Georgia Ports plans to double its berth capacity and improve yard, gate, and rail efficiency as part of its strategy to prepare for future growth.

The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) signalled that the gateway will move from a 7.0 million TEU capacity port to 12 million TEUs in less than a decade.

Griff Lynch, president and CEO of Georgia Ports, said the gateway is investing in enhancing berth space, yard capacity, trucking gate fluidity and intermodal connectivity with more than US$4.5B in infrastructure projects planned in port and intermodal infrastructure over the next decade.

"We are always focused on growth. We want to go above and beyond to build a port that handles both future growth and supply chain disruption. We are creating a safe, trusted harbour for your cargo. Leadership is being able to see what's coming and staying ahead of it," Lynch said during his opening keynote address at the 55th annual 2024 Georgia International Trade Conference. 

"At the Georgia Ports, we are building a resilient link in the global logistics chain, one that is ready to withstand any future challenges," he added.

Lynch noted that the renovation of Ocean Terminal in Savannah will start coming online in 2027 and be completed by 2028, transforming the current three small berth facilities into two big ship berths. 

He noted that a new US$29 million exit ramp for truckers (financed by GPA) direct to the highway means no traffic lights from Ocean Terminal in Savannah all the way to Atlanta.

The Talmadge River bridge over the Savannah River will also be heightened by the Georgia Department of Transportation by 2028 to allow larger container ships into the port.

Meanwhile, the future Savannah Container Terminal on Hutchison Island is now in the permitting phase and, when completed, will create three new big ship berths.

These ship berth improvements, combined with the recent Garden City Terminal berth one project (which opened in 2023), will deliver a total of 12 big ship berths, GPA noted. This represents a 100% increase in big ship berth capacity over the next six years and significantly increases yard, gate and rail capabilities.

The GPA hosted their annual 2024 Georgia International Trade Conference, bringing customers, business partners and industry leaders together to discuss the latest maritime and logistics industry developments and trends. 

India was one of the key topics discussed on conference panels — with the Indian government investing billions in port and transportation infrastructure to attract more foreign direct investment, improve supply chains and get the country ready for the future.

GPA said with the largest population in the world now, overtaking China in 2023 — many companies are expanding their India activities.

It noted that major brands like Apple, Walmart, Samsung, Tesla and others are actively pursuing growth strategies to target India as they look to diversify sourcing locations in Southeast Asia. 

GPA said four services a week connect India with Savannah, and eight services a week connect the Indian Subcontinent. It added that even with vessel diversions around Africa, Georgia Ports are 3-5 days faster than US West Coast ports.

Lynch also discussed demographics, manufacturing and sourcing trends as key factors driving growth in Georgia and the US Southeast. 

Lynch noted that the growing population of the Southeast region will fuel further demand growth.

More and more companies are also targeting the Southeast and US Gulf as attractive places to expand distribution centres.

As a national gateway port, Georgia Ports serves the states of Texas, Florida, North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and others. 

GPA said the manufacturing shift trend has seen the State of Georgia attract companies investing in new manufacturing sites and distribution centres, such as Hyundai's new US$10 billion Metaplant in Georgia, with the first cars scheduled to roll off the assembly line ahead of schedule in October 2024. 

The site has attracted an entire automotive logistics ecosystem to the state, with 17 Hyundai suppliers selecting and building sites.  

While disruption may be here to stay, Lynch also assured GITC attendees that the Georgia Ports is investing now to ensure the capacity, fluidity and connectivity needed for the future. One that will see the port grow to more than 12M TEUs in capacity by 2030. 

The Port of Brunswick is currently making US$262 million in improvements to add more space for warehousing and processing.

The current annual throughput capacity at Colonel's Island is 1.0 million units, and when fully complete, the annual throughput capacity for Colonel’s Island will reach 1.4 million units for a 40% increase.

As part of that expansion, GPA will triple its capacity for high/heavy equipment storage.

It said that another 300 acres are available on the terminal for auto expansion. GPA is also in the process of adding a fourth Ro/Ro berth to handle additional vessels. Currently in the engineering phase, the new berth will more efficiently accommodate modern vessels capable of carrying 7,000-plus vehicles.