Houston port lets contract for four container cranes

The Port of Houston Authority last week contracted Konecranes Finland Corp. to supply four dockside electric container cranes for Wharf No. 1 at Barbours Cut Container Terminal.

The port's commission authorized the negotiation of a contract with Konecranes for the equipment, which is part of a $700 million renovation project under way at Barbours Cut, the port authority's first container terminal. The terminal is located near a rail ramp that's served by BNSF Railway Co., Union Pacific Railroad and the Port Terminal Railroad Association.

The modernization project also includes dock improvements to provide customers more efficient cargo handling services via an expanded capability to handle larger ships, port authority officials said in a press release.

The authority also approved plans to expand one foreign trade zone (FTZ) and create a new subzone. The port will expand FTZ 84, one of the nation's largest zones that exports more than $5 billion worth of goods annually, according to the authority.