eBlue_economy_JAXPORT sets port record for container volumes in May
JAXPORT set a port record for container volumes in May, with total container movements increasing 37 percent over the same month in 2020. More than 128,900 twenty-foot equivalent units (or TEUs, the industry standard for measuring containers) moved through JAXPORT in May 2021.
JAXPORT’s previous monthly container volume record of 123,700 TEUs was set in October 2019.
To date in Fiscal Year 2021, nearly 950,000 TEUs have moved through JAXPORT, up 15 percent year-to-date. The port’s fiscal year runs October 1- September 30.
Year-to-date, volumes for the port’s two largest trade lanes for containers—Puerto Rico and Asia—are up 19 percent and 18 percent, respectively.
As cargo volumes grow, JAXPORT is investing to increase efficiency and capacity. The federal project to deepen the Jacksonville shipping channel to 47 feet from its current depth of 40 feet will be completed through Blount Island in 2022.
Berth enhancements to enable JAXPORT to simultaneously handle two post-Panamax ships will be completed in coordination with the deepening project, and $72 million in improvements are currently underway to enable Blount Island to accommodate more containers.
“The investments that we’re making in our port facilities ensure that we can continue to provide the efficient service our customers have come to expect from Jacksonville,” said JAXPORT CEO Eric Green.
“JAXPORT has developed a reputation in the marketplace for our ability to get vessels in and out of port quickly, a position we are proud to have maintained throughout the supply chain challenges that have impacted our industry over the last 18 months.”
JAXPORT’s auto volumes also continue to rebound from the supply chain disruption created by the pandemic. Through the first eight months of the fiscal year, the port’s auto volumes are up 15 percent over the same period last year. To date, 435,361 autos have moved through JAXPORT, putting the port on pace to surpass 2020 volumes.
Earlier this month, Moody’s Investors Service completed a periodic review of JAXPORT’s A2 credit rating. In the review, Moody’s cited the port’s diversity of business, generally stable revenue, and “favorable long-term growth outlook for local and regional cargo markets in Florida and the Southeast” among its key ratings considerations.
JAXPORT is Florida’s largest container port by volume and one of the nation’s top vehicle-handling ports.
