THE Port of Virginia has landed a new string called the Caribbean Express Service, adding a new connection between Northern Europe and the Mid-Atlantic port.
The service also provides the first direct connection from Virginia to Kingston, Jamaica, and other Caribbean locales, opening new markets for exports such as poultry.
It's not the first connection between Northern Europe and the Port of Virginia - about one-third of the port's laden imports come from the region, according to PIERS.
But exports to the Caribbean were previously restricted to other East Coast ports with Jones Act cargo, most notably the Port of Jacksonville and Port Everglades in Florida.
'We have not had a service that called Kingston and the result was most poultry exports to the Caribbean moved through other US East Coast ports,' said John Reinhart, CEO of the Virginia Port Authority.
'Now with this direct service, we are going to become very competitive in this area of business. This is an important opportunity and one we have been pursuing for some time.'
Hapag-Lloyd will operate the weekly service that stops in London, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Virginia, Kingston, Willemstad, Oranjestad, Santa Marta, Puerto Limon, and Caucedo. Six vessels will run the service, ranging from 2,500 to 3,000 TEU.
The new export connection comes as total US-Caribbean/Central America container volumes tumbled 7.1 per cent year over year to 2.21 million TEU in the first nine months of 2020, according to PIERS. A 0.6 per cent uptick in throughput helped the Port of Jacksonville maintain the top spot in the rankings and its lead over in-state competitor Port Everglades, which registered a 16.6 per cent decline.
No port outside of Florida has more than a 10 per cent share of East Coast exports to the Caribbean, but port officials in Virginia hope to change the numbers.
The Port of Virginia also hopes the North European connection with a first and only US call in Virginia will gain traction among importers in the Midwest.
About 32 per cent of cargo in Virginia uses rail to and from the interior US. Its share, though, has decreased compared with last year. While total pier containers have fallen 9.5 per cent year over year, rail traffic has declined 13 per cent, according to data from the port authority.
Nevertheless, the Port of Virginia is poised to finish the year strong. Laden imports in November rose 23 per cent year over year, according to PIERS, reports IHS Media.
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The service also provides the first direct connection from Virginia to Kingston, Jamaica, and other Caribbean locales, opening new markets for exports such as poultry.
It's not the first connection between Northern Europe and the Port of Virginia - about one-third of the port's laden imports come from the region, according to PIERS.
But exports to the Caribbean were previously restricted to other East Coast ports with Jones Act cargo, most notably the Port of Jacksonville and Port Everglades in Florida.
'We have not had a service that called Kingston and the result was most poultry exports to the Caribbean moved through other US East Coast ports,' said John Reinhart, CEO of the Virginia Port Authority.
'Now with this direct service, we are going to become very competitive in this area of business. This is an important opportunity and one we have been pursuing for some time.'
Hapag-Lloyd will operate the weekly service that stops in London, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Virginia, Kingston, Willemstad, Oranjestad, Santa Marta, Puerto Limon, and Caucedo. Six vessels will run the service, ranging from 2,500 to 3,000 TEU.
The new export connection comes as total US-Caribbean/Central America container volumes tumbled 7.1 per cent year over year to 2.21 million TEU in the first nine months of 2020, according to PIERS. A 0.6 per cent uptick in throughput helped the Port of Jacksonville maintain the top spot in the rankings and its lead over in-state competitor Port Everglades, which registered a 16.6 per cent decline.
No port outside of Florida has more than a 10 per cent share of East Coast exports to the Caribbean, but port officials in Virginia hope to change the numbers.
The Port of Virginia also hopes the North European connection with a first and only US call in Virginia will gain traction among importers in the Midwest.
About 32 per cent of cargo in Virginia uses rail to and from the interior US. Its share, though, has decreased compared with last year. While total pier containers have fallen 9.5 per cent year over year, rail traffic has declined 13 per cent, according to data from the port authority.
Nevertheless, the Port of Virginia is poised to finish the year strong. Laden imports in November rose 23 per cent year over year, according to PIERS, reports IHS Media.
SeaNews Turkey