France: Port of Dunkirk Gets New Gantry Crane

In early November an impressive 400-tonne grain gantry, from Le Havre, was lifted off the 160m-long ship LONE with the two 1,000-tonne cranes and then placed on the Grande-Synthe quay by the staff of BARRA SNM. The grain terminal in the Port of Dunkirk, where grain traffic is growing fast, is now equipped with two gantry cranes.

At the end of October 2011, grain traffic posted an increase of 48% over 2010, with a volume of 1.68 MT. This new gantry crane illustrates the policy of Dunkirk, France’s foremost rail port and the leading inland waterway port of the Nord-Pas de Calais region, to develop grain traffic throughout the hinterland of the Nord-Pas de Calais, Picardy and Champagne-Ardennes.

France’s third-ranking port, Dunkirk is well known as a port handling heavy bulk cargoes for its numerous industrial installations. It has also built its reputation in other sectors such as cross-Channel Ro-Ro traffic to Great Britain, containers, fruit, etc.

Classified as the 7th port of the North Europe Range which extends from Le Havre to Hamburg, it is also France’s leading port for ore and coal imports; France’s leading port for containerised fruit imports; France’s leading port for copper imports; and France’s second-ranking port for trade with Great Britain.

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Source: DUNKERQUE-PORT, November 11, 2011