The cranes are used to load and unload container vessels. The Port said taller cranes will be better able to reach containers stacked high above decks on modern-day megaships.
“This is a commitment to the future of shipping in Oakland,” said John Driscoll, the Port’s Maritime Director. “Vessels are getting bigger and bigger and we’re providing the infrastructure to keep them coming our way.”
The Port said it’s raising the cranes at Oakland International Container Terminal (OICT) in partnership with SSA Marine, the terminal operator. Cost of the project is estimated at about $14 million.
The Port said that crane-raising is part of an overall effort to strengthen Oakland’s competitiveness among West Coast ports. Other projects underway or expected to begin soon include:
Doubling the size of nearby TraPac marine terminal;
Constructing a 287,000-square foot Cool Port for refrigerated cargo transport; and
Developing the first 27 acres of a Seaport Logistics Complex that will attract additional imports and exports.
Technicians began the exacting work of crane-raising last week, pulling the first 3-million-pound unit off its guide rails. In a delicate, 90-minute procedure, it was shuttled to the eastern edge of OICT’s Oakland Estuary dock. That’s where the work will take place beginning next month.
Over a 9-week period, engineers will brace the crane on supports, cut away its lower legs and affix extensions. They’ll return the heightened crane to duty before withdrawing the next one for raising, probably in August.
Port of Oakland begins project to raise height of four cranes
