10-Nov-2005

The Port of Felixstowe has taken delivery of one ship-to-shore gantry crane (SSGC) and nine rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGCs) and from Zhenhua Port Machinery Company (ZPMC) of Shanghai.

The cranes have been transported – fully erected – by sea from China, a journey that has taken nine weeks. Upon arrival in Felixstowe, their special braces were removed and they were checked to see if any modifications were needed. Following full commissioning tests, it is anticipated that the cranes will be fully operational by the end of the year.

The new RTGCs are capable of lifting one container over five and can straddle seven rows of containers. The SSGC can handle containers stowed 22-wide and can twin-lift containers up to a weight of 85 tonnes. The arrival of the SSGC will increase the number in operation at Trinity Terminal to 25.

Richard Pearson, Managing Director of Hutchison Ports (UK) Limited, said:

“The Port of Felixstowe is committed to investing in the latest equipment to ensure that we maintain high levels of customer service and productivity. It is due to this commitment that we are able to handle the biggest container vessels in service today, such as the MSC Pamela, and the Gudrun Maersk, which both visited the Port in August.”

He continued:

“Furthermore, the UK’s container ports will be reaching capacity within the next couple of years. The planned developments at Felixstowe South and Bathside Bay will help to ease the country’s need for additional deep-water container handling capacity in the long term, and hopefully this new equipment will enable the Port of Felixstowe to cope with trade growth in the meantime.”

The arrival of the new machinery means that the Port has invested in six SSGCs and thirty-seven RTGCs over the past five years. Another twelve RTGCs are set to arrive at the Port in May 2006.