Installation of latest generation gantry cranes is currently underway
Delicate operation to offload cranes is on target despite initial weather issues
SOHAR to target 1.5m containers annually
The complex operation to offload three, quayside container gantry cranes that arrived at SOHAR Port and Freezone last week has been successfully completed. Despite initial setbacks due to poor weather, the last of three massive Post Panamax cranes was safely brought to shore by end of day on Tuesday. These high-tech cranes were built to order by ZPMC in Shanghai, and represent a further multi-million Dollar investment by Oman International Container Terminal (OICT) in the future of SOHAR as the new gateway to the Gulf.
As the owner and operator of the cranes, OICT is supervising their delivery and installation in SOHAR following a four weeklong, 6,500-mile sea journey. The offloading is a highly complex engineering challenge. The OICT engineer supervising the operation explains: "We've built temporary rail bridges from ship to shore so we can move the cranes to the quayside. Each crane weighs hundreds of tons, so the transport ship needs to be balanced by water ballast as the cranes are removed in order to keep its height above the water line constant. Add to that the tide movements and the weather, and you can imagine the challenges we are dealing with."
He pauses to instruct the team of Chinese engineering specialists busy with the operation and continues: "Safety is always our number one priority at OICT and this operation has been planned and rehearsed over and over again. Once the crane is on the quay we will need to jack it up to remove the temporary wheels and then we move it very slowly onto its permanent tracks embedded in the quay."
The huge new cranes have an outreach of 52m to service very large container ships, and will be equipped to pick-up two 20-foot containers simultaneously, further increasing productivity in SOHAR. They are part of the new high-tech Terminal-C development which, once completed, will give SOHAR another significant boost in terms of its competitiveness in the Gulf region. The new Terminal-C in SOHAR is planned to be one of the most advanced in the region and is being developed in three phases. Once fully completed, OICT will more than double its current capacity, targeting 1.5 million containers (TEUs) annually.
Andre Toet, CEO of SOHAR Port is sure: "What you see in SOHAR is the face of one of the most successful collaborations this region has seen; the wise vision of Oman's Government coupled with the expertise of the Port of Rotterdam. SOHAR has success written all over it and our new container terminal is just another part of that ongoing story."
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About SOHAR Port and Freezone
SOHAR Port and Freezone is a deep sea port and free zone in the Middle East, situated in the Sultanate of Oman around 200 kilometers northwest of its capital Muscat. With current investments exceeding $15 billion, it is one of the world's largest port and free zone developments and lies at the center of global trade routes between Europe and Asia. SOHAR provides unequalled access to booming Gulf economies while avoiding the additional costs of passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The existing road network and the future rail system and airport provide direct connectivity to the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as well as to the rest of the world. Equipped with deep-water jetties capable of handling the world's largest ships, SOHAR has leading global partners that operate its container, dry bulk, liquid and gas terminals including Hutchison Whampoa, C. Steinweg Oman, Oiltanking Odfjell and Svitzer. SOHAR Port and Freezone is managed by Sohar Industrial Port Company (SIPC), a joint venture between the Port of Rotterdam and the Sultanate of Oman.
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© Press Release 2013
