HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Sunday’s opening of the expanded Panama Canal, and the larger vessels that will transit it, was recognized during today’s meeting of the Port Commission of the Port of Houston Authority. “Houston is well positioned for increased trade through the canal to and from East Asia, currently our fastest growing container trade lane,” Port Commission Chairman Janiece Longoria said. “We look forward to the opportunity to serve our customers and further establish the Port of Houston as a gateway to the U.S.”
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Port Commission actions taken during the meeting demonstrate that “we are ready” for the continued growth and increased cargo experienced by our terminals, as the commission approved several items supporting investments in terminal infrastructure and operations. One highlight was the award of a $34 million contract for construction of three dockside electric container cranes at Bayport Container Terminal. When fully operational, these three new Super Post-Panamax cranes will increase the number of cranes operating at the Bayport terminal to twelve. The cranes are expected to be delivered to Bayport in about 18 months.
In his report to the commission, Executive Director Roger Guenther reported that the Port Authority is “seeing less steel than anticipated”: over 1 million tons of steel moved over the wharves through May, versus 3.1 million tons through the same period last year. Containers TEUs were about 6 percent less than in 2015 in terms of total TEUs, loaded TEUs through May were down about 8 percent and “empties” were up about 2 percent. Putting that in perspective however, the executive director added that these cargo volumes are in comparison to “the five strongest months ever” in the Port Authority’s history. Guenther separately noted that he projects the Port Authority’s position will be “significantly strengthened” with the addition of the new 2M Asian service – Maersk Line’s TP18 service and Mediterranean Shipping Company’s Lone Star Express service – the Port Authority’s third all-weekly shipping service to call from Asia.
In other actions, the Port Commission amended Tariff Nos. 8, 14, and 15 regarding Regulation V1/2 of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). The Port Authority worked with other U.S. operating port authorities and members of the Ocean Carrier Equipment Management Association (OCEMA) to develop a streamlined approach to providing VGMs. The new subrules cover the Turning Basin Terminals, Barbours Cut Terminal, and Bayport Container Terminal and are effective July 1, 2016. Details regarding the Port Authority’s SOLAS VGM process can be found at http://www.portofhouston.com
Also during today’s meeting, Chairman Longoria applauded Guenther for his appointment to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Port Performance Freight Statistics Working Group. This group supports a newly established program “to provide nationally consistent measures of performance” of the nation’s largest ports. The working group will report annually to Congress on port capacity and throughput.
The next Port Commission meeting is scheduled Tuesday, July 26.
About the Port of Houston Authority
For more than 100 years, the Port of Houston Authority has owned and operated the public wharves and terminals of the Port of Houston – the nation’s largest port for foreign waterborne tonnage and an essential economic engine for the Houston region, the state of Texas, and the nation. It supports the creation of nearly 1.175 million jobs in Texas and 2.7 million jobs nationwide, and economic activity totaling almost $265 billion in Texas – 16 percent of Texas’ total gross domestic product – and more than $617 billion in economic impact across the nation. For more information, visit the Port Authority website at: www.portofhouston.com.