| South Carolina Seeks Capacity
Larger neo-Panamax ships may soon be able to utilize the North Charleston container terminal in the Port of Charleston after the port purchases the neighboring industrial site to expand the terminal’s container yard.
The proposed expansion would lead to triple the current size of the container yard and double the length of its berth.
In its current configuration, the North Charleston terminal spans 201 acres, 132 of which belong to the container yard. Once developed, the container yard will comprise 400 acres, according to the South Carolina State Ports Authority (SC Ports). The length of the berth space is set to increase from 2,460 feet to 5,000 feet.
The container yard currently serves ships limited to 8,000 TEUs, but expects to serve ships of over 15,000 TEUs once the expansion is complete, though doing so would also require raising the Don Holt Bridge that spans Cooper River, and in turn, imposing air draft restrictions on ships calling North Charleston.
The SC Ports board of directors approved the purchase of the 280-acre property for an undisclosed price on Tuesday of last week. SC Ports also outlined plans to make the port more modern with “an optimized layout, upgraded cargo-handling equipment and significant new container capacity.”
Transformation In The Trans-Pacific
APM Terminals, a subsidiary of Maersk, has partnered with Vietnamese logistics and real estate conglomerate Hateco Group to enhance the development of a container terminal at Haiphong Port. The terminal aims to accommodate ultra-large container ships and elevate Haiphong's status as a key trans-Pacific shipping hub.
Hateco Group initiated the project in 2021, with the terminal expected to be operational by 2025, featuring two berths capable of handling vessels up to 18,000-TEU.
APM's collaboration with Hateco signifies their interest in Vietnam's burgeoning market and aligns with their customer-centric growth strategy. The partnership entails APM lending expertise in port automation, electrification, safety, artificial intelligence, and decarbonization, building upon their commitment announced in 2023 to support the terminal's development.
APM Terminals already has an established market presence in Vietnam through its joint venture Cai Mep terminal, which, unlike other terminals in the region, is capable of handling ultra-large container ships, though its existing container terminals can only accommodate ships up to 13,000-TEU capacity, limiting its competitiveness in terms of handling volumes. Despite this, there's a growing interest from ocean carriers to bring more trans-Pacific services to Haiphong. |
