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Major capacity expansions underway at US Gulf Coast ports
来源：Shipping News Headlines 编辑：编辑部 发布：2021/02/23 10:26:44
US Gulf Coast ports are plowing ahead with major capacity expansions in 2021 that will better position them to handle vessels well above the 10,000-TEU size most common in services calling at local ports.
The Port of Houston will begin work on projects that include adding a new deepwater container berth to its largest marine terminal and expanding the ship channel to allow large ships to pass each other. Expecting a return to growth, the 2021 projects will focus on bringing Houston closer to its goal of being able to handle over three million TEU in capacity by next year, and eventually allow it to serve ships up to 18,000 TEU.
The authority in November approved a 2021 budget that outlines US$239 million in new capital spending at the port's Bayport and Barbours Cut marine terminals, along with other assets along the Houston Ship Channel, nearly double the port's 2020 capital spending. In addition, the authority has set aside $305 million for Project 11, a decade-long plan to widen and deepen the Houston Ship Channel.
Those expenditures come after a year in which the port's container trade, which had been growing steadily for several years, plateaued. The port authority expects total throughput for 2020 to be flat compared with 2019, at 2.99 million TEU. The authority is projecting a return to positive growth in 2021, however, with total containers handled increasing nearly five per cent year on year to 3.14 million TEU.
The authority is looking to start work on the 1,000-foot long Berth 6 at Bayport, its largest marine terminal, in the first quarter of 2021. The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) in March 2020 awarded $22 million for the new berth, which is expected to be completed in 2023. The authority also plans to award a design contract for another container yard at Bayport sometime in 2021. Along with the new berth, Bayport's crane fleet will eventually be replaced with one that can handle 18,000-TEU vessels.
At the Barbours Cut Terminal, work will begin this year to restore four container yards and 2,700 linear feet of berth space across three wharves, with the help of another USDOT grant of $79.4 million. Once the dock reinforcement is complete, the authority will move three older cranes from Bayport to Barbours Cut, allowing the latter to handle ships up to 10,000-TEU. Those projects also are expected to be completed in 2023, and the authority is also nearing completion of a $42 million upgrade to the truck gates at Barbours Cut that is expected to be ready by spring 2021.
Officials at the Port of New Orleans remain optimistic that it can capitalise on its role as a major gateway for agriculture exports out of the Midwest and as the second leading source of US resin exports outside of Houston.
The US Army Corps of Engineers has already begun a dredging project that will deepen the lower reaches of the Mississippi River to 50 feet, eventually allowing vessels up to 14,000-TEU to call at New Orleans.
To handle the larger vessels, the port will also go forward with a $100 million expansion of its Napoleon Container Terminal, which will include the addition of four new ship-to-shore cranes and new rail capacity. The port is also considering whether to add a second container terminal.
Like its Gulf counterparts, Port of Mobile is also readying itself to handle larger vessels. A $400 million deepening project is underway that will allow the port to ditch its existing 9,000 TEU limit on vessel sizes and handle ships of 13,000 to 14,000 TEU.
Ports America, which operates Tampa Bay's container terminal, plans to add capacity through new truck gates, additional gantry cranes, and other projects. The terminal's current annual capacity of 300,000 TEU could double in two years, with plans to reach one million TEU over the next five years. USDOT will help fund some of that expansion with a $19.8 million grant, reports IHS Media.
The Port of Houston will begin work on projects that include adding a new deepwater container berth to its largest marine terminal and expanding the ship channel to allow large ships to pass each other. Expecting a return to growth, the 2021 projects will focus on bringing Houston closer to its goal of being able to handle over three million TEU in capacity by next year, and eventually allow it to serve ships up to 18,000 TEU.
The authority in November approved a 2021 budget that outlines US$239 million in new capital spending at the port's Bayport and Barbours Cut marine terminals, along with other assets along the Houston Ship Channel, nearly double the port's 2020 capital spending. In addition, the authority has set aside $305 million for Project 11, a decade-long plan to widen and deepen the Houston Ship Channel.
Those expenditures come after a year in which the port's container trade, which had been growing steadily for several years, plateaued. The port authority expects total throughput for 2020 to be flat compared with 2019, at 2.99 million TEU. The authority is projecting a return to positive growth in 2021, however, with total containers handled increasing nearly five per cent year on year to 3.14 million TEU.
The authority is looking to start work on the 1,000-foot long Berth 6 at Bayport, its largest marine terminal, in the first quarter of 2021. The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) in March 2020 awarded $22 million for the new berth, which is expected to be completed in 2023. The authority also plans to award a design contract for another container yard at Bayport sometime in 2021. Along with the new berth, Bayport's crane fleet will eventually be replaced with one that can handle 18,000-TEU vessels.
At the Barbours Cut Terminal, work will begin this year to restore four container yards and 2,700 linear feet of berth space across three wharves, with the help of another USDOT grant of $79.4 million. Once the dock reinforcement is complete, the authority will move three older cranes from Bayport to Barbours Cut, allowing the latter to handle ships up to 10,000-TEU. Those projects also are expected to be completed in 2023, and the authority is also nearing completion of a $42 million upgrade to the truck gates at Barbours Cut that is expected to be ready by spring 2021.
Officials at the Port of New Orleans remain optimistic that it can capitalise on its role as a major gateway for agriculture exports out of the Midwest and as the second leading source of US resin exports outside of Houston.
The US Army Corps of Engineers has already begun a dredging project that will deepen the lower reaches of the Mississippi River to 50 feet, eventually allowing vessels up to 14,000-TEU to call at New Orleans.
To handle the larger vessels, the port will also go forward with a $100 million expansion of its Napoleon Container Terminal, which will include the addition of four new ship-to-shore cranes and new rail capacity. The port is also considering whether to add a second container terminal.
Like its Gulf counterparts, Port of Mobile is also readying itself to handle larger vessels. A $400 million deepening project is underway that will allow the port to ditch its existing 9,000 TEU limit on vessel sizes and handle ships of 13,000 to 14,000 TEU.
Ports America, which operates Tampa Bay's container terminal, plans to add capacity through new truck gates, additional gantry cranes, and other projects. The terminal's current annual capacity of 300,000 TEU could double in two years, with plans to reach one million TEU over the next five years. USDOT will help fund some of that expansion with a $19.8 million grant, reports IHS Media.