STEPHENSON
KINGSTON WHARVES Limited (KWL) will be implementing a $2 billion (US$26.6 million) redevelopment.
This infrastructural programme which is to commence in early May will have duration of 15 months and will involve the rebuilding and expansion of berths eight and nine
The contract signalling the start of the venture was signed last week between senior management of KWL and the contractors, E. PIHL and Son.
Grantley Stephen-son, chairman and CEO of KWL, last week outlined the major features of this modernisation initiative.
He said the berths eight and nine re-development project will see the rebuilding and expansion of these berths to accommodate larger vessels.
The KWL CEO pointed out that currently KWL can only accommodate vessels with a maximum depth requirement of 10 metres. Average container vessels now require a draught of 12 metres.
Under the redevelopment project, the waters at the KWL will be dredged to 15 metres, allowing some room for an increase in vessel size.
Apart from an increase in berthing capacity, draft depth and volume of vessels, other spin-offs include a growth in the volume of containers coming through the ports and an increase in storage capacity.
"We expect container storage levels to increase by 50 per cent over current capacity. Currently, container vessels can only be accommodated at berths one to four. The project will increase berthing capacity by 50 per cent," Mr. Stephenson stated.
He was addressing participants in the contract signing agreement at KWL's Kingport Building.
Signatories in today's contract agreement were Grantley Stephenson; Roger Hinds, KWL's director and corporate secretary; Svend Clem-mensen and Simon Collins, project manager for E. PIHL and Son.
Every year, the 25-hectare terminal operated by KWL handles approximately 104,000 TEUs (that is Twenty-foot Equivalent Units which is the standardised unit for measuring container capacity on ships).
