Ports and shipping lines are increasing its vessel sizes, according to Cushman & Wakefield in its Northern American Ports Outlook (2019) report.
With the explosive growth occurring in e-commerce, the demand for industrial space in warehouse, distribution and fulfillment centers has continued to grow. The ports industry remains essential to the supply chain process and will continue to evolve to meet the increased demand for goods.
Large ship visits are increasingly common at East Coast ports that have the requisite water depths in channels and at berths.
The Port of Halifax in Nova Scotia, Canada, has begun its first phase of work on the South End Container Terminal extension. The second phase, construction of concrete caissons, was set to begin in second quarter 2019. The purpose of the extension is to ensure the Port of Halifax can berth and service larger vessels now serving trade routes along the East Coast of North America.
In Baltimore, a $32.7 million project was approved to deepen a second container berth to 50 feet at the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore’s Seagirt Marine Terminal. A second 50-foot deep berth will allow the Port of Baltimore to handle two supersized container ships simultaneously. Construction is scheduled to begin in second half 2019.
And the Southport Container complex at Port Everglades is getting new cargo berths and Super Post-Panamax gantry cranes. The $437.5 million expansion, the largest infrastructure project in the port’s history, will allow for up to five new cargo berths by lengthening the existing Southport Turning Notch for cargo ships from 900 feet to 2,400 feet. The project is expected to be completed and operational by 2021.
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