More Super Post-Panamax Cranes for Port Houston

HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Highlighting Port Houston’s growth, three towering new
ship-to-shore-cranes were delivered to the Barbours Cut Container
Terminal today after a three-month journey from China, where they were
manufactured.

The state-of-the-art cranes entered the Houston Ship Channel with booms
raised, making them 371 feet high aboard the M/V ZHEN HUA 13, a
specialized heavy load carrier that brought them across the seas.

The cranes, which will stand 270 feet high after they are installed, are
expected to be operational during the first quarter of 2018. They are
part of a $700 million modernization program underway at Barbours Cut to
increase cargo-handling efficiency and capacity.

“Considerable improvements are being made by Port Houston as we
strategically prepare for expected growth,” Port Houston Executive
Director Roger Guenther said. “These cranes are a good example of how we
continue to focus on our infrastructure.”

Increasingly larger container ships calling the port require faster and
larger cranes for the most efficient cargo handling.

While Port Houston already has been expanding in recent years,
additional growth is expected in part because of the expansion of
petrochemical facilities along the Houston Ship Channel. Those
expansions will result in an increase in plastic resins, which are a
byproduct of the petrochemical process, and many of those resins will
move as containerized exports across Port Houston’s docks.

Additionally, retail imports are growing significantly. Port Houston
container volume increased by 14 percent during the first half of 2017,
driven mainly by record loaded import growth of 26 percent.

The new cranes for Barbours Cut were constructed by Shanghai Zhenhua
Heavy Industries Co. (ZPMC), an experienced equipment manufacturing
company that specializes in large-scale container machinery and bulk
cargo handling products.

The $33.5 million purchase of Port Houston’s newest super post-Panamax
cranes was approved by the Port Commission in 2015. That same year, the
first four super post-Panamax cranes for Barbours Cut were delivered.

New ship-to-shore cranes for Port Houston’s Bayport Container Terminal
are currently under construction and are scheduled to be delivered early
next year.

Port Houston is the largest container port on the U.S. Gulf of Mexico,
handling nearly 70 percent of all containers that move through the gulf.

About Port Houston

For more than 100 years, Port Houston has owned and operated the
public wharves and terminals of the Port of Houston – the nation’s
largest port for foreign waterborne tonnage and an essential economic
engine for the Houston region, the state of Texas and the nation. It
supports the creation of nearly 1.175 million jobs in Texas and 2.7
million jobs nationwide, and economic activity totaling almost $265
billion in Texas – 16 percent of Texas’ total gross domestic product –
and more than $617 billion in economic impact across the nation. For
more information, visit the port’s website at PortHouston.com.

Contacts

Port Houston
Lisa Ashley, Director, Media Relations
Office:
713-670-2644; Mobile: 832-247-8179
E-mail: [email protected]