Two of the six multi-purpose cranes for the loading and unloading of containers at Empresa Portuaria Quetzal (EPQ) will be available to users in the coming weeks.
The ship Rolldock Storm transported two cranes for Empresa Portuaria Quetzal and docked at the weekend. For this Monday, the download of the equipment is expected.
Prensa Libre Photo: EPQGuatemala | November 11th, 2018 Customs procedures
The equipment will be unloaded this Monday and will begin with the process of installation, calibration and tests, affirmed this Sunday Hector Recinos, vice minister of Communications in charge of the area of ports and airports.
The ship that transported the cranes entered the dock last Saturday and belongs to the company Operadora Logística de Guatemala, S.A., which won one of the two contracts, the official explained.
The multipurpose cranes are model 2018, Liebherr brand state-of-the-art, with a capacity to mobilize 600 tons and it is estimated that each crane has a cost of US$6 million (about Q46 million), investment assumed by the company that signed the contract.
The vice minister explained that the planning includes the calibration and testing phase for a period of 15 days, so that it becomes operational.
The EPQ is the main port in the country and handles the largest amount of cargo movement in the port network.
Since last May, when the contract for the provision of crane service was finalized, there was a decrease in the efficiency of the movement of container cargo in the EPQ that generated delays.
That situation caused that the ships were administered by APM Terminals, specialized in containers.
“What happened was that APM Terminals reached its highest maximum capacity, but now with these two teams, activities are expected to normalize", Recinos said.
The vice minister said that in the next 60 days the arrival of two other cranes is expected and in the next nine months another two to complete the six teams.
Recinos confirmed that six shipping companies that handle containerized cargo have already announced their return to EPQ, with the entry into operations of the new cranes.
“They are already beginning to change the itineraries and we hope to serve the users who have already been informed”, the official said.
Javier Reyes Navarrete, secretary of the Trade Union of Organized Workers of EPQ, said they expect the return of the cargo that was transferred to APM Terminals during the five months in which there were no cranes.
The vice minister said that an investment of Q247 millions of budgetary expansion was executed for the purchase of equipment in Empresa Portuaria Nacional Santo Tomás de Castilla (Empornac).
Forklifts, heads, boats and a tugboat were purchased to modernize that port, where some shipping companies were removed due to the delays for the loading and unloading of merchandise.
Recinos said the biggest investment was in the acquisition of an azimuthal tugboat ship, costing Q70 million, from Singapore. The tugboat is state-of-the-art and has better maneuverability than those used today.
«The customs process of the cranes was carried out by Servest Logistic.»
Source: Prensa libre (https://www.prensalibre.com/economia/nuevas-gruas-en-portuaria-quetzal-agilizaran-operacion-a-final-de-mes)