COKALIONG LAUNCHES ITS BIGGEST AND FASTEST SHIP

DESPITE THE ECONOMIC DECLINE DUE TO THE PANDEMIC, COKALIONG ACQUIRES ITS 14TH RORO-PASSENGER VESSEL.

The country's shipping giant, Cokaliong Shipping Lines Inc. (CSLI), outdoes itself once again as it launches its biggest and fastest ship to date, the M/V Filipinas Mindanao, on July 4, 2020.

ACCORDING to CSLI Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer Chester Cokaliong, even amid the Covid-19 crisis, the company has not halted its operations.

He said: "Since March and up to now, our shipping operations have remained normal except that we don't carry passengers, only cargo. There has been an increase in cargo volume because of the demand."

Cokaliong has been an important factor in keeping Cebu's economy robust even during the Covid-19 crisis as it carries fresh vegetables and fruits from the provinces of Mindanao to Cebu every day. It also delivers basic and essential commodities from Cebu to parts of Visayas and Mindanao.

Formerly named M/V Feelease Soya, the M/V Filipinas Mindanao was built in April 2001, with its homeport in Wakkanai City, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. The 19-year-old vessel has an overall length of 95.70 meters, a breadth of 15 meters and a gross tonnage of 3,810.

Powered by two units of Daihatsu 3,200 HP for its main engines and two units of Daihatsu 500 KVA for its auxiliary engines, the M/V Filipinas Mindanao has a service speed of 18 knots. She has the biggest passenger capacity with 934 and biggest cargo space in the entire Cokaliong fleet.

It is classed under the Italy-based Registro Italiano Navale (RINA), a member of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), which is dedicated to maritime safety and regulations through its technical support and compliance verification. The ships under IACS are surveyed annually in order to guarantee the seaworthiness of the ships and to adhere to the quality of standards in structural and machinery design, construction, operation, maintenance and repair.

The M/V Filipinas Mindanao boasts a brand-new Taiyo Electric Co. Ltd. engine monitoring system. It is the fifth vessel in the fleet to have this system.

It also comes equipped with an SSB Radiotelephone, VHF Radiotelephone with Digital Selective Calling (DSC), Automatic Identification System (AIS), Global Positioning System (GPS), GPS Video Plotter, Echo Sounder, Gyro Compass and Magneitc Compass, Navigational Telex (NAVTEX), Search and Rescue Transponder (SART), Bridge Navigational Watch Alarm System (BNWAS) & two Radars with Automatic Radar Plotting Aid (ARPA) .

Even with zero maritime accident in its 30 years in the maritime business, passenger safety is a non-negotiable for CSLI. It goes beyond the minimum technical regulations and has a sound program in place to ensure that its flawless record remains just that.

And because CSLI is committed not just to passenger safety but comfort as well, its newest vessel will also have a lounge in one of its classes, with reclining seats.

The CSLI invested about P430 million (including acquisition, renovations and taxes) in the M/V Filipinas Mindanao, which will replace the M/V Filipinas Cebu because of the former's bigger passenger and cargo capacity. The M/V Filipinas Mindanao will ply the Cebu-Surigao route, while the M/V Filipinas Cebu will be diverted to another existing port.

The addition of the M/V Filipinas Mindanao is expected to generate additional employment of 50 officers and crewmembers.