Ocean Carrier Service: New Orleans, New York/New Jersey, Wilmington (NC)

Seaboard Marine Expands New Orleans Service to Include South Central America & Colombia

Beginning July 24, Seaboard Marine will be offering weekly service from the Port of New Orleans to Colombia, Panama, and Costa Rica, as well as to Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua.

"This is a positive development for our existing customers as well as those currently moving cargo between the Gulf and Central and South America," said Seaboard Marine Vice President Jose Concepcion. We are very excited about this new weekly fixed-day service and the broad possibilities for increased trade that such a fast transit time - both southbound and northbound - offers our clients."

New Orleans Terminal LLC works ships for Seaboard Marine at the port’s Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal.

The rotation includes the ports of Cartagena and Turbo in Colombia; Manzanillo in Panama; and Puerto Limón in Costa Rica. Advertised transit times from New Orleans are six days to Cartagena, 7 days to Turbo, 9 days to Manzanillo, and 10 days to Limón.

"We are pleased to notify shippers of the enhanced Central American and new South American service Seaboard Marine will offer from and to New Orleans," said Gary LaGrange, PPM®, president and CEO of the Port of New Orleans. "These are new direct calls with larger ships. Seaboard Marine is a great partner of the port and provides fast and efficient connections to Central America and now South America in Colombia. We look forward to Seaboard’s continued growth from New Orleans."

Seaboard Marine ships at New Orleans’ Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal
Photo/Port of New Orleans

New York/New Jersey Port Docks Its Largest Container Ship Ever

MOL Benefactor became the largest container ship to call the Port of New York & New Jersey when it docked July 8 at GCT Bayonne.

The 10,100 TEU neo-Panamaxer is the first vessel to visit any East Coast port after passing through the new Panama Canal locks, which opened on June 26.

GCT USA completed expansion at GCT Bayonne in the summer of 2014, ensuring the port was big ship ready for large vessels already transiting the Suez Canal. Previously, the largest ship to call on the port was the 10,070 TEU Zim Tianjin in spring 2015. It also docked at GCT Bayonne.

Container vessels now calling the bi-state port average 5,000 TEUs in capacity.

Delivered in March, the brand new MOL Benefactor is 337 meters long/1,106 feet long, 48 meters/158 feet wide, and has a deadweight capacity of 119,324 metric tons. Mitsui-OSK Lines (MOL) is operating the vessel under a long-term charter agreement with its owner, Seaspan Corporation. Flag of registry is Hong Kong.

"We welcome the MOL Benefactor to our port and look forward to other large ships visiting the port in the coming weeks," said Port Authority Port Commerce Director Molly Campbell, PPM®. "Today's ship call validates that we are open for business and that we are big ship ready now that the Panama Canal project is complete. We look forward to handling even more megaships at our terminals in the Port of New York and New Jersey once the Bayonne Bridge is raised by the end of next year."

To prepare for the new larger ships, the port authority and its private sector tenants have invested approximately $6 billion in projects to prepare the port complex.

These include raising the roadway on the Bayonne Bridge, a $1.3 billion project that will increase the navigational clearance under the bridge from 46 meters/151 feet to 65.5 meters/215 feet. The bridge's navigational clearance will be in place by the end of 2017, allowing all terminals to serve the largest ships calling the port. Note that ships docking at GCT Bayonne do not have to travel under the Bayonne Bridge.

A 10-year project to deepen the harbor's channels to 15 meters/50 feet will be complete this summer. The port authority also invested $600 million to equip port terminals with on-dock rail, in addition to significant investments to upgrade the port's internal road network.

More large ships from the G6 Alliance will be calling GCT Bayonne in the coming weeks.

Port officials and employees of GCT USA today welcomed the captain and crew of the MOL Benefactor
Photo/Port Authority of New York & New Jersey

North Carolina Ports Welcomes Largest- Containership to Call Wilmington

The North Carolina State Ports Authority (SPA) on July 6 welcomed the largest containership to call the Port of Wilmington – the 7,500-TEU Hanjin Baltimore, with a length of 300 meters/984 feet, width of 43 meters/140 feet, and draft of 14.5 meters/ 47.6 feet.

"This is an important day for our ports and for the State of North Carolina," said SPA Executive Director Paul J. Cozza. "We’ve been working diligently on modernizing our ports and to see our plans come to fruition by proving that the Port of Wilmington is big ship ready is a great feeling."

Hanjin Baltimore has approximately 63 percent more container carrying capacity than the largest container ship that previously called Wilmington.

"This vessel not only signifies improving global trade but it also represents the future," said Chief Commercial Officer Greg Fennell. "If there was ever a doubt that we could not accept a post-Panamax vessel, this ship puts that debate to rest."

"This landmark event is the product of a North Carolina Ports infrastructure investment plan to meet shipping industry requirements," said Tom Adams, chair of the SPA’s board of directors. "With the expansion of the Panama Canal taking place... the Port of Wilmington is adding new cranes, an enhanced berth, a wider turning basin and will have further expansion in the future."

Hanjin Baltimore at the Wilmington container terminal
Photo/North Carolina State Ports Authority