State-owned transport and logistics group Transnet has awarded ELB Engineering Services the contract to manage, procure and install modifi- cations to materials handling equipment at the Port Elizabeth manganese terminal.

ELB has entered into a cooperation agreement with Strocam Projects to undertake the project.

The 15-month-long project, which started early this year, will see the existing six stackers, reclaimers and shiploaders refurbished. During this period, a new FAM reclaimer with a reclaim capacity of 2 500 t/h will be assembled, which will run concurrently with the existing machines.

By the second quarter of 2009, the loading capacity at the terminal will increase from 2,4-million tons a year to 4,2-million tons a year by increasing the production capacities of the conveyers, reclaimers and shiploaders.

ELB Engineering Services’ Dr Stephen Meijers says, “Many customers cannot afford new equipment, so that refurbishing of current equipment is not only essential, but makes perfect sense as it results in an expenditure saving of around 40% of an equivalent new machine as well as reducing the lead time for machine availability.

This will result in the ability to export higher capacity of materials sooner, resulting in increased foreign revenues, benefiting the South African economy”.

The increased worldwide demand for manganese, combined with the current economic environment, has made it necessary to refurbish the Port Elizabeth manganese terminal, increasing its export capacity.

ELB Engineering Services was established as a unit of ELB Holdings with the aim of growing the materials handling equipment business, and since its inception in early 2005, the company’s main focus has been, and still is, to be a total solutions provider to the mining, minerals, power, ports, construction and industrial sector in the fields of materials handling, mining equipment and process plants.