Port Of Halifax Welcomes New Post Panamax Crane
February 26, 2002
Arrival of New Crane Highlights Economic Contribution of Port
Halifax, NS - The Halifax Port Authority (HPA) is pleased to welcome the arrival of the Port's third post panamax crane and 10th shoreside gantry crane. The crane is expected to arrive today, February 26th between 12:30pm and 2pm AST.
The crane will be installed at the Fairview Cove Container Terminal operated by Cerescorp Company. The arrival of the new crane is testament to the increased readiness of the Port of Halifax to handle the next generation of container vessels.
"This is a tremendous investment by Cerescorp and an important addition to the Port," said HPA CEO Karen Oldfield. "Shipping lines are clearly moving towards larger vessels in all trades and we are ready for them. The Port of Halifax has many advantages to complement the Ceres investment including deep water channels and berths."
The giant crane will have the capacity to lift 65 tonnes. It will have an outreach of 59 meters and 22 containers wide, and will easily accommodate the newer, wider container ships currently in use around the world. The crane arrives in Halifax after a long sea journey from Shanghai throughout which it was braced for bad weather and heavy seas. The crane will remain in the outer harbour anchored near the Coast Guard base for final preparations. It is expected to be fully operational later this spring.
Post panamax ships are named as such because they are too wide to travel through the Panama Canal. A typical post-panamax vessel carries more than 6000 containers and has a width of over 17 containers across versus the largest panamax ship, which carries approximately 4800 containers and is 13 containers wide.
"The arrival of this crane marks one more step forward in the development of a world-class port," said Oldfield. "Our vision for the Port of Halifax is clear and in focus."
About Halifax Port Authority
The HPA is a government business enterprise mandated by the Federal Minister of Transport. The HPA leads in the development of the Port of Halifax, serving as a catalyst for the local, regional and national economies and has a mandate to be financially viable.
The Port of Halifax has a total annual income impact of $670 million dollars and an employment impact of over 9,000 direct and indirect jobs.
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