Two Giant Cranes for Centerm Arrive in Vancouver

Wednesday, July 27, 2005

VANCOUVER, July 26 /CNW/ - Two of the world's largest container cranes are due to arrive in English Bay tonight aboard a heavy-lift vessel from China destined for Centerm in the Port of Vancouver.

Costing $19.2 million they have been purchased by P&O Ports Canada Inc. as part of a $148 million redevelopment project aimed at doubling capacity at the terminal by March 2006.

One of the Port of Vancouver's major container handling facilities, Centerm is operated by P&O Ports Canada under a long-term lease from the Vancouver Port Authority.

Built by Zhenhua Port Machinery Company of Shanghai, the two cranes, each the height of a 35-storey building and weighing 1,350 metric tonnes, are capable of servicing the world's largest container ships, twice the size of those currently trading to Vancouver.

"This is an exciting day for us and a major milestone in the redevelopment of Centerm, a project we began in August last year that is on schedule and on budget," said P&O Ports Canada Inc., President and Chief Executive Officer, Darcy Clarkson.

"It is evidence of P&O's long term commitment to growth in Vancouver and we will be ready to handle the increased volume of containers that we know is coming."

The Vancouver Port Authority has projected that container volumes through the port will more than triple by 2020, up from the 2004 figure of 1.7 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units, a standard industry measure).

"These cranes represent a tangible step toward increased capacity and improved efficiency at the Port of Vancouver. We estimate that the Centerm expansion will generate $700 million in new economic activity every year. That will translate into thousands of jobs for people in our local communities, across British Columbia and elsewhere in Canada," said Captain Gordon Houston, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Vancouver Port Authority.

Clarkson said the additional cranes, bringing Centerm's total to five, will enable it to service two vessels simultaneously. Customers will benefit from increased productivity, faster handling and shorter vessel turn-around times.

Over the next three days, the A-frames on the cranes will be lowered so they can be safely transported under the Lions Gate Bridge on Saturday. Once offloaded, tested and commissioned, they are expected to be in service in six weeks.

Related Links: www.portvancouver.com/