Va. port to expandNORFOLK, Va. - Mediterranean Shipping Co., the second-largest shipping line in the world, has made Hampton Roads its "last out" and southern-most port of call on a revised service to the Middle and Far East, a port executive told a panel of state officials on Friday, the Virginian Pilot reports.
The change is expected to bring the equivalent of 30,000 to 40,000 20-foot containers through the port annually, said Joseph A. Dorto, CEO and president of Virginia International Terminals Inc., at a meeting of a General Assembly subcommittee studying port privatization.
Containers come in a variety of sizes, so they are measured in 20-foot units.
"That service previously was in New York, Baltimore and Savannah," Dorto said. "They're going to drop Savannah and add Norfolk."
The service is expected to begin in January.
"We'll be the last port out," Dorto said. "That's a good sign for us, because last port out means you can push exports through."
Mediterranean Shipping's decision is tied to Norfolk Southern Corp.'s Heartland Corridor project, expected to open in the second half of 2010, Dorto said.
When that project is complete, containerized freight moving in double-stack trains will be able to cut about 200 miles and up to a day's transit time between the East Coast and the Midwest.
Dorto also told the panel that container volumes have been trending up in the past four months, after hovering at levels in the 60,000 range the first six months of the year. Beginning in July, container volumes have risen each month, to 72,000-76,000 in October from about 64,000 -68,000, he said.
"The port of Hampton Roads is, typically, an economic indicator....," Dorto said. "When we start to recover, the economy is usually about six months behind."
VIT is the private, tax-exempt firm that operates the Virginia Port Authority's terminals.
