Global Container Terminals Inc., a North American marine terminal operator with facilities on both coasts, unveiled final plans on Wednesday, May 9, for a multimillion-dollar expansion project to develop a 70-acre technologically advanced container terminal on the waterfront in Bayonne, N.J. The company says the expanded facility, scheduled to open in 2014, will improve the competitiveness of the Port of New York and New Jersey with a world-class terminal designed to handle the largest container vessels at greater throughput density per acre.
New container handling technology will achieve higher efficiency while improving safety and security for the International Longshoremen Association’s AFL-CIO work force. “The new Global development project, in addition to the many improvements currently under way, clearly demonstrates a long-term commitment from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to protect the port’s preeminent position as a critical U.S. gateway for global commerce,” says James Devine, president and chief executive officer of Global Container Terminals USA.
The Port Authority acquired the land for the project adjoining Global’s existing facility in 2007, ensuring that scarce waterfront property would be used for waterfront business. Global says a new shared gate configuration on the Port Jersey peninsula for both its existing facility and the new expansion area will increase trucking efficiency while mitigating potential environmental impact. In addition, Global Terminal will offer intermodal rail connections via the adjacent redeveloped Greenville rail transfer facility.
Both the existing Global Terminal and the expansion area are situated on New York Bay, ahead of the entrance to the Kill Van Kull. Ships calling at Global do not transit under the Bayonne Bridge, eliminating air draft limitations. With 50 feet of water depth at its new berths, Global Terminal will be able to handle the largest container vessels in the world. The terminal will have total capacity to move 1.7 million 20-foot-equivalent units (TEU) per year.
“Our expanded Global Terminal facility will come on line precisely in time to help meet the demands of larger vessels transiting the Suez Canal and new wider Panama Canal,” Devine says. “Since the earliest days of this country, the bi-state port has been the engine that drives the region. We plan to be a very important piston in that engine going into the future.”
