The Namibia Ports Authority (Namport)’s continuous replacement of old equipment will amplify and strengthen the company’s capacity to deliver services to its clients and drive the efficacy with which the port renders services.
According to Namport’s Chief Executive Officer Andrew Kanime, the entity has acknowledged the frustrations that equipment breakdowns have been causing to both the port and customers and has therefore noted and acceded to these concerns.
“We have been candid to put forth that while the need for replacement of our fleet of equipment is indisputable and a serious priority, we unfortunately cannot achieve that overnight given the realities of competing requirements for the limited financial resources and the depressed economic market conditions,” he said.
Kanime made these remarks during the commissioning of two new reach stackers as well as three forklifts for the Walvis Bay port on Friday.
He noted that they are however humbled that the latest acquisitions and additions to its fleet of equipment are a tangible reaffirmation of the port’s seriousness and resolve to address the challenge of old equipment and disruption of operations.
Kanime added that besides the need to progressively replace the equipment within the available financial capacity and in line with ramping up cargo volumes, the COVID-19 pandemic has also negatively impacted the delivery times of the new equipment as Namport struggled to get slots available for shipment.
“We envisage that these disruptions on, not just the deliveries of equipment, but also on spares for our current fleet, some of which are sourced from overseas, will subsist for some time.”
The machinery which was acquired from Liebherr-Africa and Forklift and Allied Equipment will be distributed between the Walvis Bay and Lüderitz ports.
Namport is also leveraging latest technology to effect load reductions on some of its mobile harbour cranes, enabling it to enhance equipment fleet for the general cargo terminal.
“This will now allow us to deploy some of the larger mobile harbour cranes to Berths 4 and 8 and this will greatly relieve the strain on the sole crane that we have been using there and also increase carriage capacity,” Kanime alluded.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency