Savannah’s TEU Count Up 7.5% in 2018

Rubber tire gantry work stack containers on the Georgia Ports Authority’s Port of Savannah Garden City Terminal, Wednesday, Jan., 2, 2019, in Savannah, Ga. GPA Photo/Stephen B. Morton

The Port of Savannah moved a record 4.35 million TEU in 2018, making for a 7.5 percent increase over 2017, according to a report from Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch to the GPA Board Tuesday.

In December alone, the Port of Savannah handled 351,366 TEUs, an increase of 8.7 percent, or 28,250 TEUs. It was the Authority’s busiest December ever, capping a year with nine of the GPA’s 10 busiest months on record.

“The reason Georgia’s ports remain the fastest growing in the nation is because we are quickly adding capacity to our operations,” said GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood. “The leadership model our ports and elected officials have put into place is forward thinking and works hard to build for the next wave of growth.”

Allgood said the ports made several strides in infrastructure development during the last year. In February, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completed outer harbor dredging at the Port of Savannah, marking the midpoint of the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project (SHEP). The federal government provided $101.12 million to continue with the project’s construction this year. Inner harbor dredging is on track to start this year, Allgood said.

In addition, the Authority has ordered 12 new rubber-tired gantry cranes to serve the Port of Savannah, bringing its fleet to 158. The first 10 new RTGs will arrive and be commissioned in July, followed by two in September. There is also construction on six ship-to-shore cranes slated to arrive in 2020. The new cranes will bring the Port of Savannah’s fleet to 36 and allow the port to increase big ship capacity.

In addition to its marine terminals, the Port of Savannah handled its most ever containers by rail in 2018, moving 478,669 containers – approximately 860,000 TEUs. The rail volume represented a 19 percent increase compared to 2017. The GPA wis scheduled to complete Phase I of the Mason Mega Rail project in October of this year, and Phase II by October 2020. When complete, the project will double current rail capacity at Garden City Terminal from 500,000 to 1 million containers per year.

In Brunswick, autos and machinery increased by 6.4 percent (18,911 units) in the first half of Fiscal Year 2019 (July-December 2018) for a total of 315,611 units. At GPA’s Colonel’s Island, the single largest autoport in North America, further expansion projects are underway that will double GPA’s rail capacity and significantly increase near-dock storage. The Authority also plans to develop another 400 acres to bring annual throughput capacity to 1.5 million vehicles in the coming years.

December also closed the second quarter of the GPA’s fiscal year. For the first half of Fiscal Year 2019 (July-December 2018), the Port of Savannah moved 2.2 million TEUs, up 176,800 TEUS, or 8.6 percent. In total cargo, GPA handled 18.1 million tons for the first half of FY2019.

“The level of business Georgia has captured is a testament to the world-class service provided by our stevedores, ILA, pilots, other port stakeholders, and our partners at Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. “Georgia’s unrivaled connectivity to Atlanta, Memphis, Charlotte and beyond allows port customers to reach new and growing markets.”

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