Port Everglades has commissioned three new Super Post-Panamax gantry cranes, the largest of their kind in the world, as part of its infrastructure and equipment upgrade.
In a statement, the Port said the cranes are 53m high and are valued at $13.8 million each and are equipped to handle containers stacked eight high from a ship’s deck and reach 22 across.
The Port’s existing seven gantry cranes in the Southport area, where most of the containerized cargo operations occur, are only 151-feet high and limited to containers stacked six high and can reach 16 across.
Port Everglades Chief Executive and Port Director, Jonathan Daniels, said, “These cranes symbolize an historic transformation taking place at Port Everglades that is changing the landscape of our community.
“We are adding new cargo berths, deepening and widening our waterways, expanding our cargo and rail capacity all while paying close attention to the needs of our fragile environment.
“What is also special about this day, is the way that the community has turned out to support our investments at Port Everglades.
“The individuals cutting the ribbon to commission our new cranes represent a cross-section of our customer base, governmental leaders and the community where we live, work and play.”
The new cranes are part of the largest expansion project in the Port’s history, which includes lengthening the Southport Turning Notch from 274m to 731.5m to allow for up to five new cargo berths, which will add approximately 730,000 TEU to the Port’s capacity.
Construction for the $471 million project is ongoing and expected to be complete by late 2022.
The project is anticipated to support an estimated 3,045 construction jobs and 5,529 direct, induced and indirect local/regional, according to a study produced by nationally recognized maritime research firm Martin Associates.
Port Everglades is also working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deepen the Port’s navigation channels from 42 feet to 48-50 feet and to widen narrower sections of the channel for safer vessel passage.
The Port received a ‘New Start’ designation in 2020, and anticipates the deepening and widening project to commence in 2023.
