Another East Coast port that will see record volumes in 2022 is the Port of Virginia.
Last calendar year, the port in Norfolk processed more than 3.7 million twenty-foot equivalent units, a record for the port and a 5.1% increase over 2021.
The year-over-year increase came as other East Coast ports, including the Port of Savannah in Georgia, saw record volumes for 2022. Traffic increased at East and Gulf Coast ports in 2022, despite labor concerns at West Coast ports. The continued lack of a West Coast port labor contract is a major factor driving volumes to East and Gulf Coast ports. The previous contract expired on July 1 of this year.
“We made real progress in 2022, and it was another very solid year for volumes,” Virginia Port Authority CEO Stephen A. Edwards said in a news release issued on Wednesday. “Our service and performance levels continue to improve, and our truck, chassis, rail, and vessel performance metrics improved each quarter.”
Other metrics showed year-over-year improvements: TEUs loaded for export increased 2.5% to nearly 1.07 million, while loaded import TEUs increased 2.9% to 1.73 million.
According to Edwards, the port authority is investing $1.4 billion to make the port more efficient, technologically advanced, and environmentally friendly. The port aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions for its operations by 2040 through capital projects such as using electrical equipment in conjunction with power purchase agreements that use “clean energy” to generate power.
Among the other projects are:
• Increasing capacity to 1.4 million TEUs by expanding and modernizing the north berth at Norfolk International Terminals (NIT). The project will include the installation of new ship-to-shore cranes as well as the reconfiguration of the container stack yard. The project’s first phase will be completed in 2025, followed by the second phase in 2027.
• Deepening and widening Norfolk Harbor and commercial channels to safely accommodate fully laden ultra-large container vessels and ensure safe, two-way movement of these vessels. The project is expected to be completed in 2025.
• Extending the NIT central yard to accommodate 470,000 more TEUs per year. This project is expected to be completed in 2024, with the terminal having an annual rail TEU of 1.1 million and the port having a yearly rail TEU of more than 1.8 million.
By allowing two companies to use the terminal as a staging and preassembly area for an offshore wind farm, the port is also preparing the Portsmouth Marine Terminal to “become the U.S. East Coast’s logistics hub for the offshore wind industry” in 2024.
Meanwhile, December volumes at the Port of Virginia fell due to a drop in US imports. Last month, the port handled 273,965 TEUs, a 15.8% decrease from December 2021. Exported loaded TEUs increased 2.4% to 90,838 for the month, while imported loaded TEUs fell 20.2% to 125,725.
