Port News

India’s cabotage liberalization allowed foreign-flagged liners to transport laden export–import containers for transshipment and empty containers for repositioning between Indian ports without any specific license, paving the way for more cargo aggregation opportunities.

Intermodal equipment providers issue a dire warning that chassis shortages in Southern California will persist into next year, but truckers say that is unacceptable.

Europe’s two busiest ports report solid import demand from China through the third quarter, which has helped mitigate the weak throughput of the second quarter.

A new drayage TMS provider aims to arm port carriers with modern technology to automate back office functions and better manage dispatch and customer engagement.

While Halifax was the best way station immediately available for Montreal-bound containers, it still lacks capabilities as an emergency valve for Canadian importers due to its remoteness from inland distribution networks, stakeholders say.

The congestion that has plagued the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach over the past two months is expected to get worse in the coming weeks owing to a “record” spike in imports.

Available drivers have been hard to find with such a sudden and sharp rise in domestic and international container flows, placing a great deal of strain on the fluidity of the supply chain.

Two recent studies show how cheaper rail prices are helping drive port routing changes, and a new JOC analysis of data from the Intermodal Association of North America reveals how significant the shift has been in just five years.

The project grants are part of the US Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program, with funds going to 18 projects, almost half of which are earmarked for “opportunity zones” in economically distressed communities.

Newly released data shows the disruptive extent of unexpectedly high demand on the major trades out of China, with cargo rollovers continuing across Asia’s main transshipment ports.

Europe’s second-busiest container port has reported limited impact from COVID-19 on its nine-month throughput, with demand increasing in the third quarter.

Owing to California’s strict environmental requirements, as well as standards for the region outlined in the federal Clean Air Act, the ability of Los Angeles and Long Beach to expand their infrastructure and grow cargo volumes depends on achieving emissions-reduction goals.

Cargo handling and delivery of import containers to truckers in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has been severely compromised by the three-month import surge from Asia that continues at a double-digit year-over-year clip.

The pandemic-induced slowdown in global trade earlier in the year played a role in the marginal improvement in port efficiency since ports had to handle fewer boxes overall, but avoiding landside constraints also helped.

The purchase of Value Logistics gives Forward a bigger intermodal presence in the South-Central distribution hub as freight volumes of all types rise, said CEO Tom Schmitt.

A widely-used drayage management solutions provider has added the truck parking marketplace SecurSpace to help drivers find parking and equipment storage options directly in their transportation management systems.

How the dueling Vancouver port projects proceed is critical to how the largest Canadian gateway meets the demand for roughly 2 million TEU in capacity within approximately 10 years.

Monday’s opening of the new Gerald Desmond bridge in Long Beach, part of a massive $4.5 billion capital expenditure program, will provide the immediate benefit of reducing truck turn times.

India port stakeholders -- and carriers -- are expressing frustration over the 14-day quarantine for ships from China, which they say is causing disruption throughout the supply chain.

The Port of Virginia’s year over year volume rose in September for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, with truck turn times still less than 40 minutes on average but elevated rail container dwelling.

Mounting congestion at marine terminals in Los Angeles and Long Beach is adding to the woes of importers who have already been contending with shortages of equipment, warehouse workers and truck capacity.

East and Gulf coast ports offer significant rail-related cost advantages to the interior, leading the Pacific Maritime Association to urge West Coast ports to operate more efficiently in order to prevent further erosion of market share of US imports from Asia.

Houston’s need for additional space comes as it hopes to begin funding a multi-year channel widening project by next year amid a building boom for container ship capacity along the US Gulf Coast.

DP World and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) say they expect to finalize an employment agreement covering the terminal operator's Port Botany facility in Sydney next week.

The Jacksonville Port Authority (Jaxport) has secured the final piece of the funding pie needed to deepen the port’s main harbor to 47 feet to Blount Island, a critical step toward handling more post-Panamax vessels in the trans-Pacific trade.

Equipment providers and terminal operators say excessive container and chassis dwell times at import warehouses in Southern California are the main culprit in recent congestion at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Congestion at the UK’s busiest port has prompted CMA CGM to impose a surcharge on all Asian imports and exports through the gateway.

The balance of trade in and out of India has shifted in favor of exports as the country begins to recover from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lawyers representing ocean carriers, OCEMA, and CCM have asked the FMC to dismiss ATA’s complaint into chassis, arguing the regulatory body lacks jurisdiction and only cargo owners can bring such a case.

The intensity of the Asia import surge is such that executives believe a return-to-normal container flow might still take months given how out of balance the system has already become in recent weeks.

The Port of Virginia’s Virginia International Gateway (VIG) terminal has resumed Saturday gate hours through Nov. 21 after suspending weekend service in mid-March at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The UK’s busiest container port is being overwhelmed by peak season volume, staff shortages, and problems with its truck booking system, with forwarders feeling the effects of a ban on empty container drop-offs.

A&R Logistics has opened a new resin packaging plant in South Carolina two months ahead of schedule, causing port officials to be bullish about resin exports in 2021.

Container volume in Savannah set a new monthly record in August, a result port officials didn’t anticipate but attribute to US consumer demand for online shopping and home improvement goods.

Funds from the US Department of Transportation’s grant program will assist the ports of Charleston and Everett and Anchorage’s airport finance various improvement projects.

While the chief factor behind current excessive container backups at Mundra has been adverse weather, there have also been trade concerns regarding the private handler prioritizing some bulk movement over containerized freight.

A widening project will allow bi-directional traffic along the channel leading into Guangzhou’s Nansha container terminal, reducing the time ships have to wait for a berth window.

A deal to build and operate a transload and distribution facility in Vancouver advances CP’s efforts to deepen its presence at its sole western Canadian port gateway, and Maersk’s evolution into a so-called global integrator by expanding its reach beyond port-to-port shipping.

The Port of New Orleans was halting operations Monday ahead of Hurricane Sally, due to make landfall in southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday.

Container delays at Sydney have been caused by industrial action by dock workers, exacerbated by berth congestion and bad weather at Port Botany. Photo credit: Shutterstock.com.