The Port of Virginia today said that it recently debuted additional capacity to safely handle simultaneous calls of ultra-large container vessels (ULCVs) by adding four new ship-to-shore cranes at a third berth and continuing plans to equip two more berths.
The expansion happened earlier this month at Virginia International Gateway (VIG), where the all-electric, Suez-class container cranes came into service. The port now has 26 ship-to-shore cranes situated on deep water that are capable of handling the biggest container vessels currently serving the Atlantic Ocean trade, including the capacity to accommodate three ULCVs at once.
ULCVs are defined by their ability to carry between 14,000 and 24,000 twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) on a single boat. They typically have lengths from 1,181 to 1,312 feet, and have a draft below the waterline of some 48 to 52 feet deep.
The facility plans to continue those upgrades and someday be able to handle five UCLVs at once, according to Stephen A. Edwards, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority.
That plan means that an ocean carrier’s requirements for handling a ULCV will not outstrip the port’s capabilities to handle their big ships, Edwards said. “We understand the future for ship sizes and cargo volumes and we are ensuring readiness at our berths, in our cargo yards, and at our truck gates and rail ramps.”
In additional infrastructure work, the port has also been dredging its commercial shipping channels and Norfolk Harbor to 55 feet deep, which would make Virginia home to the deepest port on the U.S. East Coast.
“We already have channels wide enough to handle two-way ULCV traffic and we are in the last phase of deepening,” Edwards said. “When the dredge work is complete, multiple ULCVs, loaded to their absolute limits, will be able to call The Port of Virginia without restrictions at the berth, on water depth or for vessel traffic. Modern ships require a modern gateway like The Port of Virginia.”
