The US Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) has awarded Ports of Indiana a USD2.25 million grant to assist in the purchase of a heavy lift crane for Ports of Indiana-Mount Vernon.
This is the first federal grant for the Mount Vernon port, and the crane will allow handling of larger project cargoes and over-dimensional steel shipments. The award was one of eight projects funded by MARAD through the USD12 million US Marine Highway Grant Program, which is designed to improve movement of goods on the inland rivers by assisting ports in the purchase of low-emissions, US-manufactured equipment. Ports of Indiana worked with Ohio River steel shippers to identify the need for a 120-ton (108-tonne) crane, which will double the port’s lifting capacity.
“This is an important project that will allow our port to handle new cargoes and create significant public benefits by shipping larger cargoes by water,” said Jason May, port director at Ports of Indiana-Mount Vernon. “By combining the speed and efficiency of our existing 60-ton (54.4 tonne) dual-lift overhead crane with the heavy lift capacity and flexible lifting structure of this new crane, we are positioning this port as a critical multimodal hub for steel and general cargo.”
