State-owned port operator PT Pelabuhan Indonesia III (Pelindo III) said it has invested IDR540.64 billion (US$47.67 million) this year to expand the Trisakti Port in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, Indonesia, in response to growing cargo traffic at the port.

Improvements made include enlarging the container yard to 265 meters and the general yard to 96 meters, reported the Jakarta Post. A coal storage yard has also been constructed to cope with an expected rise in demand.

Pelindo III said container flow through the port has gone up by 167 percent over the last four years, buoyed by the healthy economy in South Kalimantan.

More than half of the project’s total investment was used to install container and rubber-tired gantry cranes and other lifting and transport equipment to increase port productivity.

There are also plans to raise the port’s operating hours from eight hours to 24 hours, serve more ships following the recent  establishment of a subsidiary, and enlist the services of a survey and consulting firm on ways to further maximize operations.

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