Seattle readies for megamaxes
The ports of Seattle and Tacoma have given the green light to a $500m scheme to upgrade and lease Terminal 5 in west Seattle to accommodate larger ships.
The Northwest Seaport Alliance commission, the coalition between the two local ports, approved the 185-acre Terminal 5, which opened in 1964, will be operated by Stevedoring Services of America Terminals and Total Investment Limited once upgraded in two years’ time. It had been used by Eagle Marine Services until 2014. Since then it has not had a permanent tenant. By March 2021, the terminal will be able to handle two 18,000 teu ships concurrently.
In other American port expansion news, the Port of New Orleans is about to get two new larger gantry cranes, allowing it to handle larger container ships as more and more ships in the 9,500 teu range visit the region.