Wando Welch Terminal welcomes 2 more cranes

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The Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal isn’t the only wharf getting new things this year.

The Wando Welch Terminal welcomed two more ship-to-shore cranes last week as part of the S.C. Ports Authority’s strategic investment plan to modernize operations and upgrade infrastructure, the SCPA said in a news release.  

The cranes have 155 feet of lift height above the wharf deck and 212 feet outreach. They are expected to be up and running this summer following a few months to assemble and commission them.

“As a result of our significant investments in terminal infrastructure, we offer unmatched vessel and cargo fluidity at a time that it is sorely needed in major U.S. ports,” SCPA President and CEO Jim Newsome said.

The cranes allow the ports to service container vessels up to 24 feet wide, which the SCPA will be seeing more of once it completes the Charleston Harbor Deepening Project. At that time, the harbor will be 52-feet deep — up from its original depth of 45 feet. The port will be able to handle three 14,000 TEU ships simultaneously, as well as 19,000 TEU vessel, a capability few U.S. ports currently have, Newsome said.

“Taller cranes with wider reach greatly increase our big-ship capabilities,” Newsome said. “These impressive cranes from ZPMC ensure S,C, Ports will remain globally competitive as we work the largest, cargo-laden ships already calling the Port of Charleston and U.S. East Coast.”

The cranes arrived after a two-month journey from Shanghai and were transported aboard the Zhen Hua 27.

Once the equipment is up and running, it will bring Wando Welch’s total crane count to 13, but the SCPA said it will have 15 by the end of the year.