Ports America to run Baltimore terminal
The Maryland Port Administration has agreed to lease its 200-acre Seagirt Marine Terminal in Baltimore to Ports America for 50 years.
Under the agreement, announced last Friday by Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, Ports America will build a fourth ship berth and order four new cranes at cost of $105.5 million. The new berth and cranes will be capable of handling post-Panamax containerships with drafts of up to 50 feet of water.
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Baltimore, as with ports up and down the East Coast, expects to see larger ships calling its facilities after the Panama Canal completes construction of a new set of locks in 2014. The expansion will increase the size of ships able to transit the canal to 12,000 TEUs from 4,800 TEUs.
Under the agreement, which must be submitted to the state's Board of Public Works for approval, Ports America will also provide the state’s Department of Transportation with $100 million, which can be used to repair or improve roads tunnels or bridges anywhere in Maryland, not just the port area.
Ports America is the largest terminal operator and stevedore in the country, with cargo handling operations at 50 ports and 97 terminals in the United States and Mexico. It is owned by the infrastructure investment firm Highstar Capital.
Ports America is the current operator of the Seagirt Marine Terminal and has operated the facility since the terminal opened in 1990. The terminal was built on landfill excavated when the Ft. McHenry Tunnel was built to carry Interstate 95 through the city. Ports America said its predecessor companies have operated at the port since 1921.
Another stevedoring firm, Ceres Terminals, qualified to bid for the opportunity to operate the terminal, but in the end did not submit an offer, port officials said.
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Peter Stone, chief commercial officer at Ports America, said the firm was keen to win a long-term lease for Seagirt because Baltimore is closer to a concentration of warehouses, distribution centers, and manufacturers that stretches from Washington to New Jersey and inland to areas such as Harrisburg, Pa.
Both Norfolk and Baltimore have 50-foot channels, he noted, because of their coal terminals, and both will be able to accommodate the big new containerships when Seagirt completes building its new berth.
Stone said Ports America believes Baltimore will have an edge over Norfolk because its more northerly location will bring containers closer to more consumers and to distribution centers, reducing inland distribution costs for both shipping lines and importers and exporters.
The state said the deal “is expected to produce 5,700 new jobs, while the total investment and revenue from this agreement to the State of Maryland has the potential to reach more than $1.3 billion over the life of the agreement and will generate $15.7 million per year in new taxes for Maryland.” ' Chris Dupin