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Port Traffic Trends: Georgia, Houston, New Orleans

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Georgia Marks 14.2 Percent Growth in Containers

The Georgia Ports Authority experienced "strong and sustained growth across all major markets" in the month of February, including bulk, break bulk, autos and machinery, and containerized freight.

Container movements through the Port of Savannah totaled 284,037 TEUs, up 14.2 percent from February 2014. Volume for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2014, amounted to 2.32 million TEUs, up 13.7 percent from the comparable eight-month period of FY 2013-2014.  

Also posting fiscal-year-to-date gains were break bulk cargo (up 11.2 percent to 1,821,830 short tons) and bulk cargo (up 6.9 percent to 1.99 million tons).

In February as well, GPA facilities in Savannah and Brunswick handled 57,654 automotive and machinery units, up 6.9 percent from last year. Colonel's Island Terminal in Brunswick alone moved 55,482 units of roll-on/roll-off cargo. Thus far in FY 2014-2015, the GPA has moved 464,638 auto and machinery units, up 5.8 percent, or 25,648 units.

The February data also showed gains from a year ago of 14.8 percent for bulk commodities, such as soybean meal and peanut pellets, and 24.8 percent for break bulk cargo, including iron and steel.

In anticipation of continuing growth, the GPA board on March 23 took the following actions:
  • Approved $10 million for Phase II of construction for a new Gate 8 and empty container depot at Garden City Terminal in the Port of Savannah.
  • Allotted $3.7 million for earthwork on 50 acres on the south side of Colonel's Island in the Port of Brunswick. The work will prepare the site for potential customers.
  • Approved construction of a third phase of the Anguilla Rail Yard in Brunswick to handle growing rail volumes. Improvements will include the construction of two additional storage rail tracks of approximately 4,200 feet in length for each, and an approximate total cost of $2.7 million.

Houston: Double-Digit Jumps for Containers, Cargo Tonnage in February

Activity across Port of Houston Authority docks continues to show strength as February 2015 cargo tonnage was up 22 percent from year ago, reported Executive Director Roger Guenther during the monthly Port Commission meeting on March 24. The Port Authority's Barbours Cut and Bayport container terminals were particularly busy, together handling 40 percent more loaded containers than in February 2014.

"Our sharp increases in container volume are not just from East Asian services and diversion from the West Coast," he said. "Those have been large, but all of our trade lanes, including the East Coast of South America, Europe and the Mediterranean have seen substantial increases in export volumes."

The port authority, whose facilities handled a record 37 million short tons of cargo in 2014, moved more than 6.0 million tons through the first two months of this year.

Increases in import steel contributed to February's strong showing, though Mr. Guenther cautioned that steel volumes are expected to subside in the coming months as inventory levels stabilize and demand reflects crude oil market prices.

He also reported port authority revenue for the first two months of the year was up 24 percent. February's $23.7 million was 32 percent higher than February 2014 and marked the 13th consecutive month that the port authority has surpassed the prior year's monthly production. He also noted that the port authority generated cash flow amounting to $24 million in cash flow from January through February.

"With this recent activity, along with the anticipated surge of resin exports in the next couple of years, we continue to assess capacity requirements at our container facilities to ensure we stay in front of the demand curve," he said. "We believe that there may be a need to adjust and accelerate our plans."


New Orleans: 2014 Cargo Total Hits 14-Year High

The Port of New Orleans’ public docks moved nearly 8.4 million tons of cargo in 2014, an increase of 28 percent from the year before and the highest total since 2000. 

Imported steel and container cargo led the growth, jumping 101.6 percent to 3.54 million tons. Break bulk accounted for 3.76 million tons ( 51.7 percent) and containerized cargo for 4.61 million tons ( 13.5 percent).

"It was a busy year for the port and these numbers reflect the success we’ve realized from the combined efforts of the entire port community," said New Orleans Port President Gary LaGrange, PPM®. "This is great news and creates momentum for our terminal operators and customers. The challenge now is to build upon these successes and continue to grow."

Cargo portwide, which includes midstream operations, export grain and private terminal operations within the port’s three-parish jurisdiction, also rose, by 27.7 percent to nearly 31.1 million tons. Among the port’s top commodities, export poultry increased by 5.5 percent to 331,523 tons and bananas by 251 percent to 72,165 tons.

2014 was a record cruise year, with the port’s passenger count topping 1.0 million for the first time ever. Container moves, too, hit an all-time high – 490,526 TEUs – and are expected to be "well over 500,000 TEUs for 2015."


Unloading steel coils at Louisiana Avenue Terminal by Coastal Cargo Company.
Photo/Port of New Orleans
 

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