ently call at the Port

of Point Lisas.

PLlPDECO will pro-

vide the LCL Ware-

house facility to re-

ceive, store and

stuff cargo into con-

tainers.

For details on the

proposed proce-

dure and tariffs click

here.

On the 14 October

2013 PLIPDECO will

commence opera-

tions of its Less Than

Container Load (LCL)

Export Initiative.

The Initiative will be

offered specifically

for cargo of CARI-

COM origin being

shipped to other

CARlCOM territories

and will provide ex-

porters with the abil-

ity to ship cargo in

volumes that are

too small to fill an

entire container. The

main driving force

behind this initiative

is to allow for in-

c re as e d i n t ra -

regional trade be-

tween T&T and Car-

ibbean countries.

The service will be

facilitated for ship-

ping lines that pres-

THE PLIPDECO LESS THAN CONTAINER LOAD

(LCL) EXPORT INITIATIVE

Shipping Association of Trinidad & Tobago

July-September 2013

SATT QUARTERLY

Inside this issue:

Members Making News 1

Stakeholder’s Forum 2

Quarterly Recap 3-5

On The Horizon 6

Did You Know? 7

Thought of the Quarter 8

Members Making News

PETROTRIN’S EMPLOYEE RECOGNITION

AWARDS CEREMONY

SATT was not the only organization presenting awards to deserved

recipients on the 14 September. Petrotrin held their Employee Rec-

ognition Awards Ceremony, at Hilton Trinidad, St Ann’s. According

to Energy Minister Kevin Ramnarine, the employees’ steadfast at-

tendance to their duties powered the organization, providing the

impetus with which to sustain Petrotrin’s profitability. Petrotrin Presi-

dent Khalid Hassanali and its Chairman Lindsay Gillette were

among the guests who shared in the employees’ milestones—20,

25, 35, 40, and 45 years. The “star” employees who had served

faithfully for 45 years were Mervin Jack (Exploration and Production)

Marshall Lai King, Charles Nehorah, Frank Providence and Reynold

Ramsamooj (Refining and Marketing) and Freddie Jagessar

(Human Resources). Source: Trinidad Express

Page 2

STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION ON

THE SHIPPING (AMENDMENT) BILL

2013

Originally carded for the 16 July, the stake-

holder consultation of the Shipping

(Amendment) Bill 2013 took place at the

Capital Plaza on Wrightson Road, Port of

Spain on the 11 September.

The Association was represented by

General Manager, E. Joanne Edwards who

ensured that SATT’s concerns were well

documented for consideration.

Despite newly appointed Minister of

Transport, Stephen Cadiz’s and by exten-

sion the Ministry of Transport’s eagerness to

have the bill passed within the next year,

the Association cautioned/advised that the

proposed Maritime Services Authority, as set

Stakeholder’s Forum

out in the Amendment Bill 2013, should

have a policy/bill of its own and requires

further consultation to avoid a repeat of

the current Maritime Services Division.

Source: T&T Newsday & Business Guardian

Page 3

TTCIC’s PRE BUDGET PANEL

DISCUSSION

Shipping Services and Ship Repairs

accounted for 8% of T&T’s Small and

Medium Enterprises (SME) which partici-

pated in a Government supported, SME

Ratings Pilot Programme. The findings were

released at the Trinidad & Tobago Chamber

of Industry and Commerce’s (TTCIC) pre

budget panel discussion on the 15 July at

the Chamber building in Westmoorings. In

attendance was Group C Chairman Ian

Deosaran.

Based on the presentation compiled by

Caribbean Information & Credit Rating

Services Ltd (CARI CRIS), the growth of the

SME sector is critical for economic diversifi-

cation and sustainable employment. It was

found that the major growth hurdles are:

Access to finance

Despite highly liquid banking sec-

tor, 70% of start-up capital come

from personal savings/Only 11%

from commercial banks

Bias towards mortgage and other

fully secured lending

Communication gap between

SMEs and providers of capital

Poor business practices

Limited networks for marketing, and

operational and technical support

Quarterly Recap

From investors' perspective

Lack of liquidity is a problem – exit

strategy (74%)

Lack of research coverage (52%)

Differences in accounting

standards and or poor quality of

financial disclosure (38%)

One tool to help bridge the gap to financial

access is the SME Ratings. The report meas-

ures the SME's business and financial perform-

ance and its ability to sustain or improve its

performance. Each rating is accompanied

by a comprehensive credit report that high-

lights the firm's key strengths and weaknesses.

As a result, SMEs from the pilot project have

been able to use their ratings to:

Renew existing credit lines with their bank

Access new loans from the bank

Negotiate lower interest rates

Attract a joint venture partner

Negotiate credit from international

suppliers

Procure new contracts

Generally improve business operations

Source: www.chamber.org.tt

Page 4

MSD’s BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT

WORKSHOP

“invasive species are one of

the four greatest threats to

the world’s oceans.”

During a three day workshop,

(24-26 July) at the Old Fire

Station on Hart Street in Port

of Spain, organized by the

In te rnat i on a l Mar i t ime

Organization (IMO), the

United Nations Regional

Coordinating Unit for the Car-

ibbean Environment Program

(UNEP-CAR/RCU) and RAC/

REMPEITC-Caribe in coopera-

tion with the Ministry of Trans-

port, Maritime Services Divi-

sion (MSD), participants

gained practical knowledge

on the required Port and Flag

State Control Procedures

under the Ballast Water Man-

agement (BWM) Convention

(2004).

The course consisted of 5

On the 14 August the Stake-

holder Relations Committee

met to discuss/finalize reform

issues in the works. The pro-

posed Droghers’ procedures

were revised as outlined in the

figure to the right. Feel free to

submit your feedback to the

Secretariat.

THE STAKEHOLDER RELATIONS COMMITTEE

Quarterly Recap

modules covering 3 major

themes:

1. The BWM Convention &

Guidelines & other rele-

vant instruments, princi-

ples & strategies of BW

management;

2. The flag, port & coastal

state aspects of BW man-

agement;

3. The monitoring & enforce-

ment (CME) system.

The training was designed to

provide a common set of

knowledge and skills to allow

participants to take appro-

priate action when dealing

with Harmful Aquatic Organ-

isms & Pathogens’ (HAOP);

aquatic organisms or patho-

gens which, if introduced

into the sea including estuar-

ies, or into fresh water

courses, may create hazards

to the environment, human

h e a l t h , p r o p e r t y o r

resources, impair biological

diversity or interfere with

other legitimate uses of such

areas.

In attendance was Ron

Traboulay of National Energy

w h o s i t s o n t h e

National Ballast Water

Committee.

Page 5

75TH “DIAMOND” ANNIVERSARY GALA &

AWARDS

The biggest event on the

Secretariat’s calendar came

to a close on the 14 Septem-

ber at the Port of Spain

Ballroom at the Hyatt

Regency as an enormous

success.

Presentations were made by

the Association’s President; E.

Ashley Taylor, Minister of

Trade, Industry & Investment;

Senator Vasant Bharath,

Director of the Maritime Ser-

vices Division for the Minister

of Transport; Beverly Phillip

and feature speaker Principal

Strategist of WorleyParsons;

Robert West. Award catego-

ries and recipients were:

Outstanding Contribution

to the SATT & Industry

~ Mr. Colin Edghill

~ Capt. Rawle Baddaloo

~ Mr. Noel Jenvey

~ Mr. Cedric Stone

~ Capt. Bjorn Anderson

~ Mr. Michael Marshall

Earliest President Living

~ Mr. Ignatius S. Ferreira

Right on the heels of the Gala,

the Caribbean Shipping Asso-

ciation’s (CSA) seminar at the

Kapok Hotel took place over

the course of 2 days, 16-17

September.

Geared towards ship Agents

from all spectrum of the value

chain, participants, both local

and regional, received hands

on training from Course facili-

tators Dr. Fritz Pinnock, and

Dr. Ibrahim Ajagunna, Ex-

ecutive Director and Direc-

tor of Academics of the

Caribbean Maritime Insti-

tute respectively.

The Role of the Ship Agent,

The Agent’s Legal Relation-

ship, Critical Issues Relating

to Ports and Considerations

Relating to the Arrest of

CSA PORT AGENCY SEMINAR

Quarterly Recap

First SATT President of the

Car ibbean Shipping

Association

~ Mr. Michael Blackman

Active Founding Member

~ Gordon Grant & Co.

Ltd

~ Alstons Shipping Lim-

ited

~ Huggins Shipping &

Customs Brokerage

Ltd.

Most Significant Financial

Contributor

~ Seaboard Marine

Leadership

~ Mr. Barry Antoni

Service (Organization)

~ Trinidad & Tobago

Pilots’ Association

Service (Individual)

~ Mr. Rhett Chee Ping

Vision

~ Capt. Rawle Baddaloo

Innovation

~ Container Recovery &

Billing

Leadership Development

~ PLIPDECO

Ships were among the many

areas covered.

Closing remarks were

delivered by SATT President

Mr. E. Ashley Taylor.

The Secretariat extends a

warm “Thank You” to all who

helped make the event

possible.

Event sponsors were: Trinidad

& Tobago Pilots’ Association,

Maritime Industry Develop-

ment Committee, Seaboard

Marine, PLIPDECO, Trinidad

Cement Limited, PATT,

Caribbean Shipping Agen-

cies, Gulf Shipping, National

Energy, Bridge Control Ser-

vices Limited, Arthur Lok Jack

graduate School of Business ,

L.J. Williams, Gordon Grant,

Alstons Shipping and Angos-

tura.

Look out for the Anniversary

C o m m e m o r a t i v e f o r

in-depth coverage and

event pictures.

Page 6

CSA’s 43rd ANNUAL GENERAL

MEETING, CONFERENCE &

EXHIBITION

The Caribbean Shipping Association’s (CSA)

43rd Annual General Meeting, Conference and

Exhibition will be held at the Sheraton Panama

Hotel on 7 October.

As part of the exhibition, more than 300

maritime industry executives will be transported

across the isthmus by train to Colon and a visit

to the Panama Canal Expansion project. The

43rd AGM, Conference and Exhibition, will end

with the CSA’s annual Gala Banquet and

Awards. The event will be highlighted by the

announcement of the annual Caribbean Port

Awards.

Time has also been set aside for networking

activities thus allowing participants to meet

and discuss business matters and to initiate

contact with potential partners, Participants –

CSA members and Observers – are expected

from more than 20 countries in the Americas

and Europe.

Want to make a last minute registration, click

here.

INTER-GROUP MEETING

With the return of the Group Meetings in June, it

was thought by some members that an open

Group meeting would help facilitate an under-

standing and appreciation of the mandates and

limitations faced by the Groups and allow for the

discussion and possible resolution of common

operational problems.

On the Agenda as well is a legislative update of

all pending amendments affecting the Industry. A

Senior Legal Consultant from the Maritime

Services Division has also

been invited for a briefing.

The meeting is scheduled for

17 October at 8:30am.

All are invited.

On The Horizon

Page 7

THE STORY BEHIND THE WOODFORD

SQUARE FOUNTAIN

In 1831, before the abolition of slavery in Trinidad, a Scot named Gregor

Turnbull arrived to take up a position as a clerk in a local firm called George

Reid & Co. By the time Emancipation was declared in 1834, Turnbull returned

to Scotland and established himself as a merchant in Glasgow, laying the

foundations of his ship owning activities. He purchased two sugar estates; St.

Helena and Santa Margarita in Naparima and then the estate and factory at

Brechin Castle. Gradually, he acquired other estates and so his enterprises

prospered both in Trinidad and England. These properties would go on to

form the Caroni Sugar Estate (Trinidad) Limited in 1924.

In 1845 indentured labourers were bought up from India and China under

Government regulations. Turnbull played his part in both their transport and

employment. In Trinidad, Turnbull's trading and shipping interest were carried on

with local partners. In Port of Spain, the firm was Turnbull, Stewart & Co. while in

San Fernando, the supplying of estates and the conduct of the sugar business

was done through Turnbull Ross & Co. Both firms were established before

1845 and the two locations were linked by a fleet of sailing lighters which

formed the shipping and waterfront business of Turnbull. Important functions of

that firm included the reception and dispatch of the sailing ships in Gregor

Turnbull's fleet, the distribution of imported merchandise for the various

estates and business houses, the shipment of sugar and disembarking the

immigrants.

For many years the company operated two local coastal services and

cargo from Port of Spain. They first sailed a course northwards to the islands

situated in the narrow channel between Trinidad and Venezuela stopping at

Carenage while the second sailed along the Gulf of Paria to Cedros stopping

at San Fernando and La Brea.

The pattern of his enterprises was, Trinidad plantations and factories, trading as

Turnbull & Co. produced the raw sugar which was shipped in the Glasgow

sailing ships of Gregor Turnbull & Co, dispatched by Turnbull Stewart & Co,

Trinidad, who arranged consignments as agents and on arrival, Gregor

Turnbull & Co. as merchants sold the sugar to refineries thus completing the

chain of production from planter to buyer. This very shrewd businessman

played a major role in the development of the sugar and shipping industry in

Trinidad and he is remembered as one of the founding forefathers of the

economy of the country.

In April of 1879, Gregor Turnbull died. The following was taken from the Port of

Spain Gazette, April 19, 1879. It is but part of a lengthy obituary which was

written about the deceased two days after his death. "For him it may be said

that he never took up a single property, either as purchaser, mortgagee or

supplier, which was not immediately beneficiary to by the connection. Bold

but prudent, Mr. Turnbull never entered into any business in a half hearted

way; what he took up he carried through. A determined man himself, he had

the rare virtue of inspiring others with similar determination. And we question

much, if the greater part of Mr. Turnbull's success in life may not be traced to

that greatest factor in all success ­determination of character. Of his public

gifts, two may be mentioned, the handsome fountain which adorns

Brunswick Square (now Woodford Square) which he presented to the town

and his return to the Colonial Chest the sum of 51359 pounds, out of his

contract for carrying coolies in 1869."

Did You Know?

Page 8

Thought of the Quarter