DCHC has ordered six Konecranes RTGs.

Konecranes has received orders for six rubber-tyred gantry (RTG) cranes and two empty container reach stackers from Damietta Container and Cargo Handling Company (DCHC) in Egypt.

Niklas Brönn, Konecranes' sales director for the Middle East, says the company has supplied container handling equipment to private companies in Egypt since 2003.

"The recent orders are [a] breakthrough into the important government sector in Egypt for Konecranes," Brönn says.

Antoine Bosquet, Konecranes' sales manager for port cranes agrees: "These orders are crucial references with regards to our expansion strategy in North Africa and the Middle East."

State-owned DCHC is located in Damietta Port. The port's proximity to the Suez Canal makes it attractive for container vessels in transit. In 2008, DCHC handled 1.241 million TEUs and this is estimated to rise to 1.4 million TEUs for 2009.

The 16-wheel RTGs are equipped with "active load control with a horizontal fine positioning system" and Konecranes' crane management system. They can lift up to 40 tons and stack one-over-five containers high and seven-plus truck-lanes wide.

Konecranes' empty container reach stacker can lift up to 10 tons and stack six-containers high and three deep.

The machines will be delivered in 2010. The value of the orders was not disclosed.

Meanwhile, statutory negotiations have ended at Konecranes Plc and Konecranes Finance Corp. The companies will lay off 21 temporary and permanent employees, effective in the last quarter of 2009.

Konecranes Plc and Konecranes Finance Corp started statutory negotiations on 1 September. Both companies are based in Hyvinkää and represent headquarter functions that include IT, R&D, marketing and communications, legal, financial, HR and procurement.

Konecranes reported a reduction of 850 employees at the end of 2008, in its second-quarter 2009 interim report. The recent staff cut is part of the 750-person reduction for the latter part of 2009 that the company announced earlier (Forkliftaction.com News #426).

Just this month, Forkliftaction.com News reported that Konecranes is closing its plant in Ettlingen, Germany, next year. About 85 workers will be affected by the closure (Forkliftaction.com News #431).

In 2008, Konecranes' sales totaled EUR2.103 billion (USD3.14 billion). The group has 9,700 employees at 485 locations in 43 countries. It is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Ltd.