Spain’s Ership receives a mobile harbor crane from Konecranes

Spanish maritime transport company Ership received in September 2023 a Generation 6 ESP.9B Konecranes Gottwald Mobile Harbor Crane with hybrid drive for their terminal in Gijón, northern Spain.

Spanish maritime transport company Ership received in September 2023 a Generation 6 ESP.9B Konecranes Gottwald Mobile Harbor Crane with hybrid drive for their terminal in Gijón, northern Spain. The crane, Konecranes’ bulk handling mobile harbor crane providing the highest handling rates, was ordered earlier in the year.

As they continue to build more capacity into their bulk operations, Ership has invested in four Generation 6 Konecranes Gottwald Mobile Harbor Cranes in the last two years for their busiest terminals in Spain. After using a Generation 6 ESP.8B crane for a year and a half at their Cartagena facility, Ership ordered a second one for Cartagena and a third for their Gijón terminal earlier this year. For Gijón, the main bulk port in Spain, Ership decided on an ESP.9B, to further increase their handling rates with the highest performing bulk handling mobile harbor crane available on the market today.

“We urgently needed a new crane in Gijón to support growing demand, Konecranes was able to deliver the ESP.9B in very short time. This excellent service is another reason why we’ve used Konecranes Gottwald mobile harbor cranes for over 25 years and currently have more than 20 in our fleet,” says Gonzalo Alvargonzález, CEO of Ership. “We celebrated the 2,000th Konecranes Gottwald Mobile Harbor Crane when we delivered it to Ership in 2019. And now they opted for the best performing crane from us to increase their handling rates. This underlines the strength of our relationship and their trust in the quality of our equipment,” says Alfredo Canibano Ramos, Senior Sales Manager Spain, Port Solutions, Konecranes.

This Generation 6 Konecranes Gottwald ESP.9B Mobile Harbor Crane is a four-rope grab crane with a working radius of 50 m and a 74-t grab load curve for handling bulk cargo on Capesize vessels. In Gijón, it will be used mostly for bulk but is flexible enough for project and general cargo as well. A handling rate of up to 2,200 t per hour, a high classification and easy maintenance ensure a long service life. It uses the innovative Konecranes hybrid drive, which consists of two modern diesel engines paired with ultracapacitors that can be recharged by energy recovered from lowering and braking motions. This gives the power needed for peak performance, while saving fuel on lighter loads. The tower of the crane is equipped with an elevator to facilitate access for operators and technicians alike. “Our Group is making a great effort in keeping our cranes fleet always renewed, being convinced this is the best way for achieving, at the same time, the productivity requirements of our clients and reduction of impact on environment, due to efficiency of new machines and engines. Experience with our first Generation 6 crane in Cartagena went beyond all the expectations we had for modern bulk handling equipment, and we expect the new ESP.9B will do even better at Gijón,” says Carlos Nárdiz, Director of Operations and Port Terminals.

This order is part of Ecolifting, Konecranes’ continuous work to decrease the carbon footprints of our customers. From eco-optimizing diesel drives, to hybridization and fully-electrified fleets, we will continue to do more with less. A strong focus on customers and commitment to business growth and continuous improvement make Konecranes a lifting industry leader. This is underpinned by investments in digitalization and technology, plus our work to make material flows more efficient with solutions that decarbonize the economy and advance circularity and safety.