Drewry doubts new Panama will drain USWC cargo to USEC in short term
DESPITE talks to the contrary, it will be some time before the US east coast ports become a major competition to the west coast ports because of the expanded Panama Canal, according to London's Drewry Maritime Research.
That's because there are too few east coast American ports that can dock big 13,000-TEU ships that can transit the expanded canal after June 26.
"Considering draft restrictions only three ports on the east coast - Norfolk, New York and Savannah - can handle ships having capacity of 10,000 TEU," Drewry analyst Rahul Sharan told Rotterdam's World Maritime News.
Even New York-New Jersey's 2010 plan to raise the Bayonne Bridge, whose lack of air draft blocks access to deep water terminals is now delayed till 2017. Similarly, dredging at Charleston's port could be completed by 2020.
"I believe that for immediate and short term, the benefits of the new locks in Panama Canal for US east coast ports will be marginal," Mr Sharan said.
"Container shipping will be impacted the most because US is the largest importer of containerised cargo," he said.
"A total of 60 per cent of US population lives in the east coast whereas most of the cargo is being discharged at South California ports," he said.
Today, Los Angeles and Long Beach have almost monopoly for all import cargoes, largely coming from Asia.
"Once the locks are open, US east coast ports will pose a threat to the west coast ports, at least in principle if one ignores infrastructure bottlenecks on USEC," said Mr Sharan.
For tankers, the expanded canal will benefit Aframaxes. In addition, it will decrease haulage length from Caribs to Far East decreasing tonne-miles for tankers.
Finally, for dry bulk, there could be increase in parcel sizes for grain cargo moving out of US Gulf to Japan.
DESPITE talks to the contrary, it will be some time before the US east coast ports become a major competition to the west coast ports because of the expanded Panama Canal, according to London's Drewry Maritime Research.
That's because there are too few east coast American ports that can dock big 13,000-TEU ships that can transit the expanded canal after June 26.
"Considering draft restrictions only three ports on the east coast - Norfolk, New York and Savannah - can handle ships having capacity of 10,000 TEU," Drewry analyst Rahul Sharan told Rotterdam's World Maritime News.
Even New York-New Jersey's 2010 plan to raise the Bayonne Bridge, whose lack of air draft blocks access to deep water terminals is now delayed till 2017. Similarly, dredging at Charleston's port could be completed by 2020.
"I believe that for immediate and short term, the benefits of the new locks in Panama Canal for US east coast ports will be marginal," Mr Sharan said.
"Container shipping will be impacted the most because US is the largest importer of containerised cargo," he said.
"A total of 60 per cent of US population lives in the east coast whereas most of the cargo is being discharged at South California ports," he said.
Today, Los Angeles and Long Beach have almost monopoly for all import cargoes, largely coming from Asia.
"Once the locks are open, US east coast ports will pose a threat to the west coast ports, at least in principle if one ignores infrastructure bottlenecks on USEC," said Mr Sharan.
For tankers, the expanded canal will benefit Aframaxes. In addition, it will decrease haulage length from Caribs to Far East decreasing tonne-miles for tankers.
Finally, for dry bulk, there could be increase in parcel sizes for grain cargo moving out of US Gulf to Japan.