A big piece of the local port authority’s plan to rehabilitate shipping to the west has arrived.
And at 200 feet high, the mobile harbour crane is a really big piece. The $3 million crane arrived Saturday morning from Stockton, Calif. Thunder Bay Port Authority CEO Tim Heney said it will be the first time the port has its own crane. Before now, ships had to have their own cranes to load and unload cargo or the port would have to rent cranes from places like Toronto. But in three weeks, once the crane is operational, the local port will have the capacity to lift 104 metric tonnes at 18 metres permanently.
“It can do that all day long so it’s a very efficient machine. It’s a new capability for us so it will make us a lot more competitive,” Heney said. “I think it’s going to put us on the map in a big way.”
The Liebherr crane will tower 200 feet in the air with the operator sitting 75 feet high.
“It’s a big machine,” Heney said. “You’ll see it from most places in town.”
The port received $1 million from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation, which is another first. Heney said usually the port receives no government funding at all.
