Pasha Completes Installation of Five All-Electric Ship-to-Shore Cranes at Kapalama Container Terminal
Hawaiian blessing ceremony held at Kapalama Container Terminal gave thanks for the cranes’ safe ocean passage and blessed those who will operate them.
The Pasha Group held a Hawaiian blessing ceremony at Kapalama Container Terminal (KCT) to mark the safe passage and installation of five all-electric Noell gantry cranes. The cranes travelled 2,600 miles by ocean barge from the Port of Long Beach to Honolulu. Kahu Kawika Kahiapo and Pasha Hawaii Advisory Board Member Corbett Kalama conducted the blessing, which was attended by executives from The Pasha Group, Hawaii Stevedores, Inc., and Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT), along with members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU).
The first three cranes arrived on August 19, 2026, and the remaining two during the second half of October. The cranes were transported fully upright in their operational configuration. Each crane stands 245 feet tall, roughly the height of a 20-story building, and weighs 2.7 million pounds. Together, the five cranes required moving 13.5 million pounds across the open ocean.
The installation marks a significant milestone in the construction of KCT and advances phase two of the $555 million project. The public-private partnership between HDOT, The Pasha Group and Hawaii Stevedores, Inc. is the largest capital improvement project in the history of Hawaii’s commercial harbor system.
When complete, the 84-acre container terminal will improve the efficiency, reliability, and resilience of cargo operations in Hawaii. It will also expand capacity and support cleaner, more advanced port technologies. KCT will serve as the new operational hub and primary facility for Hawaii Stevedores, Inc., a subsidiary of The Pasha Group, and service Pasha Hawaii’s container operations.
“For the first time ever, The Pasha Group and Hawaii Stevedores have partnered with Hawaiian Electric to design and construct a modern container terminal with reusable and self-sustaining energy, equipped with capabilities to provide enough power to operate the cranes in the event of a natural disaster that takes the city’s power grid offline,” said George Pasha, IV, Chairman and CEO, The Pasha Group. “This means Hawaii Stevedores will be able to discharge and load vessels, without the grid, ensuring Hawaii’s supply chain remains uninterrupted.”
“The installation of these gantry cranes marks a major milestone as we continue to work closely with HDOT, with the shared goal of building a modernized terminal equipped with self-sustaining features,” Pasha added. “From the moment we broke ground, this project has been a team effort. I’d like to extend my gratitude to the team for their collaborative efforts in achieving the safe passage and installation of these cranes.”