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The MV Saginaw enters the Ludington channel on May 28, 2025. MCP File Photo.
By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief
ST. CATHARINES, Ontario, Canada — A fleet of ships, including three that make visits to local ports, have been sold. Algoma Central Corporation recently acquired Mainstay Maritime, Inc.’s three Canadian operating companies and associated fleet of six Canadian-flagged vessels. Mainstay, formerly Rand Logistics, Inc., operates one of the largest Jones Act-compliant fleets serving the Great Lakes, specializing in the movement of dry bulk and liquid cargoes. The transaction includes Lower Lakes Towing Ltd. and its associated operating companies as well as six associated Canadian-flagged vessels: Kaministiqua, Manitoulin, Robert S. Pierson, Saginaw, Michipicoten, and Valo.
In 2025, the Manitoulin and the Saginaw made visits to the Rieth-Riley Construction aggregate dock on Pere Marquette Lake while the Robert S. Pierson delivered aggregate to the Rieth-Riley Construction dock on Manistee Lake.
“We are incredibly proud of the shore and vessel team who built Lower Lakes into the respected Canadian maritime operator it is today and grateful for each team members’ contributions,” said Greg Binion, CEO of Mainstay Maritime. “Algoma is an excellent steward for Lower Lakes, with deep experience and a long history of operational excellence in maritime shipping on the Great Lakes. For Mainstay, this transaction represents a natural step in Mainstay’s evolution for the long-term benefit of all our constituencies – allowing us to sharpen our focus on the U.S. Jones Act market, increase our reinvestment in our U.S. Flagged fleet, and position the Company to meet the growing needs of our customers.”
The MV Robert S. Pierson on the Manistee River on Nov. 21, 2025. MCP Photo.
Algoma President and CEO Gregg Ruhl, said Algoma is pleased to grow its Canadian dry-bulk fleet with the addition of Lower Lakes’ vessels and their crews.
“With a long history on the Great Lakes, we understand what it takes to deliver safe, dependable marine transportation and this acquisition enhances our ability to provide exceptional marine transportation services to our customers across the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Seaway,” Ruhl said. “Mainstay Maritime’s commitment to safety, reliability, and high-quality service aligns with our operational values and we intend to maintain the highest level of safety and respect as we welcome the Lower Lakes team into the Bear Family.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close this spring.
Algoma Central Corporation is a global provider of marine transportation, owning and operating dry and liquid bulk carriers that serve critical industries throughout the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Region and internationally.
The Saginaw was built as the John J. Boland (3) in 1953 by Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co. in Manitowoc, Wis., the same year as the SS Badger, which was built at Christy Corp. in Sturgeon Bay, Wis. The Saginaw was one of only three self-unloading ships constructed on the Great Lakes in the 1950s. Its original namesake, John James Boland, was a co-founder of Boland & Cornelius, the precursor to American Steamship Co., its original owner. In 1999, the ship was sold to Lower Lakes Towing LTD.
It is 639 feet, 3 inches long with a breadth of 72 feet and a depth of 36 feet.
When built, the Saginaw was powered by a De Leval cross compound steam turbine driving one shaft rated at 7,000 shaft horsepower, with two Foster-Wheeler water tube boilers that burned fuel oil. In 1986, a 1,000 hp bow thruster was installed. In 2007, its turbine was replaced by a MaK 6M43C six cylinder diesel engine which generates 8,160 brake horsepower.
The ship has a cargo capacity of 20,200 gross tons.
The MV Manitoulin enters Pere Marquette Lake on Oct. 23, 2025. MCP Photo.
The Manitoulin was built in 1991 as a saltwater tanker at Uljanik Shipyard, Pula, Croatia and was named the Trelsi until 2001. It is 662 feet long, 77 feet wide and has a depth of 44 feet, 11 inches. The vessel was then named the Euro Swan from 2001 to 2011 and the Danish-flagged Lalandia Swan from 2011 to 2015. Its bow section was rebuilt with a 265-foot self-unloading boom from 2014 to 2015 at Chengxi Shipyards, Jiangyin, China (source, “Know Your Ships”). It began Great Lakes service on Dec. 1, 2015 and was the first new river class self-unloader to be introduced into Great Lakes service in over 40 years. That record was broken with the introduction of Interlake Steamship Company’s MV Mark W. Barker, built by Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, Sturgeon Bay, Wis. in 2022.
The Manitoulin can carry 27,550 tons at maximum seaway capacity and has an operating speed of 14.2 knots per hour (16.34 mph).
The name Manitoulin is derived from the Native American Ojibway language and means “spirit island”. Manitoulin Island, located in northern Lake Huron in Ontario, is the largest freshwater lake island in the world and is home to a major limestone quarry.
The Robert S. Pierson was built by American Shipbuilding Co. of Lorain, Ohio and began service as the Wolverine in 1974. It was originally owned by Union Commerce Bank of Cleveland Ohio and operated by Oglebay Norton Corp. For the next 32 years, it was operated by various divisions of Oglebay Norton, which assumed ownership of the ship in 1994.
In 2006, Oglebay Norton sold its fleet to Wisconsin and Michigan Steamship Co., which was owned by Sand Products Corp. of Muskegon. In 2008, the Wolverine and its two sister ships, the David Z. Norton and the Earl W. Oglebay, were acquired by Grand River Navigation of Traverse City, which then sold the Wolverine to its Canadian partner, Lower Lakes Towing of Port Dover, Ontario. The name was then changed to Robert S. Pierson. The David Z. Norton was renamed the Calumet and the Earl W. Oglebay was renamed the Manitowoc.
The Robert S. Pierson is 630 feet long, 68 feet wide, and has a depth of 36 feet. It is operated by two Alco V16 engines and has a top speed of 11.5 knots (13.2 mph). It has a capacity of 19,600 tons.
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