APM Terminals Pledges EUR 962 Million Investment in Brazilian Terminals by 2026

May 12, 2023 - As part of a Dutch trade delegation to Brazil this week, APM Terminals’ CEO Keith Svendsen pledged a EUR 962 million (R$ 5.2 billion) investment in its Brazilian operations up to 2026.

This figure includes a EUR 296 million (R$ 1.6 billion) of a total EUR 483 (R$ 2.6 billion) investment exclusively for the Phase One development of a new terminal in Suape. The terminal, located in Estaleiro Atlântico Sul, is in the final stages of acquisition and will rejuvenate infrastructure and increase competition in the port.

APM Terminals has committed an additional EUR 666 (R$ 3.6 billion) of investment to the company’s four other terminals and inland depots, by 2026. A large share of this, around EUR285 million, is allocated to Brasil Terminal Portuário, Santos.

The company, which plans to multiply storage capacity fivefold at its inland container depots in the Northeast and Southeast of the country, will prioritise early renovation of its terminal in the Port of Santos, Brasil Terminal Portuário (BTP). BTP is operated in partnership with Terminal Investment Limited (TIL), a subsidiary of the MSC group).

Concession Extension

APM Terminals is negotiating with the federal government to extend its concession agreement, which expires in 2027, for another 20 years. In exchange, APM Terminals would modernise and double the current 1.5 million TEU capacity of the terminal, which is currently operating at close to full capacity (92%).

An initial investment of at least EUR 285 million (R$ 1.54 billion) up to 2026, could realistically reach EUR 408 million (R$ 2.2 billion) over the next five years due to ongoing improvements. As well as expanding BTP, APM Terminals and TIL expressed joint interest in a new container terminal at the Port of Santos, STS 10, located in an area adjacent to its existing terminal. The new government, however, has not yet defined the future of the project, which has been put on hold for reassessment.

Under the previous government, the tender was subject to controversy, as other port operators expressed concern over the dominance of Maersk and MSC, the parent companies of APM Terminals and TIL respectively. Responding to this, APM Terminals’ CEO Keith Svendsen said that experience in other countries shows that the concern is unfounded.

Doubling Capacity

With BTP operating at 92% capacity — and an 80% capacity generally seen as the maximum for optimal efficiency, Svendsen stated: “Our primary focus is increasing capacity and modernisation. There is now an urgent need for investment in the Port of Santos, both to ensure the deepening of the access channel, which will allow the entry of new, larger, and more efficient ships, and to expand capacity of the port complex, which is close to the limit.”

Zero Emission Goals

Any investments in the terminal will also be an opportunity to uniquely position the terminal with low or zero-emission container handling, something which is increasingly being demanded by customers. APM terminals has committed to Net Zero Greenhouse Emissions by 2040 and a 70% reduction in absolute (total) emissions as an interim milestone for the period 2020-2030 for its commercially controlled terminals. This will involve investment in the electrification of equipment, purchase or generation of renewable energy and optimisation.

Georgia Ports Authority Wins Environmental Approval for Gainesville Rail Hub

May 11, 2023 - Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch said GPA’s Network Georgia plan to develop rail hubs around the state is gaining momentum, with federal environmental approval for an inland terminal near Gainesville, Georgia.

“Our expanding network is increasing rail capacity and connectivity between the port and major manufacturing sites around the state,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. “Moving more cargo by rail eases interstate traffic and reduces the carbon footprint of the state’s logistics industry by making the most efficient use of the Georgia’s logistics infrastructure.”

GPA recently received NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) approval for the Northeast Georgia Inland Port in the Gainesville-Hall County area. The Authority will now finalize a grant agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration, and then move on to construction. MARAD has awarded GPA a grant of up to $46.8 million to build a new inland container port along the I-85/I-985 corridor. Earthwork is slated to begin in July, with terminal construction scheduled to begin January 2024 and wrap up by July 2026.

Georgia Ports anticipates the inland rail hub will open with volumes of 60,000 containers per year. With the roundtrip truck route totaling 602 miles, this opening volume would alleviate approximately 36 million truck miles on Georgia highways in the terminal’s first year of operation. GPA estimates 46 of truck traffic between Northeast Georgia and Savannah will use rail instead. Cargo moving to the region by rail will reduce truck use from seven hours to less than 30 minutes. The shift will avoid 1.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2e) emissions by 2054, Lynch said.

“The Northeast Georgia Inland Port will create 20 new direct jobs,” said Stacy Watson, GPA director of economic and industrial development. “However, the rail hub will deliver other opportunities for employment and economic growth as industry is drawn to its logistical benefits. That’s a dynamic we’ve already seen with our Appalachian Regional Port.”

GPA’s first inland terminal, the ARP is celebrating its fifth year of operation with strong volumes. For the fiscal year to date through April, the ARP has handled 28,552 containers, an increase of 23 percent or 5,400 containers compared to the same period last year.

Economic impact from the ARP includes GE Appliances’ $32 million Southern Logistics Center in Murray County, just two miles from the inland terminal. Additionally, Huali Floors has established its first U.S. headquarters and manufacturing facility in Murray County, a $27 million project. Other developments include SK Battery in the Rome-Cartersville area, and the fourth expansion of Hanwha’s solar panel factory.

In West Central Georgia, the Authority has also acquired the site for another new inland port in LaGrange. The 200-acre parcel is adjacent to CSX rail and features easy access to Interstates 85 and 185. While the GPA does not yet have a development schedule for the property, the site could eventually serve the nearby auto plant of Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia, as well as other importers and exporters in the region.

At the Port of Savannah, construction of the Mason Mega Rail Terminal has increased rail capacity to 1 million containers per year, rerouted Norfolk Southern trains away from neighborhood crossings, and brought rail switching onto the port.

“It’s been mutually beneficial to the port and our neighbors, by increasing our capability while simultaneously improving quality of life in our surrounding communities,” Lynch said. “Expansion projects spanning our berths, terminal space and rail infrastructure are delivering the capacity we need to handle our projected growth for decades to come.”

The Georgia Ports Authority recorded its third busiest April ever last month, with 408,686 twenty-foot equivalent container units of cargo, behind April 2022 (495,782 TEUs) and April 2021 (466,633). The port’s volume last month constituted a 12 percent increase over its pre-pandemic performance in April 2019, when Garden City Terminal handled 364,481 TEUs.

SOURCE: Georgia Ports Authority

Port of Savannah Adding 55 Hybrid Yard Cranes

March 30, 2023 – The Georgia Ports Authority has agreed to spend $170 million on 55 hybrid-engine rubber-tired gantry cranes to outfit the Port of Savannah’s Ocean Terminal, as it is redeveloped into an all-container facility.

“This significant investment in new equipment will help prepare the Port of Savannah to handle more ships and cargo while maintaining the world-class service our customers have come to expect,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. “These new machines will expand our capabilities, operate at lower cost and leave a smaller carbon footprint than conventional diesel cranes.”

The hybrid machines will exclusively operate off electric battery power, with diesel generators running only to recharge batteries. This will reduce fuel consumption by an estimated 47 percent compared to all-diesel machines. Per year, that is a reduction of 8,800 gallons of diesel per crane, or nearly 500,000 gallons annually across the Ocean Terminal fleet. This will result in a fuel purchase savings of more than $1.6 million per year at current rates.

The new cranes reduce emissions by half compared to conventional diesel cranes. At an annual average of 4,000 operating hours per RTG, the hybrid engines will avoid yearly emissions of 127 tons per crane, or nearly 7,000 tons across the 55-RTG fleet.

“With every infrastructure expansion, the Georgia Ports Authority seeks to ensure its operations progress toward improved long-term sustainability,” said GPA Board Chairman Joel Wooten. “Economic development, environmental stewardship, governance, and employee and community engagement are all important facets in that effort.”

The gantry cranes will use special “whisper” movement alarms that sound like static, rather than the typical three-tone alarms. The whisper alarms don’t penetrate long distance, but do provide safety for nearby personnel, effectively making the machines quieter and reducing noise emissions. The combination of hybrid power and quieter alarms will help control the sound of operations for neighboring communities. The new cranes can work stacks that are six containers high and seven wide – one container wider than GPA’s current largest RTGs. Wider stacks mean fewer rows and a denser, more efficient use of space. The RTGs currently serving Ocean Terminal will be repurposed in other areas of operation.

The cranes are one part of the renovation of the 200-acre Ocean Terminal. The Authority is also establishing two big ship berths at the facility, and improving the paving surface to hold container stacks. These projects will bring to six the number of neopanamax vessels the Port of Savannah can handle simultaneously. To work the larger ships, GPA will add eight new all electric ship-to-shore cranes at Ocean Terminal by 2026. The taller ship-to-shore cranes will replace three older cranes that are not suited to handling neopanamax vessels. When complete, the terminal’s annual capacity will reach 2 million twenty-foot equivalent container units.

A key partner for the Georgia Ports Authority is the Georgia Department of Transportation. GDOT will play an important role in the terminal’s completion and traffic control around Ocean Terminal.

“GDOT is currently reviewing plans to route port traffic directly from the terminal onto U.S. 17/Interstate 16, avoiding near-port streets, which could minimize community impacts,” said Susan Gardner, senior director of operations and projects. “Directing trucks in this manner will expedite cargo, while preventing unnecessary traffic in neighboring communities.”

Georgia’s deepwater ports and inland barge terminals support more than 561,000 jobs throughout the state annually, and contribute $33 billion in income, $140 billion in revenue and $3.8 billion in state and local taxes to Georgia’s economy.

SOURCE: Georgia Ports Authority

Klabin Officially Inaugurates Port Terminal in Paranaguá

March 24, 2023– Klabin on March 22 made official the start of operations at the Klabin Port Terminal (PAR-01), located on the wharf commercial center at the Port of Paranaguá, in Paraná, Brazil.

With the capacity to receive one million tons of pulp and paper per year, the Terminal is part of the investment package in logistics made by the company in Paraná in recent years. With the operation, the unloading of short and long fiber pulp, fluff pulp and paper, from the Puma Units, located in Ortigueira (PR), and from the Monte Alegre Unit, in Telêmaco Borba (PR), can be carried out within the Port of Paranaguá.

With a structure that covers an area of ​​27,530 m², leased by Klabin for 25 years, in an auction held in August 2019, the new operation also brings productivity and competitiveness to Klabin in breakbulk, a mode of maritime cargo transport without the use of containers, which ships large volumes directly inside the ships, allowing customers to be served on a large scale and with operational excellence.

In terms of sustainability, the location of the new terminal has a direct rail connection to the Klabin factory in Ortigueira (PR), allowing for a reduction in truck traffic, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions and benefits road traffic from Paranaguá. In addition, the terminal will have solar panels that will produce around 270 MWh/year, making the site's energy generation more sustainable and reinforcing Klabin's commitment to its ESG agenda.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by state authorities, such as the governor of Paraná, Ratinho Junior, the State Secretary for Infrastructure and Logistics, Fernando Furiatti, the CEO of APPA (Administration of the Ports of Paranaguá and Antonina), Luiz Fernando Garcia da Silva, in addition to the National Secretary of Ports and Waterway Transport, Fabrizio Pierdomenico.

On the occasion, members of Klabin's board reinforced the importance of the Terminal as part of the Company's business strategy.

“The Port of Paranaguá is one of the most important in Brazil, in addition to being the main transport route for Klabin's production in the State. The new terminal will bring operational efficiency to the Company, guaranteeing high levels of logistics productivity in addition to intensifying the development of the logistics infrastructure in Brazil,” Klabin said.

With the operation, Klabin consolidates its logistics strategy in the State of Paraná, bringing even more competitiveness, flexibility and sustainability to its operations, in addition to being prepared for future expansions. In 2021, the company invested BRL 300 million in the Ortigueira Container Terminal, operated in partnership with Brado Logística and the Paranaguá Container Terminal (TCP). The project has the capacity to store 2,000 containers and has doubled the Company's container outflow capacity in Paraná.

SOURCE: Klabin