North Carolina Loop

Low mileage day today, only traveling 14 miles. I didn’t leave Steve’s dock until around 1:15pm. Bill and Mike started their day from where they anchored about 22 miles north of me. After leaving Steve’s I came back out on the Elizabeth River, then turned north towards the Lafayette River, where I met Bill. Mike was still exploring Bennet Creek up near where they spent the night. Bill and I explored the Lafayette River, and then turned around to come back out, meeting Mike along the way. We are all anchored now near the Lamberts Point Coal terminal. I understand we export good grade coal, and import lower grade coal. This is some information on the Lamberts Coal Terminal:
Lamberts Point Coal Terminal is the largest, fastest, and most efficient transloading facility for coal in the Northern Hemisphere. Opened on the Elizabeth River around 1865, the NS-served and operated transshipment terminal boasts an annual throughput capacity of 48 million tons. While the facility handles utility and metallurgical coals, most of its business involves the export of met coal, which is loaded onto ocean-going vessels and shipped to countries across Europe, Asia, South America, and beyond for use in steel production. At the heart of the terminal is the 1,850-foot-long Pier 6, in use since 1962. Operated 24/7, the pier features two 18-story-tall ship loaders that enable the facility to load two vessels simultaneously. Twin tandem rotary dumpers tip over railcars brimming with 100 tons of coal, feeding the ship loaders for a combined loading capacity of up to 8,000 tons per hour.
With its versatility, Pier 6 can load vessels ranging in size from small coastwise barges to large Cape-sized colliers. Both loading berths and the lay berth are dredged to allow loading to a 50-foot draft. The ship loaders can accommodate vessels with a beam of 175 feet and an air draft of 74 feet.A special competitive advantage is the terminal’s ability to offer complete coal blending and mixing services for both metallurgical and utility coal applications. A four-stage sampling system, operated independently by Sampling Associates International, can provide ASTM- ISO-approved samples for all cargoes.Читать далее