North American ports

An explosion of e-commerce business is driving up rents at last-mile/last-touch fulfillment centers in urban core locations, and entrepreneurial truckers are finding ways to participate in this growing market. But the end result is a plus for beneficial cargo owners and consumers, as these developments enhance customer service and prevent final delivered costs from getting out of hand.

US Rep. Duncan D. Hunter, R-Calif., has asked the Trump administration to block Gulftainer from acquiring a 50-year concession at the Port of Wilmington, Delaware, in the latest of a series of controversies over foreign investments in US ports.

The terminal will be developed on the site of a former bulk terminal in the port’s upper harbor.

Port officials expect better quarters ahead for the Port of Mobile (above), and one of several reasons is because automotive shipments are poised to grow with the continuing expansion of auto assembly plants in Alabama and surrounding states.

The port’s deployment in May of two new cranes at the port’s only container terminal, Packer Avenue Marine Terminal, and the opening of an extended berth that will enable the port to handle three super post-Panamax vessels at once are the first parts of the expansion.

Neither country has listed a deadline for tariff implementation, hence the situation remains dynamic and fluid. However, key analysts are formulating worst-case scenarios.

In the latest move to demonstrate the commercial and operational feasibility of zero-emission, cargo-handling equipment, the Port of Long Beach has announced a partnership with SSA Marine to convert nine rubber-tire gantry cranes from diesel to electric and purchase 12 battery-electric yard tractors.

West Coast ports have taken the lead in breaking down the barriers to information sharing by establishing information portals that will allow all port users to access the shipment data they need in a secure environment. This development promises to accelerate productivity.

Shippers could find their cargo severely disrupted at the Port of New York and New Jersey if a ban on pre-2007 trucks goes into effect, according to a letter by the New York Shipping Association and several trucking groups that criticizes an effort by two congressmen to revive the ban.

The long-delayed boom in plastic resin exports is forecast to finally arrive this year, sector officials say, and a second wave is likely by 2022. That is expected to create opportunities for ports on all three US seacoasts, but it will also stress port, truck, and intermodal rail operations.

Truckers in Norfolk protest the persistent delays at the Virginia International Gateway terminal. For shippers, these multiple hour turns can slow the delivery of their containers and add a layer of unpredictability to their supply chain. The Port of Virginia says be patient, things will be getting better soon.

PierPass has its supporters and detractors, but port users agree that the largest US gateway could not handle 17 million TEU per year without a regular schedule of night and weekend gates.

A plan to redevelop former Avondale Shipyards at New Orleans into a privately owned and operated breakbulk terminal and multimodal hub has won support from port officials.

Three new simulators at the Port of New York and New Jersey enable crane operator trainees to get hands-on experience, as well as guidance from nearby trainers, rather than taking up valuable time on a real crane.

This is the fourth Nor'easter — a large snow storm that travels up the northeast coast — to affect the Boston-Washington corridor in the last month.

The Port of Virginia’s system is off to a good start; however it remains to be seen whether the shorter turn times will hold up once mandatory appointments expand to the congested Virginia International Gateway and Portsmouth Marine Terminal.

Many US ports are facing the challenge of handling container surges from today’s mega-ships with an operating schedule designed in the 1970s.

Five-year strategic plan calls for infrastructure development and process improvements to handle mega-ships.

The depth of 55 feet would make Virginia the deepest harbor on the US East Coast.

The LA and Oakland information portals are expected to spread to other US ports.

If the partnership between the ports of Virginia and Georgia works as port officials hope, shippers will see a smoother, more efficient process for moving cargo through the ports, potentially boosting the incentive to use them, rather than others, along the coast.

The four main terminals at the Port of New York and New Jersey closed at lunchtime Wednesday, and the port announced that it will be closed Thursday due to the snow storm hammering the Northeast.

In the letter from the South Carolina's congressional delegation, the nine lawmakers noted that state lawmakers have appropriated $300 million for the project — a substantial local investment.

The Port of Charleston marked two milestones this week, celebrating the beginning of dredging in the harbor and the arrival of two ship-to-shore cranes.

NRF-led coalition tells ILA and USMX cargo loss is imminent if they do not resume contract negotiations soon.

Beneficial cargo owners will have more options to import cargo from Asia with the Port of Savannah receiving two new services this year and the Port of Jacksonville receiving one.

The due date remains January 2022, but that could be delayed if the federal government does not provide the entire $100 million Georgia officials have sought.

Shippers will have a harder time finding drayage services at the Port of New York and New Jersey if a program to ban trucks with engines age 2007 and older is revived — rendering thousands of trucks obsolete from port work.

The rapid progress of a $500 million upgrade at the Port of New York and New Jersey's Port Newark Container Terminal could attract shippers that are closely focused on speed and efficiency in getting containers in or out of a terminal, especially regarding boxes moving by rail.

Long Beach's mayor and city council support efforts by the Teamsters union on the driver misclassification issue.

Tampa port officials hope an initial shipment of bananas through a new dockside cold storage warehouse will be the start of a new market for the Florida port.

Although few details have been released, a pilot program at a marine terminal at the Port of New York and New Jersey appears to give shippers a sought-after early slot for a fee of $95 — suggesting shippers could get better service if they are willing to pay for it.

The Port of Boston’s stance regarding its expansion is, “If you build it, they will come.” The port, which after its upgrade will be able to handle 14,000 TEU ships, also says it will be able to bring freight closer to customers than other US East Coast ports.

With the long-awaited boom in US production of synthetic resins expected to finally materialize this year, shippers are urging carriers to add more services from the Gulf to Asia. But will ocean carriers respond?

Shippers that are skeptical of the efficiency of the Port of New York and New Jersey and its ability to handle higher cargo volumes may take comfort that authorities are considering extended gate hours and how to boost rail efficiency after crippling delays in early 2018.

After a substantial gain in 2017, retailers are forecasting another increase in US container import volume in 2018, as container lines and beneficial cargo owners prepare for annual trans-Pacific rate and service contract negotiations.

Frontier Logistics plans to build a 400,000-square-foot warehouse for bagging and transloading of plastic pellets that will strengthen the Port of Charleston’s position in exports of synthetic resins.

After reinventing itself several times over the decades, the Port of Galveston has settled on a business formula that emphasizes vehicles and other roll-on, roll-off cargo, refrigerated shipments, wind energy and project cargo, and cruise ships.

Port officials cited the raising of the Bayonne Bridge as “perhaps the biggest driving force" in achieving the cargo volume increase.

Northwest Seaport Alliance reahes compromise deal with owner-operators.