Suez Canal Container Terminal’s Upgrade Projects Improve Productivity And Customer Experience

A series of investments initiated in 2020 aimed at equipment and capacity upgrades at the terminal, together with a strong partnership with the Government of Egypt, Suez Canal Economic Zone (SC Zone), sets the foundation for further future growth despite global pandemic challenges.

The USD 60-million investment included several major projects. The most complex of these was the heightening of six STS (ship-to-shore) cranes in SCCT’s own yard. Following this recently completed project, 12 out of 18 of the terminal’s STS cranes now have the capacity to handle ultra large container vessels (ULCV). This also makes SCCT the only terminal in Egypt to be able to simultaneously serve two mega vessels, without compromising on productivity.

Improved operational performance

“Our upgrade programme was already very ambitious, but the global pandemic made it even more complex. However, it was also an opportunity for the SCCT team to rise up to the challenge. Thanks to their tremendous efforts, we are happy to report that all projects have been concluded on schedule, allowing us to serve our customers – and their businesses – even better”, comments Sunay Mukerjee, Chief Commercial Officer at Suez Canal Container Terminal.

Image Credits: apmterminals.com

SCCT is a key hub terminal in the South and East Mediterranean region. The crane capacity upgrade project will now give the terminal’s shipping line customers additional opportunity to recover their network schedules and improve the reliability they are offering to their end customers.

In addition, the terminal has also conducted a gate expansion, with civil engineering works to increase SCCT’s gate handling capacity to more than 50,000 TEU per month. Consequently, the terminal’s gate volumes have increased 50% year-on-year, with growth in reefer exports reaching 150%. “The gate expansion project ensures our customers can continue to experience ‘best in class’ customer service while growing their volumes through SCCT”, adds Mahmoud Ayoub, SCCT’s first Egyptian Chief Operating Officer.

Other investments at SCCT also included the purchase of new yard equipment, with 16 new RTG (Rubber Tyre Gantry) cranes joining the fleet, paving the way for more quay and gate volumes in the future.

Record breaking

Capacity upgrades and other investments have already resulted in a new record, with SCCT handling 57,242 moves / 95,579 TEUs on the quay in week 33 – the highest weekly volume ever handled at the terminal. The increased volume was handled while maintaining the same gate moves per hour (GMPH) of 30.04.

“We are very proud of our achievements and at the same time, very grateful to our colleagues and customers for making this possible”, says Mahmoud Ayoub.

SCCT opened in 2004 on a 49-year concession. It is a Joint Venture with APM Terminals as the majority shareholder (55%) and operator. Other key shareholders include COSCO (20%), the Suez Canal Authority (10.3%) and the National Bank of Egypt (5%).

Reference: apmterminals.com

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Source: Maritime Shipping News