APMT unveils Maasvlakte II terminal

APM Terminals recently hosted a celebration attended by the Netherlands’ Monarch King Willem-Alexander, and 500 senior representatives from the global shipping industry and world governments in honour of the official opening of the new APM Terminals Maasvlakte II Rotterdam facility, regarded as the world’s most technologically advanced and environmentally sustainable container terminal.

APM Terminals Chief Eexecutive Officer, Kim Fejfer said: “We are honored to officially dedicate our new terminal with you. APM Terminals Maasvlakte II is clearly a game-changer port in the shipping industry designed to exceed our customers’ expectations. It is significantly safer for our people and all users of the port.

It runs on a zero emissions, sustainable business model using renewable energy, benefitting the people of Rotterdam and Europe. And, equally important, our shipping line customers will experience 40% higher productivity – thanks to automation.” The APM Terminals Maasvlakte II Rotterdam facility ushers in a new era in port innovation.

The facility launches the world’s first container terminal to utilize remotely-controlled STS gantry cranes. The cranes move containers between vessels and the landside fleet of 62 battery-powered Lift-Automated Guided Vehicles (Lift-AGVs) which transport containers between the quay and the container yard, including barge and on-dock rail facilities. According to the company, the facility, constructed on land entirely reclaimed from the North Sea, has been designed as a multi-modal hub to reduce truck traffic in favour of barge and rail connections to inland locations.

Construction began in May 2012, with the first commercial vessel call in December 2014. Successful systems testing and ramp-up have been completed to bring the first phase of APM Terminals Maasvlakte II into full operational status.

The 86 hectare (212 acre) deep-water terminal features 1,000 meters of quay, on-dock rail, and eight fully-automated electric-powered Ship-to-Shore (STS) cranes, with an annual throughput capacity of 2.7 million Twenty foot Equivalent Units (TEUs), representing an APM Terminals investment of # 500 million.

At planned full build-out, the terminal will cover 180 hectares (445 acres) and offer 2,800 meters of deep-sea quay (19.65 meters/64.5 feet depth), with an annual throughput capacity of 4.5 million TEUs. “The future of terminal operations is safer, high-volume, high-productivity performance” said Fejfer, adding “We are pleased to welcome that future here today.”