Dive Brief:
- The Port of Savannah will add seven container racks at its Garden City Terminal as it looks to expand its available chilled and frozen warehouse space by 11% in 2023 to more than 2.2 million square feet.
- The project, which was approved in late January, is valued at $6.2 million and expected to add 3,506 slots at the terminal, according to a press release from the port.
- “With the local expansion in private market warehousing coming this year, GPA expects an increase of about 15,000 TEUs in chilled imports annually,” a Georgia Ports spokesperson told Supply Chain Dive in an email.
Dive Insight:
The Port of Savannah handled 64,044 TEUs of loaded imported refrigerated cargo compared to 62,186 TEUs YoY, showing a 3% growth, the spokesperson said.
Population growth and continued port investments may also be contributing to growth in the state and a rise in demand for refrigerated commodities, according to the press release. Savannah is also a convenient route for shippers.
“Serving the U.S. Southeast via Savannah reduces overland transportation costs to vital markets such as Atlanta, and ensures perishable goods reach customers faster and fresher,” Board Chairman Joel Wooten said in a statement.
Chilled and frozen products that the port handles include poultry, seafood, blueberries, avocados, citrus, stone fruits and onions.
The Port of Savannah is also planning to add four new ship-to-shore cranes expected to arrive on Feb. 9. The cranes will be able to handle vessels with up to 20,000 or more TEUs.
The Georgia Ports Authority has been seeing significant growth, and reported August 22′ as its busiest month with a total of 575,500 TEUs. A total of 160 importers were either newly added as customers or were existing customers who grew their volume.
Moreover, the port is also in the process of transforming its breakbulk terminal into an all-container operation to contend with rising volumes, according to a December 2022 release.
"Customers continue to bring new or expanding business to the Port of Savannah, drawn by our global connectivity and the supply chain network that links Savannah to major U.S. markets," Lynch said.
