APM Terminals Mobile announces $60M rail expansion plan

APM Terminals Mobile has begun a $60 million rail expansion project that “doubles capacity for customers” at the Port of Mobile, Alabama.

The terminal is adding 12,000 feet of tracks, as well as additional rail yard storage space and container capacity. The project will also improve access to the Port of Mobile.

Leo Huisman, head of APM Terminals Americas, said the aim of the project is to provide faster rail loading and departure options for shippers and 3PLs in the Midwest and Southeast parts of the U.S. from the Port of Mobile.

“Our customers are looking for expanded options for their supply chains, so we are focusing on faster connections to rail providers into inland markets,” Huisman said in a news release.

The project is scheduled to take 24 months to complete. APM Terminals Mobile is doubling its capacity at the Port of Mobile to over 1 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) by 2025.

Headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, APM Terminals is a port operator with 65 ports around the world.

Operating since 2008, the 115-acre APM Terminals Mobile offers capacity for 650,000 TEUs, four super-post-Panamax ship-to-shore cranes, a deepwater berth of 732 meters, 325 reefer connections and two on-dock rail tracks. The facility is equipped to handle vessels of up to 14,000 TEUs.

As part of the project, the Alabama Port Authority is constructing a roadway flyover bridge to permit unimpeded railway access to and from the facility, which will enable APM Terminals Mobile to provide on-dock rail service.

The expanded rail facility will also link APM Terminals Mobile to a planned inland intermodal transfer facility in Montgomery that is also scheduled to be completed in 2025.

APM Terminals Mobile’s rail expansion goal coincides with the Port of Mobile harbor channel deepening and widening project, which will accommodate larger vessels entering the global fleet.

“These improvements and our expanded rail facility will ensure customer competitiveness and strengthen Alabama as the preferred logistics corridor,” Huisman said.