Mega-alliances and big ship deployments remain the dominant theme in the U.S. port industry. With the raising of the Bayonne Bridge and the expansion of the Panama Canal slated to be completed in 2016, East Coast ports will most certainly see continued cascading of ships of between 8,000 and 14,000 TEUs in size. The container shipping industry is committed to driving down costs through the deployment of the biggest ships possible consistent with capabilities of the ports to be served. There is no question that the South Atlantic needs a harbor deeper than 50 feet to handle fully loaded large container ships.
The South Atlantic port market offers a rich tapestry of potential for long-term, above-market growth. The Southeast is a region that offers robust population growth, which drives imports, along with a tremendous amount of export-related manufacturing and raw material exports. Our ports are fluid today with no congestion, high productivity and reasonable costs for our customers. Reliability will be the name of the game in the U.S. port industry.
Continued growth in intermodal rail is vital through the development of inland port facilities. We must all focus on assisting the container trucking industry to be successful as we cannot succeed without this vital capacity and capability.
Jim Newsome, President and CEO, South Carolina Ports Authority