Tema, Ghana’s largest port has made global headlines recently over the “crippling disruptions” caused by an impounded Argentinean military ship blocking a busy berth. The obstruction has come at an in-opportune time for Tema, where activity should be ramping up to the peak pre-Christmas period. It also highlights the importance of ongoing efforts to enhance capacity and efficiency both at Tema and Takoradi, the country’s second-largest port.

The Argentine navy frigate Libertad was seized by the Ghanaian authorities after a court passed an injunction from an investment fund allegedly owed cash by the Argentinean government after the latter’s debt default in 2001. Buenos Aires has refused to post a USD20 million bond to release the ship, and the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) has said that it does not expect resolution any time soon.

As of late-October, most of the Libertad’s crew had been returned to Argentina, but the ship remained in Tema’s berth eleven and several other ships were backed up to use the port.

The GPHA complained of “considerable and substantial hardship and financial losses” and international press reports suggest that shipping firms using Tema might have to divert to other ports in the region, or levy charges that would increase import costs for Ghanaians.

Congestion

Even before the Libertad situation, Tema was already suffering from congestion during periods of high traffic. A report by UK Trade and Investment earlier this year described the port as being “under considerable strain”. Meanwhile, traffic at the port continues to increase. Cargo throughput at Tema rose by 26.4% in 2011 to 11 million tonnes, while container volumes grew 28.3% to 756,899 TEU. At Takoradi, port traffic rose 23.2% to 4.94 million tonnes and container throughput was up 6.7% to 56,595 TEU. These figures were partly achieved after a previous dip related to the global economic crisis, but initial figures from this year indicate that momentum has been maintained, despite continued international uncertainty. Overall port trade volumes grew 11% in the second quarter to 4.85 million tonnes, according to the Ghana Shippers’ Authority, the sector regulator, as reported in the local press. The increase in traffic can be attributed to Ghana’s rapid growth and the related increase in demand for its commodity products, as well as the rise in imports to its fast-expanding economy.

Tema has already made some efficiency gains, thanks in no small part to the involvement of the private sector through Meridian Port Services (MPS). MPS is a joint venture between GPHA (with a 30% stake) and Meridian Port Holding Company, a consortium of Denmark-based APM Terminals and France’s SDV and Bolloré. The firm operates two of Tema’s 12 berths in a container terminal constructed on a public-private partnership (PPP) agreement. In 2011, MPS handled around 80% of the container volumes at Tema, while berth occupancy rose to 78% from 55% in 2004, according to the GPHA. Container vessel time at berth was 32.55 hours in 2011, down from 44.6 hours in 2005 – though up from 23.7 hours in 2010.

An increase in maximum vessel length to 250m from 230m in 2011 was a step in the right direction. However, Tema still lags behind regional competition, such as the ports of Apapa in Nigeria, Lome in Togo and Abidjan in the Cote d’Ivoire. Tema’s draught of 11.5m means that some ships have to call elsewhere first to lighten loads or avoid Ghana altogether.

Expansion plans

To this end, the GPHA has outlined plans for expansion. These include deepening the draught to 16m, which would allow access to vessels of up to 10,000 TEU, and adding seven new terminals, including a container facility and terminals for passengers, “roll on-roll off” vessels, fruit and sugar, and trans-shipment, at a total cost of USD1.5 billion. While no solid timeline for the development has been announced, the GPHA is likely to seek a PPP for the development.

The expansion of Takoradi, which serves the emergent oil industry, is also progressing. The GPHA has plans for a three-phase, USD750 million development of the port and in September the authority signed a contract with Belgian dredging firm Jan De Nul for the construction of a breakwater, a jetty to handle bulk mineral ores, and for the dredging of the harbour to increase the draught from 12m to 16m. The GPHA also inked an agreement with the China Harbour Engineering Company for the USD150 million first phase of Takoradi’s expansion, financed by a Chinese loan. The first two phases, worth an estimated USD344 million, are expected to take two years to complete.

The Libertad situation has helped to highlight the fact that capacity at Ghana’s ports is tight, particularly given rising traffic driven by the country’s economic success. As improvements made at Tema in recent years indicate – and as Ghana’s tight budgetary position also suggests – bringing in the private sector may be the best way to implement both expansion and improvements in management and efficiency.

In this issue we are not only looking at Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHCs) but also at the development and use of the Balance Crane.  The latter has seen great leaps in development – from size to greater efficiency. In fact, the development would follow in the ‘natural’ development steps that we have seen with the MHCs. But there is still a market [or need] for smaller MHCs for those ports and terminals that do not have the throughput to justify the financial investment for a large MHC.

Sennebogen

As mentioned in the balance crane article in this issue we see a growing interest in the recycling sector for the use of balance cranes and MHCs. One of the companies in the market that has recorded some recent successes in this market sector is Germany-based Sennebogen. The latest project the company is working on involves the replacement of ‘older’ versions of their machines with their new state-of-the-art models at Almex, a subsidiary of the Scholz Group in Szczecin port, Poland.  Almex operates in the traditional scrap trade, and recently has been focusing on disposing of and recycling of non-ferrous metals and batteries. Ship dismantling is also carried out directly at the site. The company is relying completely on Sennebogen machinery for their daily operations and logistics at the terminal.

The newest addition to the fleet, a Sennebogen 835M special is used directly on the quay. Thanks to the additional elevation, combined with the elevating maXcab comfort cab, ships with a capacity of up to 5,000 tonnes can be loaded securely and comfortably. A large proportion of the material collected by the company leaves the site by water destined for France and Belgium for further processing. Space is at a premium, particularly when old ships that have reached the end of their service life are at the site for dismantling. The 835M is perfect for this task thanks to its maximum range of 18m, which enables it to stack and sort the material to be stored high on the scrap heap. It can also be used later to load incoming ships with widths of up to 14m. Three more machines are also in use at the site, an additional 835M, 825M and 830M, used for dismantling ships and various other tasks. A major advantage of the mobile material handling machines is their enormous flexibility. Equipped with 800 l HGT grab, the machines supply the 880 tonnes scrap shears in 12 hour operations. Whole ship sections also have to be loaded on a regular basis. In this way, Almex handles around 10,000 tonnes of scrap each month.

Earlier this year, Sennebogen delivered a new 835E to another loyal customer – Elzinga in the Netherlands. Currently, Elzinga has 12 machines from Sennebogen in operation at their facility and handles around three million tonnes of scrap and piece goods each year at the port of Eemshaven, located in the North-East of the Netherlands. Mainly sand and gravel, as well as round timber, grain and waste are loaded and unloaded from numerous ships each day.

Gottwald Port Technology

Back in June, Gottwald Port Technology also acknowledged the need for smaller cranes with the launch of its Model 2. After the company introduced its ‘Large Crane Family’ at the beginning of 2006 on the occasion of the market launch of Generation 5, and consisting of the high-performance Models 6, 7 and 8, it then added its Models 4 and 3 in 2007 and 2010 respectively to expand the range of cranes through the ‘Medium-Sized Crane Family’, which is designed for standard requirements.

With Model 2, the successor to the HMK 170 (more than 150 of this model were sold), the last of the Generation 4 models has now been replaced while, at the same time, presenting the first member of the ‘Small Crane Family’.

In launching its Model 2, Gottwald, a subsidiary of Demag Cranes, has produced a harbour crane that is specifically designed to meet the needs of smaller terminals in maritime and river ports. The new model has a maximum lifting capacity of 80 tonnes, a radius of up to 40m and hoisting speeds of up to 120m/min.

The launch also revealed the new Model 2 as a floating crane with individually tailored barges and as the fixed G HPK Pedestal-Mounted Harbour Crane. “Our Model 2 fully meets the demand for a versatile handling machine constructed specially for smaller maritime and river ports. At the same time, the launch of the new G HRK crane type further cements our pioneering reputation in harbour cranes based on proven Mobile Harbour Crane technology,” said Giuseppe Di Lisa, Head of Port and Intermodal Cranes at Demag Cranes.

Gottwald also added mobile harbour hoppers, of various types and specifications, as another extension to its product range with the delivery of two identical G HMH 750 DS Mobile Harbour Hoppers to an existing customer – the Port of Tyne, UK – at the beginning of this year.

The two hoppers are used for wood pellets and have a handling capacity of up to 750tph. They are equipped with dust suppression systems, and feature high-quality, robust steel constructions – engineered to ensure reliable operation and maximum availability.

In addition, an environmentally aware power supply and efficient drive technology are incorporated in the design. All the energy required to operate the hopper is generated on-board in a highly efficient diesel-powered generator. Alternatively, power can be supplied without generating additional local exhaust gas emissions by hooking up to the harbour mains.

Gottwald has drawn together its bulk-handling activities to create the International Dry Bulk Competence Centre (IDBCC) based in its UK offices in Banbury. “Handling wood pellets is a very demanding task and we strive to lead the way in developing the best practical means of handling this material whilst fully meeting all legislative requirements,” said Mark Reardon, Head of the IDBCC.

Liebherr Werk Nenzing

In the last couple of months, Austrian-based Liebherr Werk-Nenzing established a foot-hold in the bulk food and peat sector for their products with the delivery of their first LPS 550 crane to Montoir Bulk Terminal (MBT) in France.  The structure of the LPS type of crane is based on the construction of the LHM 550, which is Liebherr’s most in demand mobile harbour crane model. An obvious modification is that the undercarriage is replaced by a portal solution which is installed on rails rather than on rubber tyres. The tailor-made portal solution allows for usage of the area underneath the slewing cabin, a very useful feature especially on narrow quays.

The new LPS 550 crane will play a major role in MBT’s cargo handling chain in order to optimise bulk transport and has a maximum lifting capacity of 75 tonnes in grab operation. The crane was manufactured and pre-tested in Rostock before its delivery to the west coast of France.

In addition to the LPS 550 a conveyor belt and hopper are used to guarantee smooth transport of bulk cargo throughout the terminal. Thanks to this space saving portal solution it was possible to install the crane directly above the conveyor. Montoir Bulk Terminal was founded in 2011 and represents the first French terminal for bulk food and peat. It is a joint venture between SEA-invest and IDEA Groupe. SEA-invest is one of the world’s largest terminal operators for dry bulk, fruit and liquid bulk and operates 25 ports spread across three Continents. The IDEA Groupe, formerly known as MTTM, is a French transport and logistics company which also specialises in bulk supply chains.

Over the last two months alone, Liebherr has been busy delivering their MHCs around the world. Early November, the Cape Town Agri Roro Terminal (CTAR) operated by Transnet Port Terminals (TPT) took delivery of a brand new Liebherr mobile harbour crane. The MHC will primarily be used for container operations at the terminal and promises to enhance current productivity levels through its speedier and improved technology. Christina Van Dyk, Terminal Manager for CTAR said the equipment will replace a 14 year-old Gottwald MH
C mobile harbour crane which will be relocated to their sister terminal in East London.

“We are excited to have this new state-of-the-art Liebherr mobile harbour crane as part of our equipment fleet. The crane has an advanced lifting capacity of 120 tonnes, with twin lift capability and is faster than its predecessor. The crane also boasts more advanced safety features which will improve cargo safety,” said Van Dyk.

The crane will rotate between berths F and G, the terminal’s high performing container berths. Van Dyk says the procurement will significantly improve the terminal’s operations and she envisages the new equipment will result in an improvement of 20% in gross crane moves per crane per hour over the next 12 months.

Liebherr has also witnessed an increase in sales in Latin America as the on-going economic development in this region is still driving the demand for advanced cargo handling equipment. In 2011, Liebherr set a new record delivering 16 mobile harbour cranes to Latin America and 2012 looks to be yet another very strong year for Liebherr in Latin America, with already 15 LHMs delivered to date.

In October, the company delivered its fifth MHC to Mexico with a new LHM 550 going to Operadora de la Cuenza del Pacifico (OCUPA) in Manzanillo, Mexico’s busiest port, which achieved a throughout of 1.76 million TEU in 2011. The new LHM 550 represents the biggest container handling MHC in Manzanillo with a 54m outreach. It is the second LHM for OCUPA, which has been operating its predecessor, a LHM 500, since 2009.

Another LHM 550 has already proved its capabilities in another port in Mexico. Terminales Portuarias del Pacífico (TPP) in Lázaro Cárdenas, which is located on Mexico’s Pacific coast. Due to the strong economic development in Asian countries, Mexico’s ports on the west coast have benefited from additional business. For that reason TPP built a new terminal in spring 2012, which specialises in handling bulk material like coal and iron ore as well as steel. At the inauguration ceremony of the new terminal in August 2012, Felipe Calderon, the President of Mexico, underlined the importance of the new terminal. “It was indispensable to have a terminal specialised in bulk cargo, because it will provide greater competitiveness and speed to the commerce and to the Mexican exports,” said Calderon.

A key element of this new terminal is the state-of-the-art LHM 550 in four-rope grab configuration. The crane has a maximum lifting capacity of 75 tonnes in grab operation and is equipped with a 38 cubic meter clamshell grab for handling bulk material like iron ore and coal.