Massive Korean Containerport Takes Shape

Pusan Newport Co, Ltd. (PNC), scheduled to be the largest single terminal in Korea, has taken delivery of its first terminal equipment. The double cantilever Rail Mounted Gantry Crane marks the commencement of many more such deliveries. This arrival is the first of a total order of 81 units that are being constructed at Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction Company’s facility in Korea.

The RMGC’s handle 9 rows with a stacking height of 6 containers and a lifting capacity of 65 LT. The semi-automated cranes will be equipped with GPS and trailer positioning systems along with safety features for the protection of trucks.

PNC is scheduled for opening in January of 2006 with the first three container berths of 350 m each. The second three berths will be operational in 2007 and the new additional three berths in 2009. The overall terminal has a conservative estimated handling capacity of 5.5 million teus.

The terminal will be equipped for handling the next generation of large container vessels with water depths between 16 and 17 meters. The facility will also host the largest container cranes built to date with a rail gauge of 42.7m designed for nine traffic lanes and boom outreach over 22 rows.

PNC is scheduled to start taking delivery of the ship to shore cranes from ZPMC in the last week of July. The facility is being promoted as the Gateway Hub of Northeast Asia due to its strategic location between Japan and Northeast China. The Busan area also has an extremely strong indigenous market and transportation infra-structure which makes the geographic position ideal for such a large container hub facility. A total of 4.08 mil. square meters of terminal and logistics support area has been designated as a Free Trade Zone which will encompass international facilities for integrated logistics and affiliated industries.