“We think February’s volume could have been even greater, but repeated snow storms and resulting lost work days had an impact on us,” said John F. Reinhart, the Virginia Port Authority’s CEO and executive director. “Anything we lost in February, we expect to be made up in March.
“The POV is dedicated to improving our service and operations to accommodate this increasing volume. We must achieve financial stability in the POV and optimize our facilities. The adverse impact of congestion compounded by several winter storms has resulted in continued operating losses. These current losses must be reversed through focus on costs, processes, productivity and coordination with our customers, partners and suppliers.”
February’s growth was led by imports, which increased by 8.4 percent (6,515 TEUs) when compared with last February. (This January, growth was led by exports.) There was also growth in breakbulk tonnage, 1.1 percent; rail containers, 5.5%; barge containers, .6 percent; and vehicle units, 7.6 percent.