@Mr Miserable This may be too soon to celebrate, but late yesterday evening, news came down that the Canadian federal Minister of Labour appointed a mediator to recommend terms of a settlement to the Vancouver strike within 24 hours (so, by tonight). The union and employers would then have another 24 hours to decide whether to accept and ratify those terms.
It's unclear what the government will do if the deal is rejected by either side, but it's a glimmer of hope, at the very least.
I had a question for you though - and you may not know the answer, but you are way more knowledgeable about marine operations than I am, so I feel like you're better equipped to hazard a guess.
If the strike is miraculously resolved in the next 24 to 36 hours, there will obviously be a period of time required for port operations to get running again. But in terms of clearing the backlog of ships currently waiting, do you think they would go 'first come first serve', or are they more likely to unload ships based on how quickly that cargo can be put onto trucks or trains?
I ask because, looking at the map on VesselFinder, I can see a few vehicles carriers waiting off the coast of Vancouver (in order of originally planned arrival date):
- VIKING SEA
- LAPIS ARROW
- HEROIC ACE* (diverted to Seattle, unknown if she'll come back)
- GLOVIS SPLENDOR
- VIKING QUEEN
- MORNING MARGARETA
- This one hasn't arrived yet, but she's due to arrive on Sunday
I guess my question is more around the fact that only VIKING SEA and MORNING MARGARETA will be carrying Tesla vehicles. The Port of Vancouver has two auto terminals, one in Richmond and one on Annacis Island in Delta/New Westminster.
Are they likely to unload the two Tesla ships in sequence (either before or after the other car carriers) and get all the vehicles onto trains in a combined fashion?