Container traffic continues to increase at Georgia Ports Authority, with 271,357 twenty-foot equivalent container units — or TEUs — moved in November, an increase of nearly 12 percent over the same month last year.
“Continued growth — without delays or congestion — highlights Georgia’s ability to strategically expand both capacity and market share,” said Curtis Foltz, GPA executive director.
“We have much to be thankful for this holiday season.”
November’s numbers reflect a trend of growth for the first five months of fiscal 2015, which began July 1. Since that time, the port has moved 1.47 million TEUs for a 12.8 percent increase over the same period in fiscal year 2014.
Garden City Terminal, the largest continuous single container terminal in the United States, can handle 4.5 million TEUs, but that is expected to grow.
“We are taking the steps necessary to expand capacity to 6.5 million TEUs by increasing our fleet of ship-to-shore cranes to 26, adding a major new truck gate and maximizing the use of our container yard space,” Foltz said.
At last month’s meeting, the authority board approved an expenditure of $10.2 million for construction of Gate 8, which will serve as a third major truck interchange at Garden City Terminal. At an earlier meeting, the board approved expenditures of more than $8 million to relocate some gate activity and expand storage capacity in the area.
The new interchange, which is expected to be complete by the end of 2015, will start with some 20 truck lanes and is designed for expansion, Foltz said, adding that off-terminal improvements also will maintain the free flow of cargo to inland markets.
Those improvements include the extension of the Jimmy Deloach Parkway to connect Garden City Terminal with interstates 95 and 16, as well as investments by CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern to enable the Class I rail providers to move more containers.
“We have prepared Savannah’s landside infrastructure to handle the influxes of cargo delivered by super post-Panamax vessels,” said GPA board chairman James Walters. “And now we have entered the construction phase of the harbor expansion, which will deepen the river to 47 feet, allowing today’s larger, more efficient ships to transit the channel with heavier loads and greater
scheduling flexibility.”
Contract talks still stalled
West Coast dockworkers and shippers were still without a contract late Thursday, with both sides dispelling the rumor that they were close to reaching a tentative agreement.
“Even after seven months of negotiations, we remain far apart on several issues, and the union slowdowns continue to disrupt the movement of cargo through the ports,” the Pacific Maritime Association said in a press release Thursday.
Representatives of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union agreed that the two sides had a long way to go but added that “negotiations remain positive and are making progress,” according to the Journal of Com
merce.
The two organizations resumed direct negotiations Thursday.
Meanwhile, in a letter sent Wednesday to President Barack Obama, the American Association of Port Authorities urged the president to take the necessary steps to assign federal mediators to help resolve the ongoing contract negotiations.
“America’s seaports are absolutely vital to our economy, jobs and international competitiveness. At this tender stage of the economic recovery, our nation simply cannot afford disruptions, let alone a shutdown, of any part of the ports system,” said AAPA president and CEO Kurt Nagle.
“After seven months of labor negotiations without an agreement being reached, we believe that federal mediation is now necessary to prevent the significant economic repercussions that can occur whenever there is uncertainty and unpredictability in the movement of international commerce through our ports.”
How disruptive could this be if a work stoppage occurs? Consider that international trade accounts for nearly one-third of the U.S. economy. America’s seaports handle more than 99 percent of the nation’s overseas imports and exports, amounting to more than 2 billion tons of goods annually. This mammoth flow of trade supports more than 13 million American jobs and generates over $200 billion a year in tax revenues.
A work stoppage of just five days would reduce GDP by $1.9 billion a day, disrupt 73,000 jobs and cost the average household $81 in purchasing power.
Senior business reporter Mary Carr Mayle covers the ports for the Savannah Morning News and savannahnow. She can be reached at 912-652-0324 or at mary.mayle@savannahnow.com.
SHIPPING SCHEDULE
The following are the ships expected to call on Georgia Ports Authority’s Garden City and Ocean terminals this week. Schedules are supplied by GPA and are subject to change.
TERMINAL VESSEL ETA
GCT MSC ANGELA Today
GCT PAGO Today
GCT MAERSK ATLANTA Today
GCT MAERSK MISSOURI Today
GCT HS COLUMBIA Today
GCT MAERSK KOBE Today
GCT UASC SHUAIBA Today
OT BRIGHT HERO Today
GCT CMA CGM FLORIDA Saturday
GCT MSC PINA Saturday
GCT NAGOYA EXPRESS Saturday
GCT MAERSK DENPASAR Saturday
GCT WASHINGTON EXPRESS Saturday
GCT APL SCOTLAND Sunday
GCT CONTI MADRID Sunday
GCT EVER LEADING Sunday
OT JOHANN OLDENDORFF Sunday
GCT BEATRICE Monday
GCT GOLDEN RAY Monday
GCT SINGAPORE BRIDGE Monday
GCT KAAN KALKAVAN Monday
GCT BREMEN EXPRESS Monday
GCT VIRGINIA BRIDGE Monday
GCT ASIR Monday
GCT DALLAS EXPRESS Monday
OT TALISMAN Monday
OT GRANDE CONGO Monday
GCT APL GARNET Tuesday
GCT MSC ILONA Tuesday
GCT ZIM ISTANBUL Tuesday
GCT ARNOLD MAERSK Tuesday
GCT HANJIN MILANO Tuesday
OT VIRGO LEADER Tuesday
GCT CGM UTRILLO Wednesday
GCT MSC BRUXELLES Wednesday
GCT MSC SHAULA Wednesday
GCT ZIM TARRAGONA Wednesday
GCT CMA CGM JAMAICA Wednesday
OT BAHRI JAZAN Wednesday
OT NEW LIU LIN HAI Thursday