Associated British Ports (ABP) has announced that two new ship-to-shore (STS) cranes worth £11.5 million (US$14.3 million) have left manufacturers in China on their way to the Port of Immingham, UK’s largest port by tonnage, as part of the Humber Container Terminal expansion.
The new equipment, which is part of a £33million (US$41 million) upgrade and improvement programme at Immingham Container Terminal (ICT), is expected to arrive later in the Summer and should be fully in service by early Autumn.
The new cranes are supplied under a Kalmar JV with Rainbow Cargotec Industries with its product custom made for Immingham. The cranes make working on the terminal more efficient and increase productivity, according to ABP, due to the reliability of the machinery, while their simplified modular design is lightweight and durable, making maintenance easier.
These cranes are designed to load and unload sea-going vessels for ISO-standard containers. Once the cranes arrive, a full training & familiarisation programme will be provided by Kalmar and delivered to ICT operatives.
“The £33 million investment at the Humber Container Terminal in Immingham is a great step forward to future proofing the terminal and alongside the £14 million recent investment in the sister container terminal in Hull means that the provision for containers in the Humber will now be outstanding,” commented Simon Bird, regional director of ABP Humber.
In preparation for the arrival of the new cranes, earlier this month, one of the current ship-to-shore cranes were moved on to Henderson Quayside (Immingham) by Mammut SPMT’s as part of the final phase of the planned investment to expand and upgrade the terminal.
ABP has continued to invest in the Humber Ports. In 2018, the container terminal in Hull expanded which saw sailings increase from five to 15 per week in a short space of time, adding new destinations as partners.