely, and so everybody gets paid generously - On time! There are of course a few horror stories too, of a few workers getting killed while attempting to cut portions of the ship at an odd angle (as it was beached incorrectly)... Other stories are of fistfights breaking out between the officials from the bank, insurance companies, and the ship breaker himself (as the ship beached incorrectly) - Fights which lasted not for minutes or hours, but continued for days (believe it or not)! Authorities (like the local police) also don't want to take any chances by trying to stop such fights (or they too may get dragged into it themselves). So everybody is allowed to really fight it out - Of course, such fight are nowadays very rare, but their legend remains! Which is why the workers pray, that they never get to see such a thing again (as nobody gets paid if it happens). Seriously though, bankers and people from the insurance companies are perhaps the biggest cowards on Earth. Which is why when things go wrong, they are the first to pull out. Which eventually leaves the ship breaker and his workers with a massive headache... A supertanker like this one (FRONT DRIVER) costs a little over a billion Pakistani Rupees. The profit you get from this may be about a 100 million. But if you don't cut the ship up quickly, then your profit will wither away (due to the labor cost). However when things go well, then it is exactly like what you see in my video. So when they hoist the Pakistani flag on top of the ship, it means that everything went according to plan! There is however a local tradition, to invite the beaching captain and his crew for lunch or dinner (depending on the time of the day). It would be taken as an insult if the captain refuses. And so after lunch, (since they have all now become such good friends), the captain is also asked to stay for dinner. So not wanting to be insulting, he would then have to stay for dinner too. And since he stayed for lunch and dinner, he naturally would then be asked to stay till breakfast (since they are now such good friends) - And so the cycle will continue endlessly... Which is why, you can see the beaching captain and his crew quickly getting into their van (before any invitation for lunch or dinner is hurled at them)... I guess the excuse of "my wife needs me" would work as an escape, (but only after a few meanls have been consumed)! One thing worth mentioning tough, is that the food is very fresh and damn tastey - It's actually what these workers themselves catch from the sea!
