Port News

An investigation into Australia’s shipping sector follows months of disruption to supply chains due to port congestion, stevedore industrial action, and curtailed carrier services.

Initiatives involving the Los Angeles-Long Beach PierPass extended-gates program and CMA CGM’s incentives for removal of long-dwell containers are the latest efforts by terminals and carriers to reduce congestion.

PSA International’s first major move into building an end-to-end logistics capability takes it down a path well-trodden by rival terminal operator DP World and some major liner companies.

Trans-Pacific carriers are slowing their vessels en route to Los Angeles–Long Beach, but the reduction in vessels at anchor does not mean cargo volumes have in any way been diminished.

Eight vessels are now anchored off the Port of Charleston following the brief closure of a berth earlier this month and a stevedore labor shortage over the long Thanksgiving weekend.

Marine terminals and truckers are bracing for weeks of delays at the Port of Vancouver as another heavy rainstorm hits the region just two weeks after floods and mudslides cut Canada’s largest port off from the British Columbia interior.

The coming suspension of feeder services has raised concerns the Pearl River Delta could see the same chaotic cargo situation before and during Chinese New Year as last January.

The Port of Long Beach will increase its annual throughput capacity by 1 million TEU in December when Long Beach Container Terminal opens a third vessel berth.

Despite ILWU leadership pledging to support the Biden administration’s efforts to decongest ports in Southern California, insiders remain worried the national spotlight on ports will not prevent labor disruption on the docks next year.

Tension is mounting on the West Coast as the ILWU formally rejected an employer offer to extend the existing coastwide contract for one year beyond the July 1, 2022 expiration date.

The Port of Charleston is concerned about the cost of chassis for its new pool now due to launch in 2023, while negotiations to secure an agreeable price took longer than expected.

The US Supreme Court will not hear the request by New York’s Waterfront Commission to overturn an appeals court ruling that effectively ends the seven decade-old police agency.

Canadian Pacific said it expects intermodal service to and from Canada’s largest port will resume sooner than expected after it works to complete flood-related repairs.

The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are again delaying the implementation of new container dwell fees because importers are starting to clear out freight from the ports.

One shipping executive said China’s limiting of cabotage volumes to domestic operators has hindered ports such as Dalian and Qingdao from developing their own transshipment business.  

The Port of Vancouver was stranded from inland rail service and trucking was limited due to damage from last weekend’s widespread flooding.

The International Longshoremen’s Association is appealing a federal labor judge’s decision that it engaged in an unfair labor practice against South Carolina’s newest marine terminal.

The Port of Virginia is expanding the rail footprint of Norfolk International Terminals (NIT) to take advantage of import volumes that have grown at the fastest rate of any US Southeast port in 2021.

The North Carolina State Ports Authority said it will be able to offer customers opting for the Port of Wilmington a new, daily rail service into Midwest markets.

The looming storage tariffs in Los Angeles and Long Beach are starting to force carriers, marine terminals, and shippers to break through the gridlock of competing interests.

APM Terminals took another step with Plaquemines Port on the development of what would be among the US’ largest container terminals.

The White House has endorsed proposed shipping reform legislation and said the Department of Justice is ready to assist maritime regulators if they find alliances are violating the US Shipping Act.

After severe weather last weekend caused flooding and mudslides, Vancouver port stakeholders hope that rail service can be restored this weekend to the port, a key entry point for US imports.

The Port of New York and New Jersey’s longshore workforce is set to grow again in 2022 as the port’s volumes see double-digit increases through 2021.

Not all Christmas goods will be available in Germany as ongoing congestion at the country’s ports disrupts supply lines and delays deliveries for retailers and manufacturers.

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have delayed by one week implementation of costly emergency fees on long-dwell containers as retailers rush to vacate those containers from the docks.

BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad are concerned cargo owners will use trucks instead of trains in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach due to the Excessive Container Dwell fee.

Starting Tuesday, container ships calling Southern California will enter a queue based on when they departed their last port of call in an effort to improve safety and reduce emissions.

Marine terminal operators in Los Angeles and Long Beach want to double the current fee for daytime trucking moves to incentivize more nighttime moves and help relieve crippling congestion at the ports.

Strong growth in imports and a slight decline in exports over the past few years have thrown off the once balanced import-export flow in the US Gulf Coast, exposing Houston to the same terminal space issues and equipment imbalances that have plagued other import-dependent ports in 2021

Ports in Europe are stuck in a situation where terminals cannot improve their utilization as long as vessels arrive late, and vessels cannot keep reliable schedules unless terminal utilization improves.

The decision to halt further strikes, at least for a month, came after Australia’s competition watchdog highlighted how labor issues have added to supply chain disruption, exacerbating congestion and delays.  

Port managers and terminal executives in Los Angeles-Long Beach look to emergency fees on long-dwell containers and sweeper ships to vacate empty boxes as their best bet to relieve congestion amid record vessel arrivals.

With dozens of ships at anchor off the coast of Southern California and public fears of US retail stockouts ahead of the winter holiday growing, shipping disruption is increasingly becoming a political liability for President Joe Biden.

The Port of Boston will be without an Asia direct service through most of January because the vessels in the service have been severely delayed by Savannah congestion.

In its first effort to give port authorities flexibility to reallocate port grants toward congestion-fighting efforts, the White House said it’s allowing the port of Savanah to tap $8 million for pop-up container yards. 

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is looking at how it can withstand climate change and not contribute to it through a series of initiatives that include reviewing port operations.

The latest figures from China’s two biggest port groups show a drop in container volumes through the country’s leading ports when power shortages started to bite.

A clean truck fee in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach is expected to generate more than $90 million, money that will be used in part to provide direct grants to truckers for zero-emission vehicles.

As Southern California ports begin to see the movement of long-dwelling containers, a second terminal operator in Tacoma will begin charging a similar fee, highlighting the need for quick action by West Coast ports to reduce congestion.