Widening the Parameters

However, there have also been significant developments in new types of ro-ro vessels, smaller types of bulk carriers for specialised trades, and bulk carriers specifically adapted for trades such as forest products. Cargo is also shipped in new forms or variations of existing forms, such as roll-on cargo and unitised cargo on pallets.

Given these changes, older style, non-specialised ports find it increasingly difficult to compete, and it is here that the concept of the multi-purpose terminal comes into its own, one that can be defined as offering a combination of equipment and services and a flexible response to certain combinations of vessels and cargo. Although they may be 'multipurpose', however, they are not designed for general cargo and specialised in their flexibility.

This being the case, a multi-purpose terminal needs to be developed in such as way that it can accommodate heterogeneous cargoes, including containers and bulk, but a terminal should, ideally, be capable of handling both without recourse to additional, specialised terminals or specialised handling.

Some multi-purpose terminals are designed and built as multi-purpose terminals, and others, while designed and built as multi-purpose terminals, may eventually specialise, but in many cases, an existing facility is upgraded to meet new demands, and as Han Ligteringen, Professor, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands explains, currently, two types of multipurpose terminal projects are prevalent.

The first of these usually involves older types of general purpose terminals - often in Africa, Asia, and South America - which have become outdated,where the port authority is keen to re-develop the port, to provide new momentum. The second usually takes the form of a conventional breakbulk terminal that wants to upgrade itself to a multi-purpose terminal, incorporating capacity for containers and ro-ro cargo.

Ports of this type tend to be found in more developed countries, in the 'Western' hemisphere. However, as Professor Ligteringen explains, a number of key issues need to be considered before a master plan can be developed, among the most obvious being whether the water depth at the existing facility is sufficient to enable the terminal to take the new generation of deep draft containerships.

"At many older general purpose terminals you might find that the water depth is as little as 9m-10m, Professor Ligteringen explains, "which would not be sufficient for modern boxships, so you would undoubtedly have to look at deepening the harbour, unless you were to look at a very innovative solution, such as a floating container crane positioned where there was sufficient water depth."

As several studies of multi-purpose terminals have pointed out, increasing the water depth at quays can be a major obstacle to development. At a new facility, it is sometimes suggested,the water depth available at the quays should be 'over-dimensioned' so as to allow for future dredging without possible instability in the quay structure; likewise, if conventional cranes in a general purpose facility are replaced by specialised container cranes in a multi-purpose terminal capable of handling boxes,then the loads imparted by the new cranes are likely to be significantly greater.

Another particularly important consideration is hinterland connections. As Professor Ligteringen points out,many older terminals are 'enclosed'by the cities in which they are located - he cites the Port of Genoa in Italy as an example,where not only does the city of Genoa surround the port, but the terrain inland makes hinterland connections more difficult.

Where there is sufficient economic incentive, funding and sufficient land and suitable hinterland connections, existing multi-purpose terminals can, however, be developed far beyond their existing confines, a notable example being Gwadar Port in Balochistan in Pakistan.

Here, Arthur D Little and its engineering partners have recently completed a masterplan for the development of the port, which currently comprises a single multi-purpose terminal with 600m of berthing space. By 2055, however, Gwadar is expected to have captured around one third of India's national port traffic market, which translates into a throughput volume of about 350m tons, with significant growth in liquid bulk, general cargo, dry bulk, and containers.

Traffic through Gwadar is forecast at 42m-65m tonnes in 15 years time and 321m-345m tonnes in 50 years time. The short term forecast for traffic is 42m-65m tonnes, with containers and liquid bulk as the main contributors. In the short term, local industry development is expected to provide the largest port traffic contribution. Liquid bulk and containers will be the main contributors by 2020, reflecting the importance and potential of petrochemical activities, and the Gwadar port zoning plan was therefore formulated to optimally allocate land areas for the various cargo handling activities and related industrial development,including up to 50km of quayside and up to 10,000 ha of industrial land by 2055, with dedicated terminals for all cargo types;general, dry (clean & dirty), liquid, single point moorings, liquefied natural gas, containers, ro-ro, and military.

Within this ambitious and wide-ranging plan,certain terminals would be allocated for multi-purpose use, however, with a multi-use area of some 119 ha designated to support phases 1 & 2 of new multipurpose terminals and 1,159 ha reserved for back-end operations of future dedicated container & general cargo terminals.