The Port of Savannah said it handled 478,620 twenty-foot equivalent container units in May, an increase of 41.9% compared to last year — which was also the second busiest month in the port’s history and the 10th consecutive month of positive year-over-year growth.

“Georgia’s deepwater ports are thriving, and that’s good news for a wide range of industries,” said Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, noting that the Peach State’s economy is rebounding quickly. 7

Port officials said the facilities saw a fast recovery from the global economic downturn of 2020.

“Last year, at this time, we were uncertain of the road ahead and expecting a double-digit loss in business,” said outgoing Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) Board Chairman Will McKnight.

“To see how the GPA team and our supply chain partners have turned things around to achieve a string of the most successful months ever speaks volumes for this world-class workforce.”

For the fiscal year to date (June through May), GPA has moved nearly 4.9 million TEUs, putting it on pace to surpass 5 million TEUs for the first time.

Total cargo crossing all GPA docks reached 3.8 million tons last month, up 26%, or 781,121 tons. Rail volumes for the month grew 28%, or approximately 12,029 lifts, for a total of 54,436 containers.

GPA’s trade-in vehicles and machinery units also soared last month, growing by 48,830 units, or 347%, for a total of 62,873 units.

It said the auto industry was hit particularly hard during COVID-19 as many manufacturers faced plant closures and supply chain disruptions.

“We expect strong growth to continue in autos and machinery as manufacturers return to normal operations,” said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. 

The Port of Savannah handled 9.3% of total U.S. containerized cargo volume and 10.5% of all U.S. containerized exports in FY2020.