Due to weather concerns, McKeil is suspending the submarine tows from Hamilton to Port Maitland until Monday, September 7.  Safety for our crew and to the environment is our first responsibility, we do appologize for the delay.  Updates will continue to be posted online.  Thank you for your understanding.

The Tony Mackay and Molly M, two of McKeil Marine's tugs will be arriving in Hamilton with the Okangan Submarine August 20th at 01h00.

The pictures below displays an operation carried out by Nadro Marine, a subsidiary of McKeil Marine, loading cargo in the port of Hamilton.  The cargo was brought over from Europe on the M.V. Daniella, a vessel owned by the Jumbo Shipping Company.  Nadro assisted in discharging the M.V. Daniella using her massive deck cranes, which have a 250 ton capacity, to move the cargo onto the deck of the barge OC 181.  The barge was prepared by the Mckeil Nadro team to be able to accept the three 170 ton units on its deck. In the photo, Nadro’s Vigilant I is keeping the barge steady while pushing and pulling on the pushing knee.  The extensive planning of the McKeil and Nadro team made the complex load appear quite simple.  

McKeil Marine Limited is proud to be towing the Oberon class submarines from Halifax to Port Maitland.  Due to a lot of public interest in viewing these submarines, we invite you to check back often for updates on the submarine tows.

Currently the Olympus submarine is tied up in the Port of Hamilton awaiting a dry tow on a barge to Port Maitland.  The Okanagan will be loaded in Halifax next week around August 10th on a floating drydock supplied by Heddle Marine and towed to Hamilton, she is expected in Hamilton around August 19th.

Due to Port regualtions and safety, access to the submarines will not be possible, however McKeil Marine will update the general public on the departure from Hamilton to Port Maitland for the final leg of the voyage.  We recommend going to the Burlington Piers or anywhere along the waterfront where it is open to the general public.  

Estimated Time of Departure from Hamilton for Olympus: August 22nd - August 26th

Estimated Time of Departure from Hamilton for Okanagan:  August 22nd - August 26th

These times are estimates and are not confirmed, as we move closer to final part of the tow, McKeil Marine will update on the date and time of departure so all can enjoy watching a piece of Canadian Navy History sail past.  Please check back often for updates.

Here are a few links to news articles regarding the tows:

http://www.thespec.com/news/local/article/570202--submarine-arrives-on-her-final-voyage

http://shipfax.blogspot.com/2011/07/sub-tow-underway.html

McKeil Marine would like to congratulate John Grech who will now be our Vice President of Business Development, Transportation.  John's Strong analytical skills and many years of experince as the Logistics Manager of a large company provide him with the unique ability to understand the needs of our transportation customers.  John has already been an integral part of the Business Development team and has been involved with many of our current customers, making this a very natural fit.

Paulo Pessoa will now focus his efforts on projects.  As Vice President Business Development, Projects, Paulo understands the needs of our customers who are undertaking complex projects.  With Paulo's extensive knowledge of our many assets, this will allow him to source and equip our customers with the appropriate equipement to meet all their needs.  

McKeil Marine Limited is pleased to announce the appointment of Steve Fletcher as President, effective immediately.

In his new role, Mr. Fletcher will be responsible for the day to day operations of the McKeil Group of companies. 

Mr. Fletcher is an accomplished marine executive, with more than 10 years of industry experience.  He joined McKeil Marine in 1999 as the Vice-President, Finance.  His achievements include the successful restructuring of reporting and accountability systems, as well as being a key success to developing and growing new business ventures. His broad business education including a Bachelor of Commerce specializing in marketing and a MBA specializing in finance, provides a solid foundation for all aspects of the business.

McKeil Marine has been hired to perform a wet tow of a casino ship from Chicago to Quebec City.  The tow began in late November and will be complete mid December.  At this time of year the weather is quite unpredictable which can account for a longer than normal tow. 

The vessel was bought by a company in India and will eventually end up in beautiful Goa, India.  Once McKeil has delivered the casino vessel it will be dry towed to its final destination where it will begin its new life.  The dry tow is expected to take anywhere from 30 to 40 days.

Today marks another milestone for McKeil Marine as we have just been issued the ISM certification for the tug John Spence.  The purpose of the code is to provide an international standard for the safe management and operation of ships and for pollution prevention. With hard work and dedication we can accomplish just about anything working as a team. 

We are a proud family and place safety and the safety of our environment at the top of our for priority list for all our crew and all that work with McKeil.  Part of the objective of being ISM certified is to ensure a safe working environment while sailing and the prevention of injury or loss of life.  It also ensures the avoidance of damage to the environment, in particular to the marine environment and to property.

Congratulations to Capt. John Gruszewski who has worked very hard to achieve such high standards and continues to do so as our Manager of Safety, Security and Environment; and to the Officers and Crew of the John Spence for achieving this goal.

McKeil Marine has been hired to tow the HMCS Fraser from Halifax, Nova-Scotia to Port Maitland, Ontario.  The Fraser, a destroyer served in the Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Forces for nearly forty years before being decommissioned in 1994.  

This was no ordinary destroyer, she was a St. Laurent class of Canadian warship.  It was the the first naval vessel to be conceived and built in Canada, her design was not only influential in Canada's Navy but she also influenced international Navy design.  The Fraser, capable of sealing itself off from biological and radioactive threats made her a force to be reckoned with.  

This is the last remaining vessel of its class and will be towed by the tug, Tony Mackay to Port Maitland located in Lake Erie where she will be scrapped.