SUPPLIED
The $16 million-dollar upgrade and replacement of the firewater system at Port Taranaki will help future-proof the wharf for decades.
A $16 million upgrade and replacement of the firewater system at Port Taranaki is near completion to help protect and future-proof the energy products wharf for future decades.
The firewater system at Port Taranaki’s Newton King Tanker Terminal (NKTT) includes new pipelines, monitors, valves, pumps, dual electronic controls, firefighting foam system, and refurbished freshwater tank.
The system upgrade brings it up-to-date and will hold four times the amount of firewater required.
“This has been a huge project for Port Taranaki – our largest capital investment since we commissioned our tug Kīnaki – and we’re thrilled with the result,” Port Taranaki chief executive Simon Craddock said.
READ MORE:
* Port Taranaki ready to dispose of toxic firefighting foam
* Banned firefighting foam found at Port Taranaki, Dunedin Airport
* Banned toxic firefighting foam found at six New Zealand airports
In 2020, the decision to replace the existing firewater system with a design and detailed plan work was made.
An unused water tank, which is on Port Taranaki land outside the operational area on Ngāmotu Rd, was refurbished and upgraded, and existing piping that takes the water from the tank to the port was reused.
Two new pumps, which hold four times the amount of firewater, and an electronic control centre were installed on the tank site.
The tank’s water supply comes from the town supply but was filled with storm water, which Maxwell said was a good way to reuse a natural resource.
SUPPLIED
It will include new pipelines, monitors, valves, pumps, dual electronic controls, firefighting foam system, and refurbished freshwater tank.
The new freshwater system was less maintenance, and helped extend the life of the piping, valves, and monitors, and the customers’ assets on the NKTT.
“We expect the system to last a lot longer than its 25-year design life,” Maxwell said.
New piping and five monitor towers have been installed, enabling water and foam coverage of the full wharf and the NKTT control room.
The system will provide boundary cooling of vessels in case of a fire, complementing the vessels’ own firefighting systems and assistance of the port’s tug fleet.
“Due to us needing to excavate for parts of the project, our staff and contractors also had a real insight to the area’s history and meaning through a cultural induction with Ngāti Te Whiti before work began.”
Once the new system is operational on December 31, the removal of piping and componentry from the decommissioned firewater system can begin.
Discussion about this post