ATLANTA – The Port of Savannah handled nearly 5.6 million twenty-foot equivalent units of containerized cargo (TEUs) last year, a 12.5% increase that made Savannah the fastest growing container port on the U.S. East and Gulf coasts.
“Savannah is clearly the gateway port for the U.S. Southeast,” Griff Lynch, president and CEO of the Georgia Ports Authority, told an audience of more than 1,700 coastal business and elected leaders Tuesday during the annual State of the Port luncheon. “We see this pattern only continuing to accelerate.”
Lynch said the growth the Savannah port experienced last year came despite disruptions to global shipping caused by the rerouting of cargo vessels away from the Suez Canal to avoid attacks launched by Iran-backed Houthi militants as well as extended labor contract negotiations.
To keep pace with the growing demand, the ports authority is planning to add berth space at the Port of Savannah, boost container yard and rail capacity, and grow the truck gates at the port. Two new berths at the Ocean Terminal – one opening immediately and the other next year – will be used as storage space to free up room at the Garden City Terminal, allowing faster turnaround times.
Phase I of the Ocean Terminal yard renovation will be completed in mid-2027, with the second phase due to be finished by mid-2028. This will increase capacity by up to 1.5 million TEUs per year.
Longer term plans call for the planned Savannah Container Terminal on Hutchinson Island to open by 2030, ultimately adding three additional big-ship berths and 3.5 million TEUs of annual capacity. The facility is currently in the permitting phase.
“These improvements are necessary to stay ahead of growing demand and to continue providing the world-class service our customers have come to expect,” Lynch said. “With $4 billion in investments planned for Ocean Terminal and Savannah Container Terminal, Savannah will be a 12.5 million-TEU capacity port by 2035.”