Gallery: Liverpool2 Readies for November Debut

The UK-based Peel Ports Group has welcomed the latest batch of cantilever rail-mounted gantry (CRMG) cranes, ready for installing and commissioning at the Liverpool2 deep-water container terminal which is scheduled for official opening in November.

The six cranes sailed up the River Mersey on October 6, 2016.

Built by Chinese crane manufacturer Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co. (ZPMC), the new cranes complete the set of twelve required for phase 1 of the Liverpool2 development project.

Ultimately, the site will have eight ship-to-shore (STS) and 22 CRMG cranes as part of a GBP 100 million (USD 122.5 million) investment.

The six CRMGs originally set off from Nantong, China, in August on board the ship Zhen Hua 8, completing a journey of 11,930 nautical miles.

The cranes will be capable of performing an average of 20 moves per hour, with semi-automated control linked to the port’s new Navis N4 terminal operating system. In addition, the cranes have a 40 ton under-spreader capacity and a maximum container lift height above quay level of 21 meters under spreader (six + one containers).

The first batch of CRMGs arrived in May 2016 and the STS cranes have been visible on the Liverpool shoreline since November 2015, according to Peel Ports.

“These cranes are the final major piece of the infrastructure jigsaw as we approach the formal opening next month,” Mark Whitworth, chief executive of Peel Portssaid.

Liverpool2 is a GBP 400 million (USD 489 million) investment to create a new deep-water terminal at the Port of Liverpool, enabling the port to accept the largest container ships in the world.

Image Courtesy: Peel Ports Group