Gigantic quay cranes arrive at Antwerp

The arrival of the cranes at the terminal in the port of Antwerp Bruges is a sign of the ultimate expansion and modernisation plans for the terminal,  operator DP World says.

The massive cranes, which can handle a width of up to 26 container rows on a ship, were built by ZPMC and add to the 10 cranes already in operation at the terminal. These will be used on the eastern side of the Deurganck dock.

“Since the start of our investment program in 2019, a new operational building and two automatic stacker crane modules have been delivered and become part of the improved operations at the terminal,” said Jef Lambregts, expansion project manager, DP World Antwerp Gateway. “In addition to the three new cranes, we will be commissioning three new automatic modules this year. Next year, we plan to add two more quay cranes to take us to a total of 15 STS (ship-to-shore) cranes.

“Unloading these giants is a precarious job. All conditions such as weather, visibility, wind and water level must be perfect. The whole operation takes about a week. After this, we will connect the cranes to the high voltage grid adjust the movements and install the container registration system to be able to commission the cranes by the summer.”

Rolling one crane from the ship to the rail tracks on the dock side is done via a special footbridge and takes approximately four to six hours. 

The crane park can simultaneously handle the largest container ships in the world, which can transport up to 24,000 containers.