Valencia grows and grows

The new Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) terminal being developed adjacent to the port’s largest container terminal facility, operated by Maritima Valenciana, is expected to commence operations in June/July 2006 and the unofficial word on the street is that Maritima Valenciana will operate this facility on behalf of MSC. Given the large volume of traffic that MSC now moves through the Maritima Valenciana facility and the inevitable movement of containers between the two facilities that will take place, especially in the start-up phase of the MSC terminal, this arrangement makes a lot of practical sense.

Both terminals will also share the new container terminal management system – CATOS – which Maritima Valenciana has been installing since 2004 and which is scheduled to go live in 2006.

Like the Maritima Valenciana terminal, the MSC facility will also take advantage of the Web-based systems implemented by the port authority that facilitate data interchange between terminals, ships agents, trucking companies, depots and the port authority itself.

The MSC terminal will possess an annual capacity in excess of 600,000TEU when it commences operation and feature high capacity ship-toshore gantries on the quayside and a rubber tyred gantry system on the landside.

Maritima Valenciana and TCV, meanwhile, have upgraded their handling power on the quayside – Maritima introducing a new Paceco Espana-built over super post-Panamax gantry and TCV a Panamax dimensioned unit to go into service on the feeder berth area of its terminal.

This gives Maritima Valenciana five over super post-Panamax size gantries, four super post-Panamax, four post-Panamax and one Panamax unit. TCV possesses four post-Panamax and four Panamax dimension cranes.

TCV, which is an expanding hub for China Shipping in the west Mediterranean, has also recently finished works designed to increase the draught along part of its berthing line. A 300 metre area has been dredged to give a draught of 15.2 metres providing the terminal overall with a draught capability of 15.2 metres over 374 metres of berth, 14 metres over 186 metres of berth, a 12 metres draught over 330 metres of berth and a 9 metres draught over 250 metres.

New services that the Port of Valencia won during the course of 2005 include MOL’s weekly Far East-Med service, China Shipping’s new AMAX service and improved AEX2 service with a double call in Valencia, CMA-CGM’s weekly Far East Med service and Maersk Sealand’s improved Far East-Med service.