b'42American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(DIVERSIFICATIONcon- 1.91 million TEUs compared to tinued from page 8) 1.67 million TEUs 2024. could begin this year and gener-ate 8,000 jobs during this phase. us P orTs : T rouBlea head ?In a recent interview, GasconThe combination of the tar-candidlyremarked:Idontiffs and the aspects of the pro-think this time around that thisposedSHIPSactcouldspell economicuncertaintywilljusttrouble in the second half of 2025 vanish when Trump leaves. Itsfor US container ports. The West here to stay. Coast ports have already expe-Fortunately,sheshared,riencedadownturnwhilethe Canada is waking up to the needEast Coast and Gulf have yet to to take the bull by the horns. Wefeel the same degree of decline. have to diversify our economy,There is the fear among US port find new trading partners. executivesthatblanksailings In fact, we (in Canada) have essentially ocean carrier alli-gotamarketofoverabillionancesskippingscheduledport people that we can reach throughcallswill become common-existingfreetradeagreementsplaceandscheduleintegrity with various countries.We needwilldeteriorate.Ithasbecome to maximize those relationships.a tool in the ocean carrier tool-Wehavetodiversifyourtradebox [along with slow steaming] routes,strengthenourcompeti- to manage capacity and thereby tivenessandinvestinmaritimepromote rate stability. transporttoofferasustainableAndbesidesthepotential and reliable solution. lossofshipcallstoUSports Gasconrecalledthatthethereisproposedlegislation portofMontrealisstrategi- thatendangersportaspectsof cally located for accessing thefunding. In June the American industrial heartland of the con- AssociationofPortAuthori-tinent. In effect, we are at theties(AAPA)sentaletterto cornerstone of the third largestSenateMajorityLeaderJohn economyintheworldifyouThune(R-SD)andCommit-combine the Great Lakes states,tee on Environment and PublicThe Jumbo Kinetics docked at the Port of Antwerp-BrugesOntarioandQuebec,whereWorksChairShelleyMoore 65% of the Canadian populationCapito(R-WV)urgingthem(INTERVIEWcontinuedexpertise will always be needed.Together,theywillcol-lives within 12-70 hours of thetodefend two critical Envi- from page 12) The trick is: keep communicat- laboratewithshippinglines, Port of Montreal. ronmentalProtectionAgencyway to a vessel that has a so- ing, keep people involved. cargo owners, energy providers, If all proceeds according to(EPA) grant programs. called Green Award certificate. AJOT:Howimportantisresearch bodies and other stake-arevisedoperationaltargetofIf the US House of Repre- In addition, the load factorthe global fresh produce trade toholders to promote zero-carbon late 2029, the Contrecur facil- sentativesversionoftheOnewill also start to count, with sea- Rotterdams container business? technology,cleanfuelsand itywilladd1.15millioncon- BigBeautifulBillActwereportduespertranshippedtonHS:Refrigerated(reefer)smart management systems on tainersperyeartoanexistingtopasstheCleanPortsPro- ofcargolowerwhenashipscontainersaccountedfor14%certain trade lanes.capacity of 2.1 million TEUs ongramandtheDieselEmis- capacity is used as efficiently asof our total box throughput in Montreal Island. Due to delayssionsReductionAct(DERA)possible. 2024, the equivalent of approxi-and inflation, its estimated costgrantprogramswouldbecutAJOT:What percentage ofmately 1.9 million TEUs. Rot- (STUCKcontinued from hasballoonedtonorthof$1.5from EPAs budget. The AAPARotterdamscontainertrafficisterdams container terminals arepage 30)billion.Offeringhigh-velocitybelievesbothprogramsarecurrently transported to and fromequipped with a total of 18,500A third scenario would see andgreenfeatures,thetermi- essential for American ports inthe port by road, river, rail andreeferplugs-morethanany- German brands being forced to nalwhoseeventualoperatoracquiring the newest models ofwhat initiatives are you taking towhere else in the world. Theseset up additional assembly lines remains to be determined - willequipment and American manu- encourage modal shift? connectionsensurethattem- in the US, reducing the output of bolsterMontrealsattractive- facturers working to build backHS: Road accounts for 58%,perature-controlledandfrozentheirEuropeanplantswiththe ness as a hub serving core mar- market share. The DERA grantinland shipping 34% and rail 8%. cargocanbehandledsustain- economic and employment con-kets in Quebec, Ontario and theprogramprovidesfundingforTocontinuetransport- ably,quicklyandreliablyonsequences only too apparent.US Midwest. CN has teamed upportstoacquirefuel-efficientingcontainersefficientlyandthequaysidebeforeheadingOnemarketanalysttold with the Montreal Port AuthoritydieselenginesandlikeCleansmoothly to and from the hinter- for state-of -the-art cold storageAJOT:Ibelievethecurrent (MPA) to integrate transport atPorts,DERAisalsosubjectland, the existing infrastructurefacilities at our rapidly-expand- 25% is already fairly high and the future facility. tostrictBuildAmerica,Buymust be used optimally and offering Rotterdam Food Hub. frankly I doubt if this would be Meanwhile,observerscon- America standards.seamlessconnectionstoinlandThe port prides itself on itsmadepermanentinanydeal. sider the Port of Montreal could beIntheletter, AAPAPresi- terminals using road, river andswiftandreliablehandlingofEvenaflattariffof10%will one of the beneficiaries of a pledgedentandCEOCaryDavisrail transport modes. For us, areefer containers, enabling freshlikely slowly erode export vol-by the newly-elected Liberal fed- stressed the manufacturing ben- multimodalapproachisdefi- productstoreachthesuper- umes in the long run (and invest-eral government to fast-track proj- efits of the Clean Ports Program,nitely the way forward. market or the consumers platement decisions in the U.S. will ectsofnationalinterest.Duringwhich already is creating jobsIncooperationwithchainasquicklyaspossible.Rotter- thenfollow).So,underevery an election campaign visit at thein Americaandgiving Ameri- parties, we are looking at solu- damisstrategically-placedaslikelyoutcomeEuropeanpro-Port of Montreal, Prime Ministercan manufacturers new life in ationsthatcanrelievetheroadthe first port of call in Europeductionsitesarelikelytobe Marc Carney pledged to Inject $5sector long dominated by China:network and stimulate rail andfor many inter-continental linerworse off than previously.billion into a new Trade Diversi- port cargo-handling equipment. bargetransport.Theseincludeservices.Allglobalplayersineu s houldF urTherfication Corridor Fund to acceler- Theregulatorythreatstonight-timedriving,truckpla- the segment, including Lineage, atenation-buildingprojectsatUS ports have also been notedtooningandthebundlingandAmericoldandNichirei,haves TrengTheni nTernalports,railroads,inlandterminals,byFitchRatings.Fitchinaexchangeofcontainersonso- locations at the port and wherem arkeT airports, and highways. June 13th release wrote, Northcalled inland shipping corridors.Maersk has just opened its ownHowever,speakingatthe AmericasportsectorfacesAtendofJunethisyear,thecold store. Association of European Vehicle worseningcreditpressuresdueoperatingauthority willlaunchWhileRotterdamoffersLogistics (ECG)s 2025 General (GROWTHcontinued from toslowingeconomicactivitya Multimodal Council, whichhigh-quality river and rail con- Assembly and Spring Congress, page 10) and inflationary pressures. Tariffwill look at possible options tonectionstoitshinterlandforProf.Dr AlexanderSandkamp, in2024upslightlycomparedpolicies increase costs for con- makethehandlingofcontain- containertrafficingeneral,Fellow,KielInstituteforthe to 2023s 13.45 million TEUs.sumers,reducingdemandanders to and from the hinterland asinjecting reefers into our inter- WorldEconomy,emphasized ThePortofAntwerp-Brugesindustry growth prospects. efficient as possible. modal systems remains a chal- that the impact of U.S tariffs on (13) after a relative down yearAs the capacity of containerlenge, but we are confident thatproduction in Europe was not as in2023,12.53millionTEUsP rosPecTs For2025and terminalsAPMTandRWGisourcollaborativeworkwithsignificant as one might expect.bouncedbackwith13.5mil- B eyond beingsubstantiallyexpanded,market players will lead to solu- ConsideringinternalEU lionTEUsin2024.ThePortAt this moment, the overallwe need to prepare for furthertions being found. trade, the EU absorbs more than of Hamburg, ranked 25 thon theprospectsin2025andbeyondvolume growth in rail freight. To60% of its exports. The US only list,withstrongAsiaservicefor not only US ports but alsothis end, we are currently devel- accounts for around 8%, he said.portfolioalsohadarelativelyglobally, is at best foggy. Ques- oping a dedicated railway yard,(CONGESTIONcontinuedThe EU should thus further flat year, 7.8 million TEUs intions such as will US tariff blitzwiththefirstphasescheduledfrom page 12) strengthenitsinternalmarket 2024comparedto7.7millionon the world continue? Can thefor delivery in 2027. critical transport infrastructure. by reducing internal trade barri-TEUs in 2023. But in 2022 theUSandChinafindcommonAJOT:What has been Rot- Meanwhile,co-operationersspecifically with respect to German port handled 8.26 mil- ground on trade? How will theterdams approach to introducingbetween European and Chineseservices, ensuring a consistently lionTEUs.AnotherGermangeopolitical issues of the Middleautomation on the quaysides? ports goes on apace. Hamburg,high quality of its transport infra-port Bremerhaven posted a goodEastortheUkraineRussiaHS:WehaveincludedWilhelmshaven,alsoinGer- structureandmonitoringnew year in 2024 with a throughoutconflict impact global trade?peoplefromthestart.Auto- manyandValencia,inSpain,legislation such as the CSDDD of4.45millionTEUs.ThisHowthesequestionsandmationhasneverbeenagoalrecently teamed up with the Chi- (CorporateSustainabilityDue wasupfromthe4.19millionothersareansweredintheinitself,butawaytoworknese port of Ningbo-Zhoushan,Diligence Directive) with respect TEUs in 2023. Sines in Portu- second half of 2025 could verymoreefficientlyandsafely.Ittheworldslargestintermsto its trade dampening potential. gal, ranked 87 thhad a very goodwell define how container portshasneverbeenaboutreplac- ofcargothroughput,tocreateThis helps reduce dependence on yearin24withathroughputperform this year and beyond.ingpeople. Webelievehumangreen shipping corridors. the US, he added.'