NEWS - Ports & Transportation

June Volumes Contribute to Strong Finish for GPA

SBJ Staff Report

Aug. 9, 2010 - Both the Port of Savannah and the Port Charleston are reporting growing numbers and revenues, as their competition for business along the East Coast continues.

And Friday afternoon, the South Carolina State Ports Authority announced that the Port of Charleston's new 280-acre container terminal on the former Navy Base has the green light. “This morning, the South Carolina State Ports Authority and the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League signed a settlement agreement, ending a years-long legal battle,” according to a joint press release.

But Georgia Ports Authority’s (GPA) Executive Director Curtis J. Foltz has good news as well, reporting last week that the Port of Savannah had a 34 percent increase in both TEUs and containers moved for the month of June 2010, according to helping to lift final numbers for fiscal year 2010 that ended June 30.

“The GPA handled more than 2.63 million TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit containers), added new services and maintained its position as the fourth highest volume container port in fiscal year 2010.”

For the month of June 2010, the GPA posted a 34 percent increase with 240,734 TEUs compared with 179,451 TEUs handled in June 2009.

“The second half of the year was particularly strong with signs of economic recovery, retail sector inventory replenishment and continued strong demand for U.S. produced products boosting export volumes,” said Foltz. “The 9.7 percent increase in TEUs for the year allowed the GPA to fully recover from decreases experienced in FY2009 and return to the record levels reached in FY2008,” Foltz added.

The month of June 2010 was the third highest volume overall for the GPA in terms of both TEUs and containers moved. In June 2010, the GPA moved 135,297 containers compared with 100,660 containers in June 2009.

Also, during FY2010, the GPA experienced a 9.7 percent increase in total TEUs and a 7.3-percent increase in total tonnage for all terminal facilities handling a total of 24,288,789 tons.

The port at Brunswick has also had a good year, surpassing 2.3 million tons, a 15.4-percent increase compared with the previous year. Autos and machinery units at Colonel’s Island Terminal totaled 332,100 units, posting a 16.2-percent increase compared with the previous year. These volume gains can be attributed to a number of factors including a renewed consumer market for automobiles and the addition of a Mercedes-Benz USA vehicle-processing center on Colonel’s Island Terminal. which opened in January 2010.

Additionally, the Port of Brunswick recorded its best performance to date in the movement of agri-bulk cargoes in FY2010, handling more than one million tons at Colonel’s Island Terminal, a 38.7-percent increase compared with FY2009.

GPA analysis of its total financial impact on the State of Georgia includes more than 295,000 jobs throughout the state annually, and a contribute of $15.5 billion in income, $61.7 billion in revenue and $2.6 billion in state and local taxes to Georgia’s economy.

Port of Charleston
The South Carolina State Ports Authority, which operates the Port of Charleston, “already the deepest in the Southeast,” they state, has reached another milestone with container volumes in the Port of Charleston increasing 19 percent in the first half of 2010, buoyed by new shipping services and major new investments in the area.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Charleston District has also concluded the Reconnaissance Study for the post-45-foot deepening project in Charleston Harbor. The study determined a federal interest in proceeding to the next step in the process – the feasibility phase – to further define time and costs associated with deepening Charleston’s channels. Georgia Ports Authority is awaiting the Corps report and opinion on the option of deepening the Savannah River to expand future capabilities at the Savannah port.

In June, pier containers at the Port of Charleston increased almost 34 percent over the previous year – the fourth straight month of year-over-year, double-digit increases.

Despite widespread declines in global trade in 2009, the SCSPA volumes rebounded during the past six months and closed its most recent fiscal year exceeding its budgeted container volume. In the accounting period that ended June 30, Charleston handled 741,208 pier containers, off 5.2 percent from FY2009.

“Despite a very challenging economic environment, the SCSPA posted an operating profit and enjoyed strong volume increases over the past six months,” said Bill Stern, chairman of the SCSPA board.  “While we expect volume to moderate in the latter half of the year, we’re encouraged that business has returned at such a fast pace and we’re headed in the right direction.”

Contributing to the recent volume gains, Charleston has added three new shipping services in FY2010, including Mediterranean Shipping Company’s Golden Gate Service (GGS). The GGS, which had its first local call in February, is bringing ships of more than 8,000 20-foot equivalent units to the port on a regular basis, Stern added. 

“The port is handling the biggest ships on the East Coast today while working toward even deeper channels that will secure our state’s future in global trade,” said Jim Newsome, SCSPA president and CEO.

On the cargo development side, major global corporations are locating or expanding in the port’s service area while the SCSPA has launched new targeted sales efforts:
TBC Corporation, parent company of Tire Kingdom, is the largest distribution center to announce in the past year. TBC is locating a new 1.1 million square foot distribution facility in Berkeley County and will import tires through the Port of Charleston.

Several other importers and logistics firms located or expanded in the area, while private developers are proceeding with plans to build more than 20 million square feet in new industrial space near Charleston’s deepwater port facilities.

Targeted marketing efforts, including a new rail-served warehouse initiative and an expanded overweight permit for refrigerated containers are also boosting container volume.

For the fiscal year that began July 1, the SCSPA is projecting a seven percent increase in container volume and a more than 50 percent increase in breakbulk and non-container cargo.  

At the same time, the SCSPA plans to invest nearly $77 million this fiscal year on terminal improvements, including work on the SCSPA’s new container terminal on the former Navy Base as well as a new cruise terminal in downtown Charleston.

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