Super cranes
The “Super Post-Panamax” gantry cranes will increase cargo volume at Port Everglades.
The chief executive of Port Everglades has given the final green light to start the manufacture of three “Super Post-Panamax” gantry cranes that will increase cargo volume at the Broward County seaport.
The cranes are being built by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Ltd. of China. The price: $13.8million each.
Port CEO Steven Cernak said some of the company’s executives were in Fort Lauderdale this week to check out the progress of rail infrastructure upgrades that are critical to the cranes’ installation, which is expected to start in late 2019.
Panamax is a term used for ships designed to sail through the Panama Canal. Larger ships that do not fall under the Panama vessel classification are known as “Post-Panamax” vessels.
Cernak said the tense trade war and tariff talk between President Donald Trump and the Chinese government has had no impact on the crane project, which is part of the largest expansion project in Port Everglades’ history.
“We have a signed contract with them and everything has been completely business-like,” Cernak said in a phone interview.
In a statement issued by the port, Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries spoke of enhancing its business tieswith the port, saying it values the business relationship and is “committed to the success of this new project.”
Cernakalso said the trader hetoric has done little to nothing to slow cargo traffic, because the Broward seaport does business with Central and South America, and not Asia.
“Our trade lanes are all northsouth,” he said. “We do not have any Asian service. The net effect to us is minimal right now.”
Although the port does import some steel, which is subject to newly imposed tariffs by the Trump administration, “it’s a small piece of business,” Cernak said. “It’s going to cost more to build things. It hasn’t had any impact on us.”
The new cranes’ impact on the volume of cargo handled by the port is expected to be profound.
“Our customers need larger cranes now to be able to handle cargo already arriving on larger ships from South America and Europe,” Cernak said in the port’s statement.
The new cranes will be able to handle containers stacked eight high and reach across 22 containers on a ship’s deck, the statement said.
The port’s existing cranes can handle containers six high while reaching across16 containers on a deck.
The port added that existing cranes now operating in the Southport area will be upgraded so they can lift 65 tons, an increase from the current capacity of 46.5 tons.
Last year, Broward County
commissioners unanimously approved the $437.5 million expansion project to add new berths for larger cargo ships and to install the rail infrastructure for the cranes.
A separate agreement for the cranes themselves was approved last summer.
David Lyons can be reached at 954-356-4340, dvlyons@sun-sentinel.com twitter: @davidvlyons