The cranes included four Ship-To-Shore (STS) and eight Electronic Rubber Tyre Gantries (eRTGs).

This follows a purchase agreement signed in August 2017 between Meridian Ports Services (MPS) and Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. (ZPMC) to construct a fleet of new cranes for the ongoing port expansion project.

MPS is a joint venture between Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority with APM Terminals and Bolloré Transport & Logistics.

Officials from MPS, led by its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mohamed Samara, the Metropolitan Chief Executive of Tema, Mr Felix Nii Anang-La, the Harbour Master, Captain Christian Yeboah Asante, and some management members and staff of the mentioned institutions were at the port to officially receive the arrival of the cranes last Friday, December 21, this year.

Mr Samara expressed his excitement at what had been achieved so far, saying “This is a major milestone for this project, and we are on target.”

He congratulated the team and expressed his appreciation to everyone who had contributed in accomplishing the feat for the Tema expansion project and Ghana.

He said what would be done over the next days was to fit the STS cranes on the rails and to connect the eRTG’s to the busbar.

The Harbour Master at the Tema Port, Captain Christian Yeboah Asante, said a lot of preparation had gone into equipping the pilots both practically and technically to handle the vessels that would bring the cranes.

He said two pilots have been trained to handle the larger vessels that will be coming to the new harbour basin, pointing out that “There was a collaboration between Denmark pilots and Ghanaian pilots.”

In addition, he explained, two pilots have gone to China to train on these massive vessels and another two pilots will follow.

The MPS Operations Manager, Mr Emmanuel Ohene-Addo, remarked that “seeing this happen before our eyes is history being unfolded.”

According to him, the arrival of the cranes “gives us further motivation to continue to work hard, to deliver excellence for MPS and our nation”, adding that “We are just about ready to satisfy the needs of our clients and shipping lines.”

The MCE of Tema, Mr Felix Nii Anang-La commended MPs for the work done, saying “What you are doing is adding value to Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), when I say GPHA, I mean Ghana.”

He expressed the optimism that the Tema Port expansion project would help to boost economic activities in the area.

“The benefits of this project are enormous, business will boom, value for resources will appreciate and lives will be transformed,” Mr Nii Anang-La noted.

The STS cranes are Super Post Panamax and not only one of largest but also one of the most advanced in the world.

They are designed with 66-meter outreach capable of handling containers on board vessels up to 23 rows and over 10 on a deck while the eRTG (Electric Rubber Tyre Gantries) are capable of stacking containers 7 wide and 1 over 5 high in the container yards.

The STS cranes stand at a towering height of 89 meters and 134 meters high when boomed up.