Hybrid system helps PE achieve handling records

July hits all-time high THE PORT of Port Elizabeth is breaking all handling records through a combination of straddle carriers and flat-bed trailers to transport containers within the terminal. It is the first port in the country to use a hybrid system, according to the business unit manager of PE terminals, Siya Mhlaluka. In July the port handled an all-time record of 31 935 TEUs. This would not have been possible without the addition of four straddle carriers and the decision to use the straddles to carry containers to nearby stacks, while loading onto flat-beds for the farther container stacks. The port has budgeted R63-million for additional straddle carriers. Another four should arrive early next year. Ongoing maintenance on the container berth’s four cranes is also paying off, with the port averaging 16 lifts an hour. The increased traffic has been generated by a general growth in volumes in the country, as well as investment in additional reefer points by South African Port Operations. The port has a new mobile generator set to supplement power supplies to the new reefer points. There are also “good prospects” for the car terminal. Vehicles are being housed in a massive shed next to the ro-ro berth. “There is a steady growth on both the import and export side and we are re-engineering the terminal,” he says. Port Elizabeth offers a number of value-added services, including washing and dewaxing. Another terminal which is reporting good volumes is the bulk ore facility, which loads manganese ore for export. It loaded a record of 2,2 million tons in the previous financial year, and is looking at bigger volumes this year. Break-bulk is the only area where there is a decrease, and this is due to a number of reasons which include the strong drive towards containerisation.