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The Port of Salalah, Oman’s regional gateway port and transshipment hub, has recently received a fleet of 20 new tractor trailers (TTs) ordered from Terberg of The Netherlands.
At the ceremony in Salalah, the keys for the terminal tractors were handed over to the port’s drivers, who have shown a consistently improved performance in terms of productivity and safety in recent times. David Gledhill, chief executive, of the Port of Salalah said: “This ongoing asset augmentation program will provide us with the resources required for a more efficient service. With several other initiatives already underway, we expect to see an upward trajectory in overall efficiency. “
The Port of Salalah is operated by APM Terminals and container volume grew by 29% in the first half of this year compared to the corresponding period in 2015. The Port of Salalah has recently undergone an expansion, which doubled the quay length, and increased dry bulk capacity to 20 million tons, and liquid bulk capacity to 6 million tons annually.
Salalah has also placed orders with Cavotec for automated mooring systems for use at two container berths. Cavotec is to deliver 16 MoorMaster MM400E units for container berths 3 and 4 at the Omani port. A three-year maintenance contract has also been signed, which will see Cavotec service teams working closely with the port to provide support at all five MoorMaster berths.
“We’re delighted to continue our work with Cavotec, helping to improve safety and optimise operations with MoorMaster,” says Joe Schofield, Port of Salalah chief operations officer. MoorMaster units were first trialled at Salalah in 2006, and the technology was then introduced at berths 1 and 5. The technology has successfully reduced excessive vessel motion, common to the port, caused in part by “long waves” that are especially pronounced during the Khareef monsoon season.
The new units – eight each at berths 3 and 4 – are scheduled for installation before the 2017 Khareef season. Earlier this year, and prior to the 2016 Khareef season, eight MM400E units were installed at berth 6.
MoorMaster is a vacuum-based automated mooring technology that eliminates the need for conventional mooring lines. Remote controlled vacuum pads recessed in, or mounted on the quayside or pontoons, moor and release vessels in seconds.
