CHARLESTON: South Carolina’s ports are embarking on an ambitious five-year plan.
The agenda for the ninth-largest container port in the nation was outlined this month in the latest State of the Port message by Jim Newsome, the chairman and chief executive officer of the South Carolina Ports Authority.
An estimated $1 billion needs to be invested in port infrastructure projects during the next five years to keep the South Carolina Ports Authority competitive, Newsome said. That money includes such things as spending on a new container terminal in North Charleston, buying bigger cranes and strengthening the wharfs at the authority terminal in Mount Pleasant to handle larger ships. The deepening of the Charleston Harbor shipping channel to 52 feet is expected to be completed in 2020. The $510 million deepening is needed so the harbor can handle a new generation of larger container ships. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gave key approval to the project this month, opening the way for engineering studies and for getting money from Congress to help pay for part of the work.
South Carolina’s $50 million inland port, which opened two years ago, has been a success and will likely need to be expanded in 2017, Newsome said. There are about 60 acres at the 100-acre site near Greer that can still be developed. The inland port provides a direct rail link between the Upstate and South Carolina Ports Authority terminals on the coast. It also takes thousands of trucks off busy Interstate 26 that crosses the state. Newsome said more such inland ports are needed.
Shipping activity at Port Qasim on February 11
KARACHI: Three ships namely, Glen Canyon, Al-Salam- II and TSM Pollux carrying Containers, Gas oil and Palm oil were arranged...
