WEST COAST US: Ports on the US West Coast are planning vast additions to warehouse space, dredging new channels, buying equipment, with the investment running into billions of dollars.
New generation container vessels tripled in size, have set off a competitive scramble by the ports to accommodate them. While on the other hand west coast ports and their terminal operators facing and even bigger challenge about the mega ship container.
Jock O’Connell, international trade adviser for Beacon Economics said “There are monsters out there, and unless we learn how to deal with these monsters, we’re going to lose business and tremendously affect the economies of the ports and the regions around them,”
Container ships carrying upwards of 18,000 of 20 foot containers is essential for the competitiveness of West coast ports and the regional economy.
During 2013 US containerized imports handled 43.5%. According to the Pacific Maritime Association and if shipping companies operating the new ships route their vessels elsewhere, that number will drop further.
It is matter of economics for ocean carriers to launch larger ships for reducing cost of the container. Major carriers like Maersk Line and MSC vastly reduce the cost of moving each container. Oceans carriers will invest on larger and larger ships for cutting down the cost per container which is good for them and their customers. It is need of the hour that the terminals and the ports where there big vessels call have to make changes to be able to accommodate the surge in volume.
Earlier 2000s there were largest container ships can just carried around 8,500-tue, today16, and 000 to 24,000-tue capacity vessels being designed.
