Hong Kong International Terminals (HIT) has launched the first phase of its HK$140 million (US$18 million) crane-electrification programme in a bid to cut emissions at the city's Kwai Tsing Container Port.
The terminal has started using 17 electric rubber-tired gantry cranes (eRTGCs), as well as hybrid RTGCs that combine battery power with ultra-low sulphur diesel (ULSD) engines to maintain operational efficiency. The hybrid eRTGCs "recycle" energy when the main hoist is lowered and emit less smoke, a company statement said.
HIT is the first terminal operator in Hong Kong to deploy eRTGCs and the project is part of a wider range of initiatives that HIT has launched in recent years to help protect the environment.
HIT is the first terminal operator in Hong Kong to use ULSD in place of industrial diesel oil, which produces a much greater amount of pollutants. HIT has also installed energy-saving, waste-reduction and pollution-reducing equipment in its administration buildings.
As a member of Hong Kong's Business Environmental Council and a signatory of the 2006 Clean Air Charter, HIT said in a release it will actively seek to apply these initiatives to its facilities at Terminals 4, 6, 7 and 9.
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