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Crane delivery a “huge step forward” for the port, says OICT CEO
Oman’s Sohar Port has become the latest deepwater port to receive new post-Panamax ship-to-shore (STS) cranes capable of handling the world’s largest ocean carriers.
Arriving at the Oman International Container Terminal (OICT) last week, these state-of-the-art gantry cranes were built to order by ZPMC in China, and represent a multi-million dollar investment by the port.
Speaking to the Times of Oman, Captain Rashid, chief executive officer at OICT, said that the cranes, three in total, represent “a huge step forward for Sohar in terms of technology.”
The cranes took more than a month to complete their 6,500 mile journey by sea onboard a specially chartered vessel from Shanghai. They will now be transferred from the ship’s deck onto land for installation at OICT’s new Terminal-C, a process expected to take engineers around eight days.
However, the arrival of the STS cranes has not been the only good news for the port this week. On Monday evening Sohar Port’s CEO Andre Toet was on hand to receive the ‘Port Authority of the Year’ accolade at the 2013 SeaTrade Middle East Awards in Dubai.
With investments totalling over US$15 billion, Sohar Port was launched in 2002 as a joint venture between the Port of Rotterdam and the Government of Oman. The associated free zone was added in 2009.
