Guardian

APM Terminals has announced plans to increase container-stacking area at Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria by an additional 300,000 square metres.

The company explained recently that plans were also underway to take delivery of the first batch of five Rubber-Tyred-Gantry (RTG) cranes it ordered from Kone Cranes as part of terminal yard redevelopment and expansion to the largest container terminal in West Africa.

The project, which is now in Phase three of the modernisation and upgrading of the facility, includes terminal yard redevelopment and expansion, new staff amenities and customer service building, acquisition of container handling equipment, implementation of new terminal operating systems and a new Customs container inspection facility.

Managing Director of APM Terminals Apapa, Dallas Hampton, said: “That is when the terminal will achieve the first impact of the ongoing development for increased capacity. The second batch of the remaining five RTGs will be delivered in November 2013.”

Explaining further, he said that about 300,000 square metres of the North Yard of APM Terminals Apapa was in full swing. “This area is being converted from Reach Stacker operations to RTG operations thus increasing the Yard capacity and efficiency.”

He added: “As this is being done in a functioning live Terminal, the area is divided into eight phases which are progressively taken over for construction and then handed over back to operations after development. The first Area 1A was handed over on April 16, 2013 and the contractor is presently working on Area 1C.”

According to Hampton, yard works would continue till August 2014 and would also include enhanced lighting and a rail siding.

Hampton pointed out that work was simultaneously carried out on the construction of a three story building which would house the new staff canteen, locker rooms, break rooms, Customs office and Customer service centre.

He said: “This building will modernise and centralise all the staff facilities which are presently scattered in older locations. The new building is expected to be ready by April 2014. An interesting feature of this building will be a new wastewater treatment plant, which will handle all effluents.

“Three new Liebherr Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHCs) have already been delivered in May 2012 as part of this Project. Two more MHCs will be procured in 2015. Various other equipment like tractor trailers, empty handlers, fuel station, FLTs, spreaders are being procured and are under various stages of procurement/delivery,” he said.

The APM Terminals, Apapa expansion project, which is the third and final phase of the modernisation and upgrading of the terminal, was flagged off in February by Chief Executive Officer of the AP Moller-Maersk Group, Mr. Nils Andersen.