Lae to Madang PNG .... by road?

[Clivem]

Just one for the few PNG experts on here who operate further a field than just POM on the slim chance someone might be able to shine some light.

I need to get some large items of equipment / plant into Madang - They will ship on 'over sized 40' flat racks'. I have tried every freight forwarder I trust and they all tell me the port at Madang Port will not (can not ?) accept over sized flat racks shipments, apparently the nearest port that can accept them is Lae. They would then need to be road freighted from Lae to Madang and there in lies my question? Has anyone travelled the road from Lae to Madang ? is it a 'road' than can handle a wide load semi and if so what is it condition, or is it a goat track ? Any advice would be appreciated if it is out there.

Only other option may have to be a very expensive barge exercise.

Regardless I am rapidly sensing a reconnaissance mission coming up very quickly.

 

[puppysparkes]

I haven't travelled that road in years. I'll make a call soon and update you. The road and personal safety conditions change regularly without notice. Depending on the items a security escort maybe required.

 

[puppysparkes]

Sorry for the delay I only managed to call a family member in Lae this morning. At this time the road quality is good. There hasn't been any safety issues for a while. The bridges are rated at 35 40 tonne and can easily handle semi trailers. The old boy is making a couple of calls to establish the maximum width of the bridges. I should hear back sometime today. He works in the trucking/spare parts industry so the information should be reliable.

 

[Clivem]

Puppy - sounds good, thank you so much, any more detail you could offer is greatly appreciated. - I owe you one, no, make that six!

We have supplied a lot of plant and done a lot of work in PNG over the years ...POM / Lae / Ok Tedi / Porgera / Rubaul / Wewak .....and we have used heavy lift choppers in some instance very successful in PNG. This Madang one has been a bit odd and I'm still trying to understand why an over-sized flat rack can not go to the Madang port directly.
There is not much chance of anyone keeping a flat rack - given it would be dam hard to keep it and make an office or home out of it like they do with the 20' and 40' G.P. boxes !

Thanks again and I look forward to any further good intel. you can offer - our max load width is less that 3,650 mm by the way, so it is a fair size bit of kit.

The amount and extent of really good info you get from people on this forum never ceases to amaze me. Cheers.

 

[puppysparkes]

No problem. Might even be worth calling direct. I found a couple of links regarding port infrastructure and contact details. I'll check who are the better trucking operators also.

http://www.pngports.com.pg/index.php/madang-port

http://www.pngports.com.pg/index.php/lae-port

 

[puppysparkes]

Clivem can you pm the load weight and final drop off point. This info will help assess the optimal route and identify any potential issues regarding road access along the way and in Madang itself.

Cheers