The Tanger Alliance container terminal (TC3 terminal) at the Tanger Med port in Morocco has received the final two of eight Liebherr ship to shore container cranes. The final crane entered service in April 2021 and brings the operational capacity of the new terminal to over 1.5 million TEU per annum. The cranes, which are the first Liebherr STS at Tanger Med, were erected at a remote site in Cadiz, Spain, before being shipped two at a time to Morocco. The first cranes were commissioned in October 2020, with four more following in quick succession, allowing the terminal to open for business in January 2021 with six STS cranes.
The cranes were designed and manufactured by Liebherr Container Cranes Ltd. in Ireland. They have an outreach of 72 m, a lift height over rail of 54 m, a span of 30.48 and a backreach of 22 m. The safe working load under twin-lift spreader is 65 t. The ultra large STS cranes are future-proofed as they can cater for vessels with up to 26 rows stowed across the deck and include Fibre optic cores in the cabling, fault monitoring and remote diagnostics. Safety features including laser and ultrasonic anti-collision systems as well as smart slowdowns are installed as standard.
Liebherr Container Cranes contracted with ALE Heavylift Madrid (later Mammoet) to assist with the assembly and transportation of the cranes. The cranes were ordered between March and November 2019, with delivery scheduled to take place during 2020 and 2021. The Covid pandemic with its global lockdown and strict restrictions necessitated an agile approach to site assembly in Cadiz and commissioning in Tangier. Utilising local support, Mammoet’s personnel and experienced Liebherr engineers, the project was able to proceed with minimal interruption. The cranes bring to twelve, the number of Liebherr STS cranes in Morocco with four cranes already in operation in Casablanca.
Gerry Bunyan, global sales and marketing manager, Liebherr Container Cranes, said: “The handover of these cranes to Tanger Alliance, is a key moment for the port. Tanger Alliance’s investment in Liebherr STS cranes will be rewarded with industry-leading productivity, low operational costs and the knowledge that the cranes will be available as required, to work on the world’s largest vessels for many years to come. We look forward to seeing Tanger Alliance maximise the cranes potential.”