The second and final batch of container cranes for the new Khalifa Port were delivered to the Abu Dhabi Ports Company (ADPC) at the weekend.
The three Super Post Panamax Ship-to-Shore (STS) cranes are among the largest of their kind, with a lifting height of 44 metres and a weight capacity of 110 tonnes.
The first three of the six cranes were delivered in February. All six have come in by sea from the manufacturers, Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries, in China. Their installation is part of phase one of the port's development, designed to give it the capacity to handle 2 million containers a year, rising to 15 million containers by 2030.
"The arrival of this final batch of the STS cranes completes one of the most important milestones for Khalifa Port as it gears up for the official opening in [the fourth quarter] this year", said Captain Mohammad Al Shamsi, the vice president of Ports at ADPC.
"Phase one of Khalifa Port is now 96 per cent complete, and we look forward to launching the port by end of this year when it will become the hub for commercial container traffic in Abu Dhabi."
Khalifa Port is being developed to serve the Kizad project, a 417-square-kilometre industrial zone strategically located between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The phase of the project that is to open this is year is a 51-sq-km development worth Dh26.5 billion (US$7.2bn).
The overall project is due to be completed in 2030, and the new industrial zone will be expected to contribute up to 15 per cent of Abu Dhabi's non-oil GDP.
In addition to containers, the port, designed to be one of the world's most advanced deepwater terminals, will initially handle 12 million tonnes of general cargo. It is expected eventually to handle 35 million tonnes a year.
Up to 4 million tonnes of raw materials a year are also expected to be handled annually at the port's Emirates Aluminium berth, which is already in operation.
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