Category: Announcements

The three large pieces are for the SPIRIT OF SOUTH CAROLINA, a working tall ship that will be constructed adjacent to the Charleston Maritime Center.

The South Carolina State Ports Authority, Inchcape Shipping Services and Stevedoring Services of America are all donating time and equipment to make the lift. The AVONTUUR will then shift to the Maritime Center to unload other materials.

Over the coming two years, the South Carolina Maritime Heritage Foundation will construct a traditionally built 'big timber' pilot schooner, the SPIRIT OF SOUTH CAROLINA, at a site open to the public. It will be similar to a ship built by the Pregnall & Co. shipyard on Charleston Harbor in the 1850s.

A keel-laying ceremony next month will start the construction. Traditional indigenous woods of coastal South Carolina will be used, including recycled live oak, white oak, and long leaf yellow pine.

The Maritime Heritage Foundation will use the vessel to work with South Carolina schools, colleges, municipalities and community groups to develop a variety of sail training and academic programs, as well as important programs for the disadvantaged.

For more information on today's lift, call Byron Miller (SCSPA) at 843/577-8197 or Gary Santos (Inchcape) at 843/ 971-1124. For project information, see the SCMHF's web site at www.scmaritime.org.

Nordana uses five vessels calling every two
weeks at Charleston, Houston and Baltimore. Nordana’s vessels are
designed to accommodate project cargoes with odd or oversize pieces, so
the service can handle increased U.S. exports to the Algerian oil and
gas industry.

Warehouses 106 and 107 on the wharf at Columbus Street Terminal will be demolished, allowing the extension of container crane rails around a bend in the dock alongside berth three. Removing the 243,000 square feet of warehouse space will provide additional container berth capacity. A 1958-vintage breakbulk gantry crane will also be removed. Ontario Specialty Contracting was awarded the project, which should be completed in four months, at a cost of $340,048.

Salmons Dredging will replace the fenders that protect 2,840 feet of concrete wharf at Columbus Street Terminal over a nine-month period at a cost of $1.57 million. The existing plates and timber fenders will be removed. The new fendering system is similar to the work recently done at the Wando Welch Terminal, where steel H-piles and rubber fender units absorb the berthing forces from the ship. Ten new steel mooring bollards will also be installed.

The latest work is part of the SPA's three-year, $240-million capital plan to upgrade existing terminals before realizing new capacity. Also at Columbus Street, a $5.9 million contract to raise and pave a 34-acre grounded container storage area with rubber-tire gantry runways is well underway. New equipment is also on its way to the terminal -- in April, the Authority ordered two 4-high full container handlers and one 7-high empty handler.

CRANE PRODUCTIVITY UP 16% - In April, the Port of Charleston's port-wide crane production topped 36 container moves per crane per hour, up 16% from 31 per crane per hour in April 2000. Most ports are happy to get this level of productivity on a single vessel, much less over an entire month with more than a hundred vessels of all classes. Bill McLean, vice president of operations for the South Carolina State Ports Authority, said the increase came as a result of the improved skill-level of nearly a dozen new operators hired over the past year, as well as the continued team effort of the entire maritime community. Recently, Maersk-Sealand told The Post and Courier that the Port of Charleston was its most productive U.S. port for vessel operations and second in the world only to Hong Kong.

SPA WINS SUMMIT AWARD - The Ports Authority's print advertising campaign "Pros of Productivity" recently won the prestigious Gold Award at the international Summit Awards competition. The Ports Authority competed with more than 3,000 entries, including large multinational corporations, coming from countries including Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Ireland, Puerto Rico, Ukraine and the United States.

Charleston, SC -- The South Carolina State Ports Authority Board
today unanimously approved a resolution supporting construction
of a new Cooper River bridge and suggesting three ways that the
SPA could contribute.

0 One, the Authority could pay the verifiable cost differential
of the additional height and width related to the new bridge,
to the extent these costs are not offset by the lower height over
Town Creek; OR

0 Two, the SPA could do away with its existing bond debt through
a State contribution. The SPA would then pay to the State Infrastructure
Bank and/or the State the amount it currently pays in debt service
on $125 million in outstanding bonds. This payment is currently
about $9 million annually; OR

0 Finally, the Authority could treat the bridge as a Special
Project and tolls from the bridge to be collected to repay the
SPA for its contribution.

Doing away with outstanding bonds and instead making these payments
to the State is the most technical option. It can only be done
provided that the State pays off $125 million in bonds issued
independently by the Ports Authority in 1998.

While other states and cities provide funding to their ports,
the Ports Authority has not received taxpayer support of its capital
plan since the late 1970s and has instead used bonds backed by
its revenues to fund development. The SPA has become the model
of financial responsibility. In fact, the Ports Authority has
received the highest bond rating of any port authority that does
not enjoy a dedicated subsidy.

A master resolution governing these bonds constitutes a legal
pledge between the Authority and its bondholders. The Ports Authority
revenues, therefore, are legally tied to operational expenses,
repaying debt and capital improvements. Because of this legal
agreement between the Ports Authority and its bondholders, the
Authority's existing bond debt must be defeased before the Authority
can legally spend its revenues on a non-port function, such as
the bridge.

The challenge has been finding a way to assist with the bridge
while not violating the law and mortgaging the future of our state's
port.

Earlier this year, a plan was proposed to repay a $215-million
federal loan for construction to begin. It called for annual payments
of $7 million from SCDOT, $3 million from the local community
and $5 million from State Ports Authority, assuming the State
provided funding to cover the SPA's commitment. The State funding
to cover the State Ports Authority's portion has not been included
in the budget and led to the options considered today.

According to Wachovia World Trade Index reports, which analyze data from the U.S. Department of Commerce and other agencies, more than 37% of all South Carolina exports are shipped from in-state ports.

In Georgia and Virginia, 31% of their state's exports move through in-state ports. North Carolina sends less than 8% of total exports from the in-state Customs district.

"Industry demands a successful, competitive port system," said Bernard S. Groseclose, Jr., president and chief executive officer of the South Carolina State Ports Authority. "We are proud to play such a vital role in moving South Carolina products to world markets."

In the fourth quarter alone, South Carolina exports through the Charleston district were $887 million, an impressive 41.5% increase from the same quarter in 1999.

The South Carolina figure is especially impressive when considering more than one-third of the state's exports go to Canada and Mexico, two of the state's top trading partners. This NAFTA business moves primarily by land across borders in the northeast and southwest, as opposed to by water.

In 2000, South Carolina exports saw double-digit growth in exports to overseas markets in Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Taiwan and France. Exports to the European Union topped Canada.

Charleston, SC - Peter O. Lehman, director of planning and business
development for the South Carolina State Ports Authority, has
been named to two national organizations.

Lehman will serve on the National Research Council through the
Transportation Research Board's Committee on Ports and Channels.
The National Research Council is a private, nonprofit operating
agency for the National Academy of Sciences. Its members serve
to personally advise the government and the public on issues and
not to represent their organizations.

He was also named to the Advisory Committee of the Export-Import
Bank of the United States. The Ex-Im Bank, which was created by
President Roosevelt, is an independent U.S. government agency
that has provided financing for U.S. exports for more than 65
years. The committee advises the Bank on its programs, especially
with respect to providing competitive financing to expand global
markets for U.S. exports.

Lehman is President of the Propeller Club of the Port of Charleston
and has served as vice chairman of the American Association of
Port Authorities' Planning and Research Committee. He was also
recently named vice chairman for the Industry Consultations Program,
a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of Commerce and the
U.S. Trade Representative, and is a member of S.C. International
Trade Conference Board.

He received his bachelor's degree in business administration
from Stetson University, earned a certificate of advanced study
from the American Graduate School of International Management
(Thunderbird), and obtained his juris doctorate degree from the
New England School of Law. He is a licensed attorney and is a
member of the South Carolina, New Jersey and District of Columbia
Bars as well as 10 Federal Courts including The Supreme Court
of the United States.

The South Carolina State Ports Authority (SCSPA) has named Fred N. Stribling as Director of Marketing and Sales.

Stribling was previously with Maersk-Sealand, where he held senior management positions in both sales and operations during his fifteen-year tenure. He will be responsible for the SCSPA's carrier and cargo sales, pricing and marketing functions. Stribling will report to George W. Young, vice president, marketing and sales.

Stribling is an honor graduate from the University of Tampa and has been engaged as both an active duty and reserve officer with the U.S. Army. He presently holds the rank of lieutenant colonel
in the Reserves.

The South Carolina State Ports Authority operates public seaport facilities in Charleston, Georgetown and Port Royal. Charleston currently ranks as the nation's fourth largest container port. Last year cargo valued at $33 billion moved through the Charleston Customs district.

For nearly four decades Jimmy Moore of Georgetown worked to bring better jobs and economic opportunities to South Carolina - today his efforts were recognized in a ceremony dedicating the Port of Georgetown to him.

"With all of his skills, he used the God-given asset of Winyah Bay to attract jobs for the people of Georgetown," said Edgar A. Buck, chairman of the South Carolina State Ports Authority. "To me he is a wise leader, a mover of projects, a savvy businessman and a gifted reader of the political tea leaves."

Jack Scoville, a Georgetown attorney and currently the South Carolina State Ports Authority's Board secretary, suggested the honor for Mr. Moore as a way of paying tribute to a force for good in Georgetown and across South Carolina. "Jimmy's contributions certainly deserve notice," said Scoville.

In 1961, Mr. Moore accepted an invitation from then governor Fritz Hollings to serve on the State Ports Authority's Board and resigned his post with the State Development Board. Over the next 35 years he would serve as treasurer, vice chairman and chairman.

In a letter to Mr. Moore, Senator Hollings said, "I'm not surprised that the port is being dedicated in his honor. Quite frankly, I'd be surprised if it wasn't. Thousands of Georgetown County residents have him to thank for reliable, good-paying jobs."

Mr. Moore started his legal career in the law office of Herbert Smith, the first Georgetown resident to be named to the Ports Authority Board. The two shared their desire to bring prosperity to Georgetown through the Port.

Over the years, Mr. Moore worked to build port business in Georgetown, through employers such as Georgetown Steel, Hess Oil, International Paper, Akzo Salt and Holnam Cement. He also successfully worked toward $3 million in capital improvements to the Port of Georgetown in the mid-1980s. Since 1989, port business in Georgetown has doubled.

In 2000, 114 ships docked in Georgetown during the year, carrying more than 1.79 million tons of forest products, salt, cement and steel for local industries. This was an increase of more than 18% compared to the previous year, when the port moved 1.52 million?tons. For the year, ship traffic was up 8% from 106 in the previous year, while barge traffic slipped 8% to 260 barges.

In August the Ports Authority Board passed a resolution noting Mr. Moore's dedication to both the state and to the Georgetown port.

Charleston, SC -- South Carolina's seaports handled goods valued at nearly $33 billion in 2000, marking an all-time record and an increase of 10% over the previous year, according to recently
released federal trade data. This translates into $89 million in cargo everyday.

The Charleston Custom District ranked 6th nationwide in the value of waterborne commerce, the U.S. Census Bureau's Trade Data Branch report FT920 noted. Port districts ahead of Charleston
were Los Angeles/Long Beach, New York/New Jersey, Houston/Galveston, Seattle/Tacoma and New Orleans.

Export growth outpaced imports last year for the Charleston district, increasing 11%. Nationwide, the value of waterborne trade increased 17% in 2000.

Since 1994, the value of goods moving by sea through the Charleston district has nearly doubled, increasing 91% from $17 billion to $33 billion. This is the fastest rate of growth among the
nation's top 10 ports and more than double the national growth rate.

The Ports Authority's Board requested the study after concerns? over traffic were raised during the permitting process for terminal construction on Daniel Island. "We heard loud and clear the community's concerns about traffic," said Edgar A. Buck, SCSPA Board Chairman. "So we looked closely at long-range traffic projections for both the community and for the port."

The study evaluated 15 sections of the Charleston area's two primary arteries, interstates 26 and 526. First, it presented expectations of the community's long-term traffic growth without port expansion. The local CHATS model provided this view, called "Background Traffic." New port traffic from a terminal on Daniel Island was manually applied on top of these traffic counts.

The study shows that growth in other areas of the community, including residential, recreational and commercial traffic, would drive most of the road requirements over the next two decades. While Port expansion on Daniel Island would advance the need for improvements to a 5-mile segment of I-526, the growth in Port traffic is not out of line with the overall growth expected for other areas of our community.

Virtually all of the port's impact on traffic would be centered on a section of Interstate 526 between the proposed terminal site and I-26. "Because the impact is rather limited, our attention can be focused and targeted on this area," said Bernard S. Groseclose Jr., President & CEO of the SCSPA.

"Although port traffic would only be a small piece of the infrastructure challenges facing our community, it is vital that we address them," said Groseclose. "Congestion is as much of a concern to the Port as it is to the community. It is important that commerce and the motoring public continue to move freely, keeping our economy healthy and our quality of life high."

The SCSPA said Wednesday that it will take a leadership role in an infrastructure planning effort to seek Federal funds.

"Because of the role the Port plays in the state and national economy, we can be very helpful in these efforts," said? Groseclose. "In hosting one of the nation's busiest commercial seaports, Charleston certainly deserves, and can win, preferential consideration. The Federal government recognizes a port's role, and therefore affords favorable treatment to intermodal connections
in major seaports."

Non-port traffic will drive a number of road improvements even before port expansion would come on line. Ten of the 15 road segments need improvement in advance of opening a new terminal;
one will even require two improvements.

Port expansion on Daniel Island will not create any new road construction needs, but will advance the need for improvements to one segment of I-526. The 5-mile section between Clements Ferry Road and I-26 would have to be improved three years sooner with port expansion than without.