Established in 1994, Klaipeda Container Terminal (KCT) has grown to become a key part of the Port of Klaipeda, the only port in Lithuania. It is the northernmost ice-free harbour on the eastern coast of the Baltic, and Lithuania’s third-largest city.
In recent years KCT began to handle new types of cargo while expanding its service range, rapidly increasing its business. KCT needed to invest in new container handling equipment to cope with an expected traffic increase of 60% by 2021. KCT already operates eight Konecranes RTGs and two Konecranes STS cranes.
“We’ve been using Konecranes STS and RTG cranes for over twenty years,” says the CEO of KCT. “So when we needed new equipment, we were confident in our decision to buy from Konecranes again. Also, we are looking ahead towards automation, and these cranes offer us that option when we are ready for it.”
KCT is located in the city of Klaipeda, so noise is an important factor, especially at night. The cranes on order are capable of fully electric operation with an external power supply, greatly reducing noise while simultaneously keeping local emissions to a minimum. The Konecranes Gottwald mobile harbour crane is a G HMK 5506 two-rope variant, with a lifting capacity of 125 tons. It will work as a backup for KCT’s STS cranes, providing additional flexibility when handling general and project cargo.
“I thank Klaipeda Container Terminal for their continuing trust in Konecranes,” says Roman Ivanov, Regional Sales Manager EMEA, Konecranes Port Solutions. “The new Konecranes STS cranes will greatly boost KCT’s quayside handling capacity, and the Konecranes Gottwald mobile harbour crane will give KCT great handling flexibility.”