First commercial vessel call at APM Terminals new Maasvlakte II facility

The 4,360 TEU capacity Sealand Eagle became the first container vessel to call the new Maasvlakte II expansion of the Port of Rotterdam, making the short journey from the existing APM Terminals Rotterdam terminal to the deep-water quay at the new APM Terminals Maasvlakte II terminal to reposition empty containers as part of the ongoing commercial volume tests of the world’s most advanced port container handling facility. The unloading operation began on Wednesday, December 17th, the terminal operator said in a press release.   

The operation was completed employing the new remotely operated Ship-to-Shore (STS) quay cranes, working in conjunction with Lift-Automated Guided Vehicles (Lift-AGVs) and the automated stack system. Since early 2014, APM Terminals trained 45 remote operators by accessing advanced simulator technology from the same remote operating control stations which will be used for vessel operations.

Further deep-sea vessel calls are planned for January 2015, in preparation of the full commercial opening for regular weekly operations in February 2015. The facility began landside commercial operations with the opening of the truck gates and rail terminal in November 2014. Currently trains call the Maasvlakte II rail terminal three times per week.

The 86 hectare (212 acre) APM Terminals Maasvlakte II facility includes a 500-meter barge quay, 1,000-meter deep quay and an on-dock rail terminal with four tracks of 750 meters, providing an annual container throughput capacity of 2.7 million TEUs.

To support the planned 2.7 million TEU capacity, APM Terminals has also signed two additional contracts for advanced container handling equipment. A contract was concluded for one additional STS barge crane with Liebherr Container Cranes for delivery mid-2016.  The crane will complement the two barge cranes currently in operation.

An order has also been placed with Terex Gottwald for an additional 25 battery-powered Lift-AGVs and 58 storage racks. These will be deployed at the Automated Rail-Mounted Gantry (ARMG) crane container stacks, and at the rail terminal. The order increases the number of Lift-AGVs at the facility to 62, and the number of storage racks to 154. The rack installation will begin in February 2015, with vehicle deliveries beginning mid-year.

APM Terminals Maasvlakte II has been specifically designed for optimal efficiency and productivity when handling the newest ultra large container ships (ULCS) entering into the global container ship fleet.