The SCPA handled 163,970 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in August, in increase from 144,649 TEUs moved during the same month last year and 153,916 handled in July. Fiscal year to date, SCPA container volume is 12.2 percent ahead of plan.

 As measured in pier containers, July and August volumes are up 13.5 percent year over year. SCPA moved 93,221 boxes in August for a total of 181,103 containers to date in FY2015.

In non-containerized cargo, Charleston breakbulk tonnage is on plan with 134,105 tons handled in August. Georgetown saw a strong month, with fiscal year to date volumes up 6.6 percent over the same period last year. Georgetown handled 124,080 pier tons in July and August.

“Strong container volumes are driving exceptional fiscal year to date operating earnings, which were nearly 70 percent higher than last July and August,” said SCPA president and CEO Jim Newsome. “Over the next several months, we will be watching the development of vessel sharing agreements and evaluating the impacts they will have on our FY2015 volumes, as well as implementing our new customer contract approach.”

Compania Portuaria Mejillones S. A. opted for their second Liebherr mobile harbour crane. The LHM 600 is based on a special design. An elongated tower extension ensures that the position of the tower cabin is higher than 37 metres. Besides better sight into the ship for the crane driver, one striking benefit is a higher fulcrum point which eases the handling of bigger vessels. All advantages come without any influence on safety or operational parameters like lifting capacity and travelling speed. The first cranes equipped with this special tower design started operation in Argentina and Uruguay in 2013. The new LHM 600 works side by side with an existing LHM 500, delivered in 2008.

Recently, another LHM 600 added capacity in port of Arica, Chile. Terminal Puerto Arica S.A. preferred this model due to its worldwide proven high capability. The crane is configured for dedicated container handling. It is the first Liebherr mobile harbour crane for this terminal.

In Peru, Callao S.A. has received two LHM 550s, which significantly increase container and bulk capacity in the port. The port has already had two LHM 550s in operation since 2012. Each of the four LHM 550s is equipped with Liebherr’s hybrid power booster Pactronic®. Now there are seven LHMs in operation in Peru, where Liebherr Maritime Cranes is the clear market leader.

In Guatemala, Manabique Logistics S.A. opted for three LHM 420s, Liebherr’s latest mobile harbour crane model with a lifting capacity of up to 124 tonnes and a maximum outreach of 48 metres. These are the first mobile harbour cranes for Puerto Barrios at the coast of the Caribbean Sea. Due to semi-assembled delivery, it took only one week per crane to become operational after arrival. The mobile harbour crane trio started operation in August 2014.

In Costa Rica, Sociedad Portuaria Puerto Caldera SPC decided to enforce its cargo handling fleet with a new LHM 550, which are going to start operation in the third quarter 2014. Liebherr’s most-in-demand model is the second mobile harbour crane for this terminal which has operated an LHM 500 and four reachstackers, type LRS 645, since 2007.

In Latin America’s biggest country, the Brazilian company Serra Morena opted for another Liebherr mobile harbour crane. The new LHM 280 is already the fifth machine for the company. Due to its four rope configuration, the crane is configured for highly efficient bulk handling.

Because of the continuously high demand for mobile harbour cranes in Latin America, Liebherr is expecting a strong 2014 year.

In August, the port handled 214,355 TEUS and set its all-time high for TEU volume handled in a single month. The mark eclipsed the old record — just set in July — by 6,584 TEUs. August’s TEU volume is an 8.1 percent increase when compared with the same month last year. In a year-to-date comparison (Jan. – Aug. 2014 vs. Jan. – Aug. 2013) the port is tracking 6.9 percent ahead of last year: 1,558,781 TEUs vs. 1,457,742 TEUs.

The port’s operating income in August was $2.2 million, which is an increase of 168 percent when compared with last August. In the first two months of fiscal 2015 (July- August), the port’s combined operating income is $4.20 million, a 91.3 percent increase when compared with the same period in fiscal 2014.

“We are two months into fiscal 2015 and have posted strong volumes and modest profitability, but this is only one part of the goal,” said John F. Reinhart, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority. “By no means are we declaring ‘victory;’ we have to become consistent in our delivery of service across the board and we are not yet there. We are moving in the right direction, and we are working to

achieve the operational rhythm that translates into the high-level delivery of service that we’re seeking and that our stakeholders expect.”

The port has generated an operating profit in five of the last six months. Primary factors in August’s financial performance include the efficiencies realized from multiple initiatives implemented since February at the terminals to improve delivery of service and cargo flow while controlling costs. Additionally, peak-season cargo is driving the month-over-month growth in cargo volumes.

“We’re continuing to implement constructive changes to better serve our customers and stakeholders,” Reinhart said. “PMT came on-line yesterday and we will work our first vessel there in early October; we are closing-in on implementation of our automated gate and appointment system at Norfolk International Terminals and we just received a matching grant from the federal government to expand the North Gate at that terminal. Going forward, these things will add-up to improved throughput, greater efficiency and consistency.”

In August, truck volume increased by 12.9 percent and barge volume increased by 16.1 percent. Rail traffic was up 1.7 percent. Further, the Virginia Inland Port (VIP), the port’s intermodal terminal in Front Royal, also had strong volumes in August: VIP handled 3,002 containers, a 5.2 percent increase when compared with August 2013. Year-to-date, VIP has achieved 22.3 percent growth in container volume.

In August, the port worked 345 vessels (container, breakbulk and Ro-Ro).

An estimated 11.2 billion tonnes* of solid waste is collected worldwide every year and its degeneration contributes to about five per cent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

A joint DP World-HPH campaign, which will run from 19 to 21 September, has been established and follows the theme ‘Recycling Begins & Ends with You’. The campaign will see employees of DP World and HPH ‘reach across the fence’ and engage in joint activities in locations around the world where these companies operate terminals within the same port complex such as Laem Chabang (Thailand), Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam), Busan (South Korea) and Buenos Aires (Argentina).

The list of joint activities that are being developed include clean-up days at terminals, beaches or other affected areas specific to each locality, food waste disposal and composting efforts, e-waste and battery recycling, office recycling and green transportation to reduce vehicle emissions.

Mohammed Sharaf, Group Chief Executive Officer, DP World, said: “We are committed to minimising the impact we have on the environment and maximising the benefits we can bring to the communities in which we operate, and we are therefore very pleased to be working with HPH on this important initiative.

“We are both businesses with a global footprint and efforts such as the Waste Reduction Campaign leverage the synergy between our two organisations to the benefit of the community. The port business by its very nature has long investment horizons and one of our aims as a company is to build and maintain strong communities for the long term to ensure a sustainable future for all. By initiating and maintaining a culture of recycling at work, and by working with the communities with initiatives such as this, we move closer to achieving this goal.”

Eric Ip, Group Managing Director of HPH, said: “HPH has a long history as a green innovator with environmental programmes, covering everything from the local community to engineering projects that have been rolled out across the group. Environmental sustainability is a concern of the Port and Maritime Industry and I am pleased that we are joining forces with DP World for an initiative in which our business units around the world pool their resources to highlight green issues. Through this collaboration, we will see the expanded scope of environmental activities and the impact that the industry can make on global warming issues.”