Savannah, Ga. – May 22, 2017 – The Georgia Ports Authority handled 333,006 twenty-foot equivalent container units (TEUs) in April, an increase of 11.7 percent, or 34,966 TEUs, compared to the same month a year ago. Across all ports, GPA’s total tonnage increased by 13 percent, or 334,950 tons, to reach 2.94 million tons and the Authority’s busiest April ever. 

“Savannah has established itself as a premier gateway serving the Eastern United States,” said Griff Lynch, GPA’s executive director. “Our team is not only keeping pace with record volumes, but has managed to set new industry standards in cargo velocity, berth productivity and congestion free gates.” 

The Georgia Ports Authority experienced strong growth in containerized, auto and breakbulk trade in March.

The Port of Savannah moved 311,770 twenty-foot equivalent units last month, an increase of 5.6 percent or 16,621 TEUs. Total tonnage across all terminals increased 9.8 percent (258,627 tons), moving 2.89 million tons for the busiest March ever in the Authority’s history.

The federal government on Friday gave its approval to an innovative agreement that allows the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) and the Virginia Port Authority (VPA) to begin discussing ways the two ports can share information in certain operational areas to position themselves as the U.S. East Coast’s leading gateways for containerized cargo.

Dear Friends and colleagues:

I wanted to take a moment to let you know about some recent developments regarding both the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project and the Brunswick Harbor maintenance effort.

Currently, the Savannah River entrance channel deepening is approximately 60 percent complete. In the near future, this portion of the project will benefit ship traffic by opening a wider tidal window and greater scheduling flexibility for neo-Panamax vessels. At present, the Port of Savannah is serving vessels up to 10,700 TEUs, and is expected to handle a 13,000 TEU vessel in May.

Adding cranes in Savannah or doubling Ro/Ro space in Brunswick is about more than boosting already impressive cargo numbers.

 

The point is ensuring our ability to grow along with our customers, and never experiencing the congestion that occurs when demand becomes equal to capacity. GPA employees, our partners in the ILA and service providers deliver unmatched service on our terminals today. In our efforts to enhance that world-class service, we are making progress on several fronts.