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SPAIN/PORTUGAL: PORT DEVELOPMENT
per shift.This equates to an average
hourly productivity per crane
of 19.28 moves. In respect of
MSC, individual workers had productivity
of 145-170 moves.
Grup TCB has increased its control over TCV,Valencia’s second container terminal
operator, where traffic has also been rising strongly
New IT platform
These figures can be improved,
insists the terminal, through the
introduction of its new terminal
operating programme, CATOS,
from Total Soft Bank in Korea.As
previously reported (WorldCargo
News, February 2006, p24),
Marítima Valenciana has invested
€3.5M in the new system, including
vesel planning and yard management
functions.
By making good use of the
system, Marítima Valenciana hopes,
for example, torbe able to reduce
average container dwell time,
which was 12 days in 2005, and
thus increase dynamic capacity.
The aim is to restrict export containers
to a stay of no more than
seven days and imports to no more
than 10 days, with transhipment
containers averaging seven days.
Marítima Valenciana faced the
prospect of losing a huge proportion
of its traffic when its main
customer MSC opted for its own,
dedicated terminal, but the operator
secured a deal last year to operate
the facility on MSC’s behalf.
An internal road will link the two
terminals to enhance transhipment
movements.
At present, Marítima
Valenciana has a total of 950,000
m 2 available, but planned expansion
works will bring the total to
nearer 1.4M m 2 . Its terminal has
1500m of linear berth line and
another 340m is on the East Dock
transversal. It will gain 500m more
of quay at Costa Dock.Alongside
draught is 16m.
Goosenecks, up to 45 tonnes
Málaga pitch
With transhipment traffic at Spanish
ports rising to 11.8% to 5.2M
TEU in 2005, Dragados SPL has
not lost out from Maersk’s purchase
last year of TCA (Terminales
de Contenedores de Andalucia) at
the port of Algeciras.
Despite initial fears that
Dragados SPL’s Terminales del
SudEste (TdS) at the port of
Málaga, (located close to
Algeciras), would see a fall in traffic
of benefit of TCA,TdS has continued
to witness stunning growth
since it became operative in 2004.
Director Elías García says that
throughput amounted to 283,000
TEU last year, with calls by 315
vessels. He forecasts that throughput
this year will amount to
470,000 TEU.
Leaving aside TCA, Maersk
España has a major, €48M programme
to increase annual capacity
at its main operation on
Algeciras’ Juan Carlos I quay to
4.1M TEU by 2007.This was previously
announced by the
Algeciras port authority (World-
Cargo News, February 2006, p12).
Phase 1 completed
TdS has completed its initial
€125M implementation phase
with the introduction of a fourth
Castellón's Centenario quay, the location of the two new multi-purpose terminals:
Castellón Terminal Portuária and Terminal Polivalente de Castellón
quayside gantry crane, another
superpost-Panamax Portainer
(61t-60m) from Paceco España.
Of the total investment,€53M has
been spent on civil works, which
encompass 360m of quay.
RTGs on the way
TdS has also ordered a total of
12 RTGs from Konecranes,
whilst a fifth gantry crane is
scheduled to arrive early next
year. Full development of the
terminal is due for completion
in 2007, by when it is hoped
that traffic from Maersk will
have grown to 500,000 TEU.
It is planned to extend the
quay to 723m in phase 2, along
which seven gantry cranes will be
deployed.The CY today occupies
20 hectares, but can be practically
doubled in phase 2.
Some 95% of TdS’ traffic today
is transhipment traffic and it
acts as a buffer terminal to
Mearsk’s transhipment hub in
Algeciras.“Despite the prospect of
a new terminal in Tangiers, and
the acquisition of TCA by Maersk,
the figures show that there is room
for all of us,” said García.
Growth prospects at TdS have
just been boosted by the first call
of a new regular Maersk line service
between North Continent
and the Far East. Maersk will employ
eight vessels in this service,
including three of > 6000 TEU
capacity.
The ships will arrive at
Málaga from Rotterdam,
Felixstowe, Hamburg and Dunkirk
and will sail to SSCT East
Port Said on the way to the
Chinese ports of Qingdao,
Shanghai and Ningbo.
The operations at TdS will
consist in unloading full containers
coming from northern
Europe to African and Mediterranean
Ports, as well as the loading
of full and empty boxes to
the Far East.
In November and December,
the first calls also commenced
from car carriers, with a total of
seven calls offloading 3225 vehicles.Traffic
is generated by Ford,
which uses Málaga to distribute
vehicles throughout Andalucia,
Extramadura and Murcia. García
forecasts that throughput this year
will amount to almost 30,000 cars,
rising to 200,000 units within a
couple of years. ❏
Roll trailers with safety hooks
Other equipment:
Skeletal trailers with container guides, up to 60 tonnes
Multi-trailer systems, up to 60 tonnes
Skeletal trailer with Rockerbeams, up to 70 tonnes
Cornerless "bumpcar" with "Rockerbeams"
Cassettes for self-loading lifting trailers
Self-loading lifting trailers with cassettes,
up to 120 tonnes
Roll trailer with fixed gooseneck
Used equipment available!! Ask for details.
Leixões makes progress
Portuguese container terminal
operator TCL Terminal de
Contenedores de Leixões has
launched a €7M investment programme
including an order for a
new Panamax crane and upgrading
of existing equipment at its
facility. The investments will enable
TCL to cater for more traffic,
following the deepening of the
port’s access channel to 12m, that
will enable Panamax ships s to call
by 2007.TCL is also extending an
existing crane to Panamax.
TCL registered hardly any traffic
growth last year. “In terms of
volumes, 2005 was below our expectations,”
said company director
Lopo Feijo.“There was a modest
increase of 2.32% compared
with our own forecast of 5.5%.
“The main reason for this disappointing
growth was the Portuguese
economy. GDP grew by
only 0.8% and the forecasts of the
Bank of Portugal and the government
for 2006 are not as bright as
we would like them to be.”
In 2005,TCL handled 352,585
TEU - just 1% up on 2004’s figures,
compared to a 10% growth
rate in 2004 compared to 2003.
Nevertheless, TCL is confident
that its new handling capacity will
boost traffic to 450-550,000
TEU/year by 2007.
Transhipment accounts for 4%
of container traffic handled at
Leixões. “The Far East, Africa,
South America and Mediterranean
areas are becoming more and
more important trade lanes for our
importers and exporters, never
mind the usual and always strong
trade between north Continent/
UK and North America,” continued
Lopo Feijo .
Lines and feeder operators are
moving cargo via Leixões either
directly or indirectly. Maersk,
MSC, X’Press Container Lines,
Transinsular and Gracechurch
Container Line are the top five
operators in terms of volumes.
TCL is owned by the Tertir
Group that also has port interests
in Mozambique and Guinea-
Bissau. Portuguese-speaking
countries, claims Lopo Feijo, are
developing fast with special emphasis
to Angola and trade with
Brazil and other countries will
increase significantly in the years
to come.
“Particular attention is being
given to Brazil were we are eyeing
possibilities for point ventures
with local players.”
Lisbon update
Tertir Group’s Liscont container
terminal in the Port of Lisbon
claims that congestion problems
experienced in recent years have
been resolved following a €12M
investment in equipment. In the
past two years, Lisbon has lost traffic,
as MSC switched to PSA’s new
termnal in Sines.
Container traffic at Liscont
came to 240,000 TEU last year,
compared to 280,000 TEU in
2003. Overall container traffic in
Lisbon fell by 0.15% last year, but
the port authority (APL) hopes
that recent and forthcoming improvements
will enable the port
to recapture the 15% growth rate
it achieved. in 2003.
APL is understood to support
the petition from Tertir to
extend Liscont’s current concession
beyond 25 years.As things
stand, the concession expires in
2015, but Tertir says it will not
make further investments to
enlarge the terminal unless it has
guarantees that the concession
will be prolonged.
Meanwhile, Spain’s Dragados-
SPL is to invest in a multi-purpose
terminal in the Port of Setúbal. ❏
16
April 2006