Financial gains not to be sniffed at

But it’s a two-way street. In order to carry out a profitable operation, ports must ensure that they invest in durable equipment, training, labour, and insurance.

As Tuscor Lloyds UK’s Neel Ratti puts it, “this type of cargo is normally higher value and will also involve complex and expensive shipping operations. Labour and equipment costs are high and usually a higher level of skill is required during handling and securing.”

“The financial issues related to project cargoes are usually increased costs i.e. time spent planning operations, producing lifting plans, risk assessments, safe method of work statements etc,” says Solent Stevedores’ Terry Buss. “There can also be increased costs with regards to lifting equipment as often there will be the need to purchase bespoke lifting equipment that would not be carried by many companies as normal lifting equipment and would not be able to be used on other operations.”

More ports are investing in project cargo facilities. The Port of Sunderland has invested in 100 tonne cranes and shoreside hydraulic lifting equipment; Savannah’s Ocean Terminal (part of Georgia Ports Authority) has five deepwater berths, 1.4m ft2 of covered storage and 73 acres of open storage; and the Port of Rotterdam Authority has invested E15m in the expansion and regeneration of a heavy lift centre to manage project cargo. Facilities are to include overhead cranes (lifting capacity of 75 to 100 tonnes), four modern high halls (boasting 16,000 m2 of space) and outside space of around 26,000 m2. The facility is expected to be completed in 2014.