As work at Virginia International Gateway continues, the Happy Buccaneer heavy-load vessel was on berth at Norfolk International Terminals on Monday with the first batch of six rail-mounted gantry cranes that are the centerpieces of the $375 million capacity expansion project currently under way at the Norfolk terminals, according to a press release.

The offloaded cranes will be mounted on rails and taken through some minor assembly before they’re tested and put into service by the end of September, when the first three of 30 new container stacks at Norfolk International Terminal will be operational.

The vessel’s arrival is also the start of an 18-month cycle in which 60 new cranes will be delivered to Norfolk International Terminals. Construction of the expansion got under way in January and is expected to be finished by mid-2020.

The port earlier accepted the last load of 26 new cranes at Virginia International Gateway, where $320 million is being invested to expand cargo capacity and operations. These new cranes will support operations in 13 new container stacks.

“This is the stage when things begin to come to life at NIT,” John F. Reinhart, chief executive officer and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, stated in the press release. “Our goal is to put this equipment to work as quickly and as safely as we can, just like we are doing at VIG. As these stacks go online, we will begin capitalizing on the new capacity and efficiency we’re creating.

“The end result of our effort will be new high-performing network of terminals that will attract economic investment in Virginia and spur job creation across the commonwealth.”

The port finalized a $217 million contract with Konecranes in 2016 to build and deliver 86 cranes, with Roanoke-based TMEIC supplying the systems to drive and control the cranes. The contract is the largest one-time rail-mounted gantry crane order in industry history, according to the press release.

“The work at VIG will be done by next summer,” Reinhart stated. “Our 55-foot dredging project has gotten federal approval, so we are beginning the preliminary engineering and design work, and we are on budget and on schedule here (at NIT). The hard working going on here today is creating a sustainable port that will have decades of growth ahead of it.”