Georgia Ports Authority OKs plan to increase container capacity

The Georgia Ports Authority's board (GPA) yesterday approved capital improvements aimed at increasing the Port of Savannah's container capacity by 20%.

Dubbed the Peak Capacity project, the terminal expansion will establish 2,100 new grounded container slots. About 650,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of annual container yard capacity will be added in two phases, with the first opening in September.

The capacity projects will help increase the speed and fluidity of cargo handling at the port, said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch in a press release.

"Right now, we are moving container volumes that we did not expect to see for another four years," he said.

In addition to the Peak Capacity project, the board approved a Berth 1 renovation aimed at increasing berth capacity by about 1 million TEUs per year by June 2024. That project will bring Garden City Terminal's new total to 6 million TEUs of annual berth capacity.

The board also gave the green light to the purchase of 20 new rubber-tired gantry cranes, which will be tall enough to stand over six containers — one higher than the port's older RTGs.

Last month, the port moved 390,804 TEUs of cargo, an increase of 7.2% compared with February 2020's level. It was the port's busiest February ever.

Rail cargo outpaced the growth of the overall container trade in February, with intermodal lifts at Garden City Terminal, reaching about 77,500 TEUs for the month, an increase of 12.6%. The Appalachian Region Port also had its busiest February ever, with the inland rail yard handling 4,955 TEUs of trade.

In Brunswick roll-on/roll-off trade, Georgia Ports achieved 23% growth last month, handling 50,945 units of autos and heavy machinery. The GPA has received a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop a fourth berth for roll-on/roll-off cargo at Colonel's Island Terminal in Brunswick.

CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway serve the GPA ports.