Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company Limited (ZPMC) has delivered 23 rubber-tyred gantry cranes and eight quay cranes to the Yanpu International Container Hub Port in Hainan and four new electric Suez-class, ship-to-shore (STS) container cranes to the US Port of Virginia.

The Hainan delivery follows completion of the first phase of the Hainan Free Trade Port, a major Chinese government project designed to transform the island port into a global investment and trade hub and an international shipping hub.

The port is a key project in building the ZPMC says it will provide 14 intelligent quay cranes and 42 RTGs tailored specifically for the port. The RTGs are equipped with the upgraded 8-rope 2.0 trolley system from ZPMC.

Meanwhile, at the US Port of Virginia, ZPMC has installed four new ZPMC electric Suez-class, ship-to-shore (STS) container cranes at its Virginia International Gateway, taking the STS fleet at the site to 26.

The installation of the new STS cranes has led to the creation of a third ultra-large container vessel (ULCV) berths at the port, serving the Atlantic Ocean trade.

Virginia Port Authority CEO, Stephen A Edwards says of the investment in the new STS cranes: “We are continuing to invest in the kind infrastructure that allows ocean carriers and the cargo owners using The Port of Virginia to grow their volumes here”.

“Today we offer three ULCV berths and we are quickly heading toward having the capacity to handle five ultra-large container vessels at once,” Edwards adds.

“We understand the future for ship sizes and cargo volumes and we are ensuring readiness at our berths, in our cargo yards and at our truck gates and rail ramps.”

The acquisition of the new STS cranes is part of a modernisation and expansion program at the Port of Virginia which now has the capacity to handle multiple ULCVs simultaneously.

“We already have channels wide enough to handle two-way ULCV traffic and we are in the last phase of deepening,” Edwards continues. “When the dredge work is complete, multiple ULCVs, loaded to their absolute limits, will be able to call The Port of Virginia without restrictions at the berth, on water depth or for vessel traffic.”