Port of Virginia announces next wave of crane deliveries
The heavy-load vessel Happy Buccaneer is on berth today at Norfolk International Terminals (NIT) with the first group of six rail-mounted gantry cranes (RMGs) that are the centerpieces of the $375 million capacity expansion project underway at that terminal.
The Happy Buccaneer’s arrival signals the start of an 18-month cycle that will see the delivery of 60 new cranes to NIT. In January 2018, construction on the NIT expansion got underway and the project will be complete by mid-year 2020. The work will expand NIT’s annual throughput capacity by 400,000 container units.
The vessel is safely on berth and pre-offloading work is underway. The RMGs will be off-loaded, mounted on rails, taken through some minor assembly, tested and then put into service by the end of September, when the first three of 30 new container stacks at NIT will be ready for use.
In November 2016, the port finalized a $217 million contract with Konecranes to build and deliver 86 RMGs. Roanoke-based TMEIC is supplying the technology systems that will drive and control the cranes. The contract is the largest one-time RMG order for in industry history.
In June, The Port of Virginia® accepted the last load of 26 new RMGs at Virginia International Gateway (VIG), where $320 million is being invested to expand cargo capacity and operations. The new cranes will support cargo operations in 13 new container stacks.
The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The VPA owns and through its private operating subsidiary, Virginia International Terminals, LLC (VIT), operates four general cargo facilities Norfolk International Terminals, Portsmouth Marine Terminal, Newport News Marine Terminal and the Virginia Inland Port in Warren County. The VPA leases Virginia International Gateway and Richmond Marine Terminal. In fiscal year 2013, The Port of Virginia provided more than 530,000 jobs and generated $88.4 billion in total economic impact throughout the Commonwealth.
