Maputo Port Development Company (MPDC) is realising the benefits of the recent investments in the Port which included dredging of the port channel – due for completion in January 2017 – and the acquisition of the new mobile harbour cranes with automatic tipplers.
In August, the Mv Bulk Malaysia loaded 40 000 tonnes and achieved a norm of 360 tonnes per crane per hour against a planned norm of 360 tonnes per crane per hour.
With continued fine-tuning of the operations to improve productivity cycles, MPDC have now achieved promised productivity rates with the mobile harbour cranes. This was reflected in the extraordinary productivity levels achieved on 9 October 2016 with the loading of the TW Hamburg. The day shift (from 7am to 7pm) operating with the mobile harbour cranes, loaded a total of 10 357 tonnes. This represents a total of 470 tonnes per crane per hour (or 25 swings per hour). The night shift, from 7pm to 7am, was operating with one crane only to improve the stability of the vessel and managed to achieve 27 swings an hour, which translates to 549 tonnes per crane per hour.
At the time of writing this article, the Mv Mineral Belgium, the first post-dredging Capesize vessel, entered the port (24 November 2016). The vessel, on long term charter to IVS, will load 90 000 tonnes of chrome which will be a record volume of cargo loaded in the Port of Maputo. This was made possible by the investments in the port, including the shoreside cranes. A gearless vessel, such as the Mineral Belgium, is reliant on shore-based loading facilities.
The Mineral Belgium will continue on to Richards Bay to load a further 70 000 tonnes of chrome destined for China.