Port of Oakland awards APL Highest Volume Carrier 2009
Oakland, CA—05-12-10— The Port of Oakland honored carrier APL Wednesday, May 12, 2010, with its new award for moving the most cargo of any carrier through the Port of Oakland.
At the awards event Port Executive Director Omar Benjamin told APL executives, staff and longshore workers “Your achievement of transporting through the Port of Oakland in 2009 a 30% increase in cargo volume from 2008 is substantial and all the more remarkable considering the state of the economy last year.” Benjamin added, “APL and Eagle Marine Services have been strong, valued partners with the Port. This is a new award that the Port is giving and we are delighted to present it to APL.”
APL received the Port of Oakland’s “Highest Volume Carrier 2009” award for moving 244,249 TEUs. A TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) is the international standard of measurement for cargo volume and equals one 20 foot long container.
“We’re gratified to receive this award for two reasons,” said Bob Sappio, Senior Vice President of Pan American Trades for APL. “First, the Port of Oakland, along with ports in Los Angeles and Seattle, is important to our strategy of multiple West Coast cargo gateways. And second, as a hub for U.S. exports to Asia, the Port of Oakland helps drive California’s economy. APL is pleased to be part of that effort.”
Port Maritime Director James Kwon said, “We would also like to acknowledge and thank APL for a highly successful first call service – the PS2. It serves the needs of importers who must move their products quickly and efficiently through the Oakland gateway. It has become the importers’ retail express service for Northern California.” First port-of-call service at Oakland is a container ship that comes directly from a port in Asia making Oakland its first destination in the U.S.
APL’s history at Oakland goes back to the Gold Rush days more than 160 years ago. It’s been serving the Bay Area ever since. It was a historic accomplishment when APL’s predecessor company inaugurated trans-Pacific trade in 1867 with regular service to Yokohama and Shanghai.
APL provides comprehensive Westbound export services, which serve an incredibly diverse range of customers – from beef producers in Nebraska, to hay farmers in Iowa, to fruit, vegetable and nut shippers in California’s Central Valley.
APL has helped the Port of Oakland become the third-busiest on the West Coast, and the fifth-busiest in the United States.
About the Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland oversees the Oakland seaport, Oakland International Airport and 20 miles of waterfront. The Oakland seaport is the fifth busiest container port in the U.S.; Oakland International Airport is the second largest San Francisco Bay Area airport, offering over 140 daily flights; and the Port’s real estate includes commercial developments such as Jack London Square and hundreds of acres of public parks and conservation areas. The Port of Oakland was established in 1927 and is an independent department of the City of Oakland. Please visit: www.portofoakland.com.
About APL
APL is a global container shipping business offering more than 60 weekly services and more than 500 calls at more than 140 ports worldwide. It combines world-class intermodal operations with leading-edge IT and e-commerce. APL is a unit of Singapore-based Neptune Orient Lines (NOL), global shipping, logistics and marine terminals company. APL Web site: www.apl.com