RAZON-LED International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI), through its unit Victoria International Container Terminal (VICT) at the Port of Melbourne, has purchased four new hybrid automatic container carriers to expand its capacity.
The new carriers are set for delivery within this year and will help increase its capacity to 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) per year, the listed port operator said in a media release on Thursday.
These new carriers, purchased from Kalmar, a provider of heavy material handling equipment and services, will each feature a twin-box lifting capacity of up to 60 tons and hybrid technology with lithium-ion batteries for energy recovery.
This technology contributes to a 40% increase in energy efficiency and about a 50-ton carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reduction per carrier annually.
“These new hybrid carriers are part of our expansion plan, which will increase our capacity to 1.5 million TEUs annually. This investment demonstrates our commitment to customer focus, innovation, and sustainability, ensuring we can meet the growing demand for our services while minimizing our environmental impact,” said VICT Chief Executive Officer Bruno Porchietto.
VICT, which started operations in 2017, is a unit of ICTSI in Melbourne, Australia. It is a fully automated container terminal servicing large vessels.
Last year, VICT logged five million TEUs since its operations began. ICTSI said previously that this will fuel its commitment to further invest in the terminal to accommodate the increasing demand for shipments. — Ashley Erika O. Jose
