Potain MCT 565 & MD 1600 Tower Cranes Help Build Tanzanian Dam & Power Station

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Two Potain top-slewing cranes are working to build a dam and powerhouse for the new Julius Nyerere Hydropower Station located in the Nyerere National Park of Tanzania. (Photo courtesy of Manitowoc.)

Two Potain top-slewing tower cranes are working to build a dam and powerhouse for the new Julius Nyerere Hydropower Station located in the Nyerere National Park of Tanzania, 230 miles (370 kilometers) southwest of the commercial capital of Dar es Salaam. The power station will be operated by Tanzania Electric Supply Company and is being built as a joint venture between The Arab Contractors and El Sewedy Electric (JVACEE), both of Egypt. The station will consist of a 440-foot (134-meter)-tall roller compacted concrete gravity dam with a crest length of 3,363 feet (1,025 m) across the Rufiji River at Stiegler’s Gorge and a 984-ft (300-m)-long, 197-ft (60-m)-wide, and 279-ft (85-m)-high power station situated on the right bank of the river. Once finished, the power station will be capable of producing 6,307 GWh of electricity per year.

About The Cranes

To complete the project, Potain supplied a 22-ton (20-metric-ton)-capacity MCT 565 and a 70.5-t (64-mt)-capacity MD 1600 crane, each mounted on a traveling platform. The cranes arrived at the beginning of July and will remain on site until the completion of the job in 2022. The MCT 565 is Potain’s second-highest-capacity topless crane and has a height under hook of 218 ft (66.5 m) and a 9.6-t (8.7-mt) lifting capacity at the 197-ft (60-m) jib end. The MD 1600 has a height under hook of nearly 252.5 ft (77 m) with a lifting capacity of 31 t (28 mt) at its 197-ft jib end. The cranes are both mounted on platforms that move on a single-rail track that’s 984 ft (300 m) long and 33 ft (10 m) wide.

No Substitute For Experience

“When it came to choosing high-capacity cranes for this prestigious project, the Potain name seemed natural to us,” says JVACEE Equipment Manager Khaled Badawy. “Potain’s experience in providing customized products for dams, bridges, or any demanding project was a true differentiator for us and the team gave us numerous references as evidence of this specific know-how.”

Source: Manitowoc