THE projected launch of a new 13,000-chassis pool has been delayed till next May in the Port of charleston because of a lack of equipment, reports IHS Media.
The South Carolina Ports Authority (SCPA) announced in May it would leave the South Atlantic Chassis Pool, which supplies equipment to ports and inland ramps between Wilmington, North Carolina, and Jacksonville, Florida, to launch its own pool with 13,000 chassis.
The news further illustrates how a shortage of chassis and an aging fleet are slowing the flow of containers between terminals and cargo owners, one of the several reasons why vessels are anchored outside top US ports.
Said SCPA chief executive Jim Newsome: 'We are very confident in the manufactured side of what we're buying, but the leasing side is a little more fluid because of the labour shortages and issues with chassis subcomponents.'
As in Virginia, the SCPA would operate the pool and supply chassis to truckers, as well as set daily rates, invoice customers, and be responsible for the maintenance and repair of the fleet.
Chassis manufacturers in North America and Asian countries such as Vietnam have been flooded with orders after the US International Trade Commission levied crippling countervailing and antidumping duties on Chinese-made chassis this May. Implementation of the tariffs and duties was set in motion by the Trump administration, but the Biden administration has chosen not to intervene or reverse the policy.
China Intermodal Marine Containers, which manufactured as many as 50,000 chassis per year, was the primary target of the duties. During a July 28 meeting of the US Federal Maritime Commission at which China's dominance in container and chassis manufacturing was discussed, commissioner Carl Bentzel said CIMC makes 85 per cent of the world's chassis.
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The South Carolina Ports Authority (SCPA) announced in May it would leave the South Atlantic Chassis Pool, which supplies equipment to ports and inland ramps between Wilmington, North Carolina, and Jacksonville, Florida, to launch its own pool with 13,000 chassis.
The news further illustrates how a shortage of chassis and an aging fleet are slowing the flow of containers between terminals and cargo owners, one of the several reasons why vessels are anchored outside top US ports.
Said SCPA chief executive Jim Newsome: 'We are very confident in the manufactured side of what we're buying, but the leasing side is a little more fluid because of the labour shortages and issues with chassis subcomponents.'
As in Virginia, the SCPA would operate the pool and supply chassis to truckers, as well as set daily rates, invoice customers, and be responsible for the maintenance and repair of the fleet.
Chassis manufacturers in North America and Asian countries such as Vietnam have been flooded with orders after the US International Trade Commission levied crippling countervailing and antidumping duties on Chinese-made chassis this May. Implementation of the tariffs and duties was set in motion by the Trump administration, but the Biden administration has chosen not to intervene or reverse the policy.
China Intermodal Marine Containers, which manufactured as many as 50,000 chassis per year, was the primary target of the duties. During a July 28 meeting of the US Federal Maritime Commission at which China's dominance in container and chassis manufacturing was discussed, commissioner Carl Bentzel said CIMC makes 85 per cent of the world's chassis.
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