Port of Oakland plans improvements to handle big ships

The Northern California port is planning weekend terminal gates and off-dock yards for container pick-up and delivery.    The Port of Oakland said it is seeing more large ships call the port and is planning improvements to accelerate landside operations, including weekend gates at container terminals and after-hour off-dock locations for cargo pick-up or delivery.
   While vessels holding between 6,500 TEUs and 8,500 TEUs remain the norm in Oakland, the number of big ships calling the port is growing and will test marine terminals’ ability to load and unload vessels.
   Sixteen ships with capacity of 10,000 TEUs or more have called at Oakland terminal in the past 30 days, according to the port.
   “We have prepared for these ships and they’re here to stay,” said Port of Oakland Maritime Director John Driscoll. Two Oakland arrivals last month, the MSC Regulus and the CMA CGM Margrit, hold up to 13,000 TEUs each, and in 2013 the MSC Beatrice, which has capacity for 14,000 TEUs, became the largest vessel to call the port.
   Oakland prepared for big ships by dredging approaches and berths to 50-foot depths over the last decade. The port also raised crane heights to reach over the mountains of containers stacked above vessel decks and continues to refine marine terminal operations to improve landside cargo-handling speed.
   According to recent port data, the big containerships spend 40-to-45 hours in Oakland discharging or loading cargo. Smaller ships usually depart in 35-to-39 hours.