The Port of Mombasa is edging closer to attaining 48-hour turn-around time for bigger vessels after consistent record performances at the facility.
In the last five months, the Kenya Ports Authority has registered four record performances.
Gross moves per hour is a maritime productivity term that defines the total container movement on loading, offloading and repositioning divided by the number of hours the vessel is at berth.
On Sunday, the Port recorded another record performance of 190 moves per hour, inching closer towards the world best record of 200 moves per hour.
KPA acting managing director Daniel Manduku said Khalifa Port, which is one of Abu Dhabi’s flagship port, crossed the 200 moves per hour benchmark in 2015. Mombasa aims to set a new record this year.
Since June, KPA has broken four of its own records, including 129 moves per hour, achieved by MV Ever Dynamic, then Container Vessel Livorno making 140 moves per hour and in October, MS Maxine made 181 moves per hour.
Manduku said focus is now to attain a 48-hour turn-around time for all bigger vessels docking at the Port.
In a speech read on his behalf by KPA head of container operations, Edward Opiyo, Manduku said they want to maintain high levels of productivity.
“We are now targeting to dispatch big vessels within 48 hours of arrival. That means we are setting a service time of 48 hours,” he said.
He added that once the target is met, it will be easier to sustain and manage the fixed berthing windows for all the vessels calling at the container terminal,” he said.
MV Ever Diamond, a Panama-flagged vessel, recorded 1,523 moves within an eight-hour shift. Last month, MSC Maxine made 1,450 moves within an eight-hour shift, while container carrier Livorno had registered 1,204 gross moves exceeding the previous record of 1,117 gross moves registered by MV Ever Dynamic. MSC Maxine registered the 181 moves per hour during her maiden call at the Port of Mombasa, which was an improvement of 20 per cent from the prior record.
Manduku attributed the port performance to the staff,who he said are tirelessly working behind the scenes.
“We want to appreciate all our staff who have been working hard to make this a reality,” Manduku said.
Francis Mbodo and Isaac Ogolla, who are crane operators at the port, were recognised for their performance of 445 moves ( 56 crane moves per hour) and 351 moves ( 44 crane moves per hour) respectively.