MV Geysir
Encyclopedia
MV Geysir is a U.S.-flagged
Flag State
The flag state of a commercial vessel is the state under whose laws the vessel is registered or licensed.The flag state has the authority and responsibility to enforce regulations over vessels registered under its flag, including those relating to inspection, certification, and issuance of safety...
general cargo/container ship
Container ship
Container ships are cargo ships that carry all of their load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. They form a common means of commercial intermodal freight transport.-History:...
owned by TransAtlantic Lines LLC
TransAtlantic Lines LLC
TransAtlantic Lines LLC is an American shipping company based in Greenwich, Connecticut. The limited liability company was founded in 1998 by vice-president Gudmundur Kjaernested and president Brandon C. Rose. The company owns and operates 5 vessels, including one tug-and-barge combination...
. Originally named Amazonia, the 90-meter ship was built by American Atlantic Shipping in 1980 to serve a route from the United States to Brazil. In 1983, the ship was seized by the United States Maritime Administration for nonpayment of government loans.
In 1984, it was renamed Rainbow Hope and leased by a small startup company to serve a route between the United States and the American military base
Naval Air Station Keflavik
United States Naval Air Station Keflavik is a former NATO facility at Keflavík International Airport, Iceland. It is located on the Reykjanes peninsula on the south-west portion of the island...
at Keflavik, Iceland. As Rainbow Hope the ship was central in an international disagreement between the United States and Iceland that would span years, be compared by The Chicago Tribune to the plot of the movie The Mouse That Roared
The Mouse That Roared
The Mouse That Roared is a 1955 Cold War satirical novel by Irish-American writer Leonard Wibberley, which launched a series of satirical books about an imaginary country in Europe called the Duchy of Grand Fenwick...
, and involve political personalities including Antonin Scalia
Antonin Scalia
Antonin Gregory Scalia is an American jurist who serves as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. As the longest-serving justice on the Court, Scalia is the Senior Associate Justice...
, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Ken Starr, Elizabeth Dole
Elizabeth Dole
Mary Elizabeth Alexander Hanford "Liddy" Dole is an American politician who served in both the Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush presidential administrations, as well as a United States Senator....
, George Schultz, and Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
.
After finally losing the Iceland route, the ship was renamed Juno, bought by Norwegian owners and worked in the Norwegian trade from 1996 to 1999. In 1999, it was bought by TransAtlantic Lines, renamed Geysir and put back on the U.S.–Iceland route, leading to further tensions between the United States and Iceland. After the 2006 closing of the United States Naval Station in Keflavik, the ship has gone on to carrying cargo to U.S. activities in the Azores.
Construction
Then named Amazonia, the ship's keel was laid on 1 January 1977 at Equitable Shipyard in MadisonvilleMadisonville, Louisiana
Madisonville is a town in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 677 at the 2000 census. It is part of the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. Its hull, constructed from ordinary strength steel, has an overall length of 90.1 metres (295.6 ft), a beam of 13.7 metres (44.9 ft), and a moulded depth of 6.7 metres (22 ft). Its three general cargo holds have a total bale capacity of 2945 cubic metres (104,001.7 cu ft) or grain capacity of 3341 cubic metres (117,986.3 cu ft). The ship has a gross tonnage
Gross tonnage
Gross tonnage is a unitless index related to a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage...
of 2,266 GT and a total carrying capacity of .
Amazonia was built with eight ballast tanks, having a total ballast capacity of 770 cubic metres (27,192.3 cu ft). Other major features of the ship's structure include its five diesel oil tanks, two lubricating oil tanks, two potable water tanks, a chain tank, and a waste water tank. The ship was built with two cranes, which have since been removed.
The ship features a MAN B&W Diesel
MAN B&W Diesel
MAN Diesel SE was a provider of large-bore diesel engines for marine propulsion systems and power plant applications. MAN Diesel employs over 7,700 staff, primarily in Germany, Denmark, France, the Czech Republic, India and China...
A/S 8L28/32A main engine with eight 280 millimetres (11 in) cylinders with a 320 millimetres (12.6 in) stroke for maximum continuous power of 1961.98 kW driving a bronze propeller. Electrical power is generated by two 400 kW auxiliary generators. Construction of the ship was completed in 1980.
History
In the early 1980s, the company American Atlantic Shipping, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Maritime Industries, built three 2,000 DWT multi-purpose ships to carry cargo between the United States and Brazil: the Amazonia and her two sister-ships, America and Antilla. In 1983, the United States Maritime Administration took possession of the three ships after American Atlantic defaulted on Title XI payments.Rainbow Hope
In May 1984, entrepreneur Mark W. Yonge of Monmouth County, New JerseyNew Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
founded Rainbow Navigation for the sole purpose of serving the route between the United States and United States military base
Naval Air Station Keflavik
United States Naval Air Station Keflavik is a former NATO facility at Keflavík International Airport, Iceland. It is located on the Reykjanes peninsula on the south-west portion of the island...
at Keflavik, Iceland. Using money he earned from a ship-chartering company, Younge chartered Amazonia from the Department of Transportation and renamed it Rainbow Hope. The company consisted of one ship, a crew of 22, and seven full-time employees. Icelandic companies had serviced the Iceland route since the late 1960s. Yonge submitted a bid quoting the same rates that the Icelandic companies were charging and invoked the Cargo Preference Act of 1904. Rainbow won an $11 million contract to carry 70% of the cargo on the route, and immediately began to work the route under contract to the Military Sealift Command
Military Sealift Command
The Military Sealift Command is a United States Navy organization that controls most of the replenishment and military transport ships of the Navy. It first came into existence on 9 July 1949 when the Military Sea Transportation Service became solely responsible for the Department of Defense's...
.
According to an official of the U.S. State Department speaking on the condition of anonymity, "Almost right at the start, Iceland let their feelings be known about losing the business... For the Icelanders, who are entirely dependent on seagoing trade, it was an issue of national sovereignty." Minister Counselor for the Icelandic Embassy in Washington, Hordur Bjarnason informed the Reagan Administration
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
that Iceland "could not accept that a foreign shipping company would have a monopoly on carrying the cargo to Iceland."
Before Rainbow Hope ever left the pier, the Department of Transportation approached Rainbow trying to defuse the situation. The New York Times characterized the ensuing fight as Rainbow Navigation versus "the Navy, the National Security Council and the Departments of State, Defense, Justice and Transportation to the President himself." During 1985, Iceland raised the matter with the United States Department of State at least six times, including a meeting in Lisbon in June of that year between Secretary of State George Schultz and Foreign Minister of Iceland Geir Hallgrimsson
Geir Hallgrímsson
Geir Hallgrímsson was the 16th Prime Minister of Iceland for the Independence Party from 28 August 1974 to 1 September 1978. Geir was mayor of Reykjavík from 1959 to 1972. During his term as mayor he greatly expanded the city and improved the inner structure...
. Schultz described the matter as a "major irritant in U.S.–Icelandic relations" and relations were strained to the point that Iceland threatened to start boarding U.S.-flagged ships and to close the Keflavik base.
Schultz's State Department attempted to solve the problem in a number of ways. It tried and failed to have the 1904 Cargo Preference Act amended. It made an offer to pay Icelandic shipping firms monetary damages for loss of the route, which was refused. President Reagan asked United States Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
John F. Lehman, Jr. to determine if Rainbow's claim under the Cargo Preference Act was valid, and on 8 August 1985, Lehman declared Rainbow's rates to be "excessive and unreasonable." Within four days, Rainbow pressed suits in United States District Court against "the Department of the Navy and various other federal agencies" as well as "the Secretary of the Navy and various other government officials in their personal capacities." The suits demanded declaratory
Declaratory relief
Declaratory relief is a judge's determination of the parties' rights under a contract or a statute, often requested in a lawsuit over a contract. In theory, an early resolution of legal rights will resolve some or all of the other issues in the matter....
and injunctive relief from the federal agencies and monetary damages from the named individuals. The International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots
International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots
The International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots or MM&P is a United States labor union representing licensed mariners. It is the marine division of the International Longshoremen's Association....
, representing Rainbow Hopes crew, joined Rainbow in the suits.
On 15 October 1985, the District Court issued its order, granting Rainbow's requests for declaratory and injunctive relief, and ordered the government to withdraw a call for new bids. The government appealed the finding. On 27 January 1986, the panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of appeals consisting of future Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia
Antonin Scalia
Antonin Gregory Scalia is an American jurist who serves as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. As the longest-serving justice on the Court, Scalia is the Senior Associate Justice...
, future Starr Report
Starr Report
The Starr Report was an investigative account of United States President Bill Clinton by Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr and released on September 11, 1998.-Background:...
special prosecutor Kenneth Starr
Kenneth Starr
Kenneth Winston "Ken" Starr is an American lawyer and educational administrator who has also been a federal judge. He is best known for his investigation of figures during the Clinton administration....
and Senior Circuit Judge Carl E. McGowan
Carl E. McGowan
Carl E. McGowan was a United States federal judge.Born in Hymera, Indiana, McGowan received an A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1932 and an LL.B. from Columbia Law School in 1936. He was in private practice in New York City from 1936 to 1939. He was a member of the faculty of Northwestern Law School...
upheld Rainbow's victory. During the appeal, the government's attorneys conceded that Lehman's finding of Rainbow's rates to be "excessive and unreasonable" was politically motivated, and the court found some arguments put forth by Shultz and Lehman "extraordinary" and having "no rational basis". In particular, Scalia wrote that the "factual basis for (Lehman's) assertion (wa)s utterly lacking." During this time, Transportation Secretary Elizabeth Dole
Elizabeth Dole
Mary Elizabeth Alexander Hanford "Liddy" Dole is an American politician who served in both the Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush presidential administrations, as well as a United States Senator....
supported Rainbow, according to the Chicago Tribune, as a viable employer of United States mariners.
Eight months later, the government took a different approach to solve its problem with Rainbow, in the form of the 1986 Treaty Between the United States of America and the Republic of Iceland to Facilitate Their Defense Relationship. This treaty, negotiated by future Secretary of Veteran Affairs
United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
The United States Secretary of Veterans' Affairs is the head of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, the department concerned with veterans' benefits and related matters...
Ed Derwinski
Ed Derwinski
Edward Joseph Derwinski is an American politician who served as the first Cabinet-level United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs, serving under President George H. W. Bush from March 15, 1989 to September 26, 1992...
, updated the 1951 U.S.–Iceland treaty, adding an explicit exemption of the Cargo Preference Act, guaranteeing 35% of the contract would go to Icelandic companies, and giving Icelandic companies an opportunity to compete for up to 65% of the contract." At the time, Derwinski said, "If we don't solve this problem, then the U.S. will be in a cod war". The United States Senate ratified the treaty one day before Reagan left for Reykjavik to attend a summit meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
. Reagan met with the President of Iceland, Vigdis Finnbogadottir
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir is an Icelandic politician who served as the fourth President of Iceland from 1980 to 1996. In addition to being both Iceland's and Europe's first female president, she was the world's first democratically elected female head of state...
, before seeing Gorbachev, giving his guarantee that the majority of the contract would be returned to Icelandic shipping companies.
Though a tumultuous time, Rainbow Hope kept at least part of the Iceland route from 1987 through late 1990. In the 1987 bidding, Rainbow was the only U.S. company to bid. Bids from Icelandic competitors were lower, giving them 65% of the carriage rights, while Rainbow Hope secured the remaining 35%. In the 1988 bidding, the Navy changed the bidding process in a way Rainbow found unfair, and Rainbow took a new case to the Washington D.C. District Court. By May 1988, the court had issued a preliminary injunction
Preliminary injunction
A preliminary injunction, in equity, is an injunction entered by a court prior to a final determination of the merits of a legal case, in order to restrain a party from going forward with a course of conduct or compelling a party to continue with a course of conduct until the case has been decided...
halting the bidding process and ordering carriage be continued under the terms of the 1987 contracts. In November 1988, the court granted a summary judgement for Rainbow, finding the new bidding system illegal. This judgement held for nearly two years, but was ultimately overturned on 24 August 1990, when a panel of Judges Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Ruth Joan Bader Ginsburg is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Ginsburg was appointed by President Bill Clinton and took the oath of office on August 10, 1993. She is the second female justice and the first Jewish female justice.She is generally viewed as belonging to...
, Douglas H. Ginsburg
Douglas H. Ginsburg
Douglas Howard Ginsburg is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He was appointed to this court in October 1986 by President Ronald Reagan. He served as its Chief Judge from July 16, 2001 until February 10, 2008...
and David B. Sentelle
David B. Sentelle
Judge David Bryan Sentelle is the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.- Early life and education :...
of the U.S. Court of Appeals, Washington D.C. Circuit, reversed the lower court's decision.
Operational incidents
In addition to the almost non-stop succession of challenges related to the contracts on the U.S.–Iceland run, Rainbow Hope was involved in a few notable operational incidents. The most notable of these involves a labor strike that prevented Rainbow Hope from discharging cargo, keeping the vessel at anchor for 22 days. The ship was scheduled to depart bound for Iceland on 24 September 1984, but the U.S. Government and Rainbow were aware there was the possibility of a strike by Icelandic longshoremen scheduled to begin on 4 October. Rainbow Hope arrived at NjarðvíkNjarðvík
Njarðvík is a town in south-western Iceland located on the peninsula of Reykjanes. As of 2009, its population was 4,400.-History:In 1995 it merged with the town of Keflavík and the village of Hafnir to form the new municipality of Reykjanesbær....
, Iceland on 8 October, while the strike was already underway. Rainbow repeatedly contacted the U.S. government for instructions, but none were given. The ship remained idle at anchor for 22 days unable to discharge its cargo. The strike ended on 30 October, and the cargo was delivered the next day. The government paid Rainbow $266,370.50 for the delivery, but Rainbow filed suit in the 3rd Circuit Court seeking remuneration for the extra 22 days of waiting. The court denied the claim, and appeals lasted until 24 June 1991, when the appeals court upheld the earlier decision.
Other operational incidents of note include a 1988 fire during a return voyage from Iceland to the United States which forced the ship to stop in Newfoundland for repairs, and a crane breakdown on 15 November 1991 during cargo operations that required repairs be made in Praia da Vitória
Praia da Vitória
Praia da Vitória is a municipality in Portugal's Autonomous Region of the Azores. The second largest administrative division on the island of Terceira, Praia da Vitória occupies the northern coast of the island and extends halfway into the interior having at its frontiers Pico Alto and the shield...
, Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
.
Juno
The ship's certificate of inspection was deactivated by the United States Coast Guard on 9 May 1994, rendering it unable to move. On 28 March 1996, the vessel had been sold to "owners in Jamaica" and the Coast Guard prevented the ship from receiving oil and proceeding from its berth until a valid certificate of financial responsibility could be provided.In late 1996, the ship was purchased by the company Noro of Haugesund
Haugesund
is a town and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.-Location:Haugesund was separated from Torvastad as a town and municipality of its own in 1855. The rural municipality of Skåre was merged with Haugesund on January 1, 1958. Haugesund is a small municipality, only 73 km²...
, Norway under a 6,000,000 Norwegian krone
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
(approximately $800,000 in 1998 U.S. dollars) mortgage by Sparebank 1 SR-Bank. On 31 December 1996, the new owner registered the ship under the Norwegian International Ship Register
Norwegian International Ship Register
Norwegian International Ship Register or NIS is a separate Norwegian ship register for Norwegian vessels aimed at competing with flags of convenience registers like Panama, Liberia etc. Originally proposed by Erling Dekke Næss in 1984 it was established in Bergen in 1987 and is managed by the...
and wages for the journey to Norway were guaranteed by Sparebanken Rogaland. The ship was inspected in Hampton Roads, Virginia, on 22 April 1997. On 30 June 1998 it was transferred to the Norwegian Ship Register
Norwegian Ship Register
The Norwegian Ship Register or NOR is a domestic ship register for Norway. The register is managed by Norwegian Ship Registers .-Registration:All ships over 15 metres must register, as must offshore platform and equivalent...
. It was spotted by amateur enthusiasts in Haugesund on 26 October 1998. On 12 January 1999, the ship was renamed Juno. On 17 November 1999, the ship was declared free of financial encumbrances and sold to the American company TransAtlantic Lines.
Geysir
Babson College
Babson College is a private business school located in Wellesley, Massachusetts near Boston.- History :Babson College was founded by Roger Babson on September 3, 1919, as the Babson Institute. It was renamed "Babson College" in 1969...
, Brandon C. Rose, came from an affluent family whose yearly business revenues were estimated at $200 million per year. Rose offered to back the company, and together they started the two companies TransAtlantic Lines LLC and TransAtlantic Lines Iceland in February 1998. The two were originally even partners in both ventures. Shortly thereafter, they accepted an offer from shipping company American Automar to purchase 51% of the company, along with a never-exercised option to buy 51% of another Icelandic company largely owned by Kjærnested, Atlantsskip.
The company made several preparations to bid for the Iceland contract. Rose secured a million-dollar letter of credit from the State Bank of Long Island to back early operations. The company did not yet own any ships, but did secure four letters from U.S. shipping companies pledging to supply vessels sufficient to cover the charter requirements. One of the pledged vessels was the supply boat Native Dancer.
Eight bids for the 1998 U.S.–Iceland run were solicited by the Military Traffic Management Command on 30 January 1998, and six bids were received. Observers speculate that the bids were from the Icelandic company Eimskip, Dutch shipping company Van Ommeren, Atlantsskip, TransAtlantic Lines, and TransAtlantic Lines Iceland. In September 1998, the Military Traffic Management Command awarded 65% of the Iceland contract to TransAtlantic Lines Iceland, the lowest overall bidder, and the remaining 35% to the TransAtlantic Lines LLC, the lowest bidder among American shipping companies. The portion awarded to TransAtlantic Lines LLC had a cumulative total value of $5,519,295 and was set to expire by 31 October 2000.
Within a month, TransAtlantic re-flagged Juno to the United States and renamed it Geysir at the Port of Jacksonville
Port of Jacksonville
The Port of Jacksonville is an international trade seaport on the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida. The newest port in the United States, it carries over 21 million tons of cargo each year and has an annual impact of over $19 billion, including 65,000 jobs...
. In response to the awards, the government of Iceland lodged a protest with the U.S. State Department, arguing that "TLI was not a true Icelandic shipping company" and "lacks the necessary experience, technical capability, financial responsibility, and material connection with Iceland" Shipping companies Van Ommeren Lines (USA) and Eimskip of Iceland, which had previously serviced the Iceland route, sued the United States protesting the award. The district court found for Van Ommeren and Eimskip, requiring the Army to re-start the bidding process. TransAtlantic appealed the decision, and on 11 January 2000 the Court of Appeals reversed the lower court's decision, finally securing the contract for TransAtlantic.
On 4 December 2000, members of the Coast Guard Marine Safety Office observed an accidental discharge of approximately 250 gallons (946.4 l) of diesel fuel from one of Geysirs tank vents into the Elizabeth River. In 2001, the Coast Guard of Iceland detained the vessel leading the American Bureau of Shipping
American Bureau of Shipping
The American Bureau of Shipping is a classification society, with a mission to promote the security of life, property and the natural environment, primarily through the development and verification of standards for the design, construction and operational maintenance of marine-related facilities...
to temporarily revoke the ship's safety construction certificate and safety equipment certificate.
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
well over, the United States ceremonially disestablished Naval Air Station Keflavik and its twenty-three tenant commands, a process begun that March. The closure marked the end of the 65-year military presence, the last 45 years of which coordinated under the United States Navy with activities of the National Guard, Air Force, and Army.
On 3 February 2009 the United States Transportation Command awarded TransAtlantic a $15,078,334 contract to carry cargo between the United States and the terminal in Praia da Vitoria
Praia da Vitória
Praia da Vitória is a municipality in Portugal's Autonomous Region of the Azores. The second largest administrative division on the island of Terceira, Praia da Vitória occupies the northern coast of the island and extends halfway into the interior having at its frontiers Pico Alto and the shield...
, Azores. This contract, serviced by the Geysir, is expected to be completed by 29 February 2012, and was a 100 percent Small Business Set Aside acquisition with two bids received.
, the ship is owned
Ship-owner
A shipowner is the owner of a merchant vessel . In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and exploits a ship, usually for delivering cargo at a certain freight rate, either as a per freight rate or based on hire...
and operated by TransAtlantic Lines LLC
TransAtlantic Lines LLC
TransAtlantic Lines LLC is an American shipping company based in Greenwich, Connecticut. The limited liability company was founded in 1998 by vice-president Gudmundur Kjaernested and president Brandon C. Rose. The company owns and operates 5 vessels, including one tug-and-barge combination...
. The company currently owns and operates 5 vessels, including one tug-and-barge combination. Four of these vessels are chartered by the Military Sealift Command
Military Sealift Command
The Military Sealift Command is a United States Navy organization that controls most of the replenishment and military transport ships of the Navy. It first came into existence on 9 July 1949 when the Military Sea Transportation Service became solely responsible for the Department of Defense's...
, and perform duties such as delivering cargo to U.S. military activities in Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia is a tropical, footprint-shaped coral atoll located south of the equator in the central Indian Ocean at 7 degrees, 26 minutes south latitude. It is part of the British Indian Ocean Territory [BIOT] and is positioned at 72°23' east longitude....
and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. TransAtlantic Lines has no collective bargaining agreements with seagoing unions.