The Port of Savannah, Georgia, recently announced it moved more than 1 million twenty-foot equivalent container units (TEUs) across the Garden City Terminal in the first quarter of FY2018, growing by 5.8 percent over the same time period last year.
In September alone, the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) moved a total of 325,141 TEUs, an increase of 5.4 percent over the same month last year.
Additionally, container tons grew by approximately 8.1 percent, or 543,761 tons, to reach 7.23 million tons for the quarter.
“Sustained organic growth coupled with increased market share are driving these volume increases,” GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch said. “We have also achieved major gains through the addition of Neo-Panamax vessels to the fleet serving Garden City Terminal.”
Lynch recently spoke at the annual Savannah State of the Port address, where he detailed a multi-point infrastructure plan to accommodate growth experienced at Georgia ports.
Included in the plan was the addition of 10 ship-to-shore cranes for the Savannah port, a $128 million mega-rail project to increase rail lift capacity at the Garden City Terminal, the addition of an inland yard in Chatsworth, and the addition of six truck lanes at the Garden City Terminal.
“It’s Savannah’s unique capabilities – the largest single terminal in North America, 26 ship-to-shore cranes, on-terminal rail and immediate interstate access – that have allowed the port to handle significant growth,” GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood said. “Smart investments that will double our rail lift capacity at Garden City, build inland terminals around the state, and put an unprecedented 36 cranes on one dock will position Savannah to take on a new era of business expansion.”