Hutchison Whampoa shows interest in New Jersey port site

Hutchison Whampoa shows interest in New Jersey port site

      Hutchison Whampoa Ltd., a port operator in Hong Kong and a major foreign container operator in China, has submitted an expression of interest in the former Military Ocean Terminal in Bayonne, N.J., according to the Singapore Business Times.

   Officials at the Bayonne Local Development Authority were not available for comment. Other sources confirmed Hutchison’s action. CSX World Terminals LLC and the China Ocean Shipping Group Co. have also expressed interest in the Bayonne site.

   The Bayonne Local Development Authority will open the project to bids in January. The Singapore paper quoted John Meredith, managing director of Hutchison’s port unit, as saying that the submission does “not necessarily” mean that Hutchison will bid for the Bayonne site. The company has not owned or operated a U.S. container terminals.

   “It’s standard practice, you put in an expression of interest and they send you a document of what they intend to do. We have an interest in knowing what they intend to do,” Meredith said.

   The former Military Ocean Terminal is a separate entity from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Bayonne Local Redevelopment Authority is in charge of planning for the site.