Charleston, SC - As announced earlier this month, the South Carolina State Ports Authority (SCSPA) has received three proposals for development of a new three-berth, 280-acre container terminal in Charleston on the former Naval Complex.
In the formal RFP, the SCSPA recognized the competitive nature of the business proposals and the pending contract negotiations, offering confidentiality to those who submitted proposals.
The SCSPA polled the companies about publicly disclosing their proposed involvement in the project. Two respondents, Hanjin Shipping Co. and OOCL (USA), Inc., authorized the SCSPA to release their names as the lead companies in their proposals.
Hanjin is a Korean-based company and part of the CKYH Alliance with COSCO, K-Line and Yang Ming. They are currently in a licensed operation at Columbus Street Terminal.
OOCL, a Hong Kong-based company, is currently a member of the Grand Alliance, which operates in the common user area at the Wando Welch Terminal.
Both the CKYH Alliance and the Grand Alliance are among the Port of Charleston's five largest customers. In terms of volume, the June 27 issue of The Journal of Commerce individually ranked Hanjin and OOCL fourth and sixth, respectively, among the top 50 container carriers serving the United States.
The third lead respondent asked that its name not be released at this point in the process.
The SCSPA is currently evaluating the three proposals and will eventually enter into further discussions to negotiate a contract with the company or companies offering the best proposal.
The Corps of Engineers expects a decision on permits for the Charleston expansion project by August 2006. Construction of the first phase should be completed by the end of 2011. The terminal is projected to handle 1.38 million TEU (20-foot equivalent units) annually at build-out.