The South Carolina Port Authority (SCPA) said its September volumes reflect the strongest activity year on year since the COVID-19 pandemic and show a continued recovery and strength in containers, vehicles and internal movements.
SCPA managed a record 195,101 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in September at the Wando Welch and North Charleston terminals. He said the total was a “slight increase” year on year. SCPA handled 581,912 TEUs in the first quarter of fiscal year 2021, which started on July 1.
Vehicles remain a strong business segment for the Port of Charleston, said SCPA, with 21,702 vehicles handled at the Columbus Street Terminal in September, down less than 2% year on year, despite the blow the automotive industry had during the coronavirus pandemic.
SCPA said the inland ports of Greer and Dillon also had an eventful month as cargo activity increased. Inland Port Greer saw 12,994 rail movements in September, an increase of 4% year on year. Inland Port Dillon reported 3,108 rail movements, an increase of 27% year on year.
“September volumes exceeded expectations as we see an increase in cargo flowing through our maritime terminals and inland ports,” said SCPA President and CEO Jim Newsome in a statement. “We remain highly focused on capturing more retail merchandise and e-commerce cargo, such as Walmart’s new 3 million square foot distribution center in Dorchester County, South Carolina.”
Walmart’s $ 220 million distribution center (NYSE: WMT), announced in July, is expected to increase annual volumes at the Port of Charleston by about 5%.
In September, SCPA also celebrated the so-called CMA CGM Brasil record. The 15,072 TEU vessel is the largest to call at ports on the East Coast.
CMA CGM Brasil, since the Eiffel Tower is high, visited the ports of Halifax, New York and New Jersey, Virginia, and Savannah before ending its North American visit at the Port of Charleston.
SCPA said it invested $ 2 billion to modernize its infrastructure, including upgrades to the Wando Welch Terminal and construction of the first phase of the Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal, which will open in March. The Charleston port deepening project is also fully funded and on schedule to reach a depth of 52 feet next year, SCPA said.
According to SCPA, the Leatherman facility will be the first new container terminal to open in the United States since 2009. The first phase will add 700,000 TEUs of annual processing capacity to the Port of Charleston. In full construction, the three berth terminal will double SCPA’s current container handling capacity, adding 2.4 million TEUs of all capacity.
SCPA using BUILD funds to make way for Walmart’s distribution center
Walmart chooses location near Port of Charleston for distribution center
South Carolina ports encouraged by constant recovery
Click for more American Shipper / FreightWaves stories by senior editor Kim Link-Wills.