Port of Tauranga expanding container terminal

The Port of Tauranga in New Zealand plans to expand its container terminal by 1.3 hectares to cope with 10 percent compounding annual growth.

The port said the expansion will provide an additional 400 container ground slots. Presently, Tauranga Container Terminal's hardstand area comprises 14.7 hectares and 3,462 ground slots, unchanged since the opening in 1992.

Other reasons for the expansion include the arrival of the port's fifth Liebherr crane in March next year and an increase in the consolidation of export cargo, the port said. It is expected that expansion of the hardstand will be completed by September, followed closely by the installation of three new light towers.

The volume growth has progressively put pressure on the terminal storage area during peak periods and expansion is required to maintain efficient terminal operations, said Mark Cairns, chief executive of the Port of Tauranga. One of the major strengths of the port is that we can incrementally expand as required, at relatively low capital cost. We currently have an additional 29 hectares of land positioned adjacent to the terminal which can be used for port operations in the future.