ICTSI’s Buenaventura Terminal Gets First Cranes
Philippine-based port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) has taken delivery of four super post-Panamax quay cranes and five rubber-tired gantry cranes (RTGs) at the Aguadulce Multi-User Container Terminal (AMCT) in the Port of Buenaventura, Colombia.
Estimated to cost around USD 50 million, the equipment purchase is part of ICTSI’s USD 545 million total investment in the Port of Buenaventura.
AMCT is currently in the final stage of preparation and will be ready for the operational launch in 2016. The terminal will be operated bu Sociedad Puerto Industrial de Aguadulce S.A. (SPIA), a unit of ICTSI in Colombia.
Manufactured by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. (ZPMC), the quay cranes have an individual lifting capacity of 60 tons, and feature twin lift spreaders. They can reach up to 65 meters into the water and perform up to 40 moves per hour. With a maximum lift height of 46 meters, the crenes are capable of servicing 18,000 TEU Triple E class vessels. The RTGs, on the other hand, feature single spreader lifts and a 41-ton capacity.
The development of the AMCT is divided into three phases. The first phase, which is slated for completion by April next year, will yield an annual capacity of around 600,000 TEUs.
First phase development includes a 600-meter berth length with a 14.5-meter controlling depth, an 11-hectare container yard, a 250-meter coal bulk dock, conveyor belt-equipped silos and a 21-kilometer access road leading to the terminal.
It also includes the construction of warehouses and inspection areas, as well as the deployment of automation and other port technologies.
In July 2007, ICTSI won the 30-year concession for the construction and operation of a container terminal and grains and coal-handling facility at the Port of Buenaventura.
ICTSI also acquired stakes in two Panamanian companies to gain effective control of SPIA, which owns 240 hectares of land in the Aguadulce Peninsula and its surroundings.
In 2013, ICTSI and PSA International of Singapore entered into an agreement to jointly develop and operate the container terminal and its ancillary facilities.
