Casgliadau Arlein

Starboard bow view of Gearbulk vessel M.V. ROBERT L.D. Tugs also in image.

A century ago, nobody would have dreamed that one day coal would be imported to Cardiff! But in 1972, the 12,705 gross ton bulk carrier Robert L. D. was pictured arriving it Cardiff with a cargo of American coal for the Central Electricity Generating Board, coal that would then be blended with south Wales steam coal for use in local power stations. This vessel was owned by the well-known Parisian shipping firm Louis Dreyfus & Cie. and was part of the Gearbulk pool of vessels in which British, French and Norwegian shipping firms participated. Note the gantry cranes and the discharging grabs on deck. (Source: Shipping at Cardiff: Photographs from the Hansen Collection 1920-1975 by David Jenkins, 1993.)