Fitch Ratings assigned an 'AA-' rating to the Port of Authority of New York and New Jersey's $2 billion consolidated bonds and affirmed the authority's existing debt, it said. Fitch cited resilient cash flows and stable revenue base, high degree of rate-setting flexibility, and conservative capital structure.
Port credit ratings are likely to remain resilient in the face of an East Coast longshoremen's strike, Fitch Ratings said in a new report. It said the potential remains for a work stoppage at the end of the 90-day extension period, (see ITT's Online Archives 12092101, but contingency plans at potentially affected ports have envisaged 10-15% cargo diversion over a month or so of stoppage, which is well below throughput losses modeled in Fitch's rating case scenarios for ports. That, plus the levels of liquidity maintained by ports and the fixed rental payments generally seen as the main source of revenue for ports, would minimize the credit impact expected from any future work stoppage, the report said.
The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners gave a $36.8 million construction contract for the "Green Port Gateway" railroad project, which is to enhance the Port of Long Beach's capacity for "on-dock rail," cutting down on truck traffic and air pollution, it said. Construction could begin as early as November and is expected to continue until July 2014, the port said. The contractor is Ames Construction Inc. of Corona.
Extending the longshoremen's contract for 90 additional days was agreed Sept. 20 by the International Longshoremen's Association and the U.S. Maritime Exchange, representing shipping and port interests, said Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service Director George Cohen after talks closed Sept. 20. The extension is until Dec. 29, he said.
German shipping company Hamburg Sud added the Port of New Orleans to a new weekly service to Latin America, the port said. Hamburg Sud will provide the service through a space charter agreement with Hapag-Lloyd, connecting New Orleans with Caucedo, Dominican Republic; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Montevideo, Uruguay; Rio Grande, Mexico; and Suape, Santos, Navegantes and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Ports America will handle the new service at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal.
The Port Newark Container Terminal completed the phase two deployment of Firetide's wireless video surveillance network that enables security and safety officers to view live indoor and outdoor video feeds of the 180-acre port facility and its operations, Firetide said. The first phase of the Firetide wireless infrastructure mesh video network was deployed in 2008. Firetide's wireless network provides live indoor and outdoor video feeds of workers unloading cargo from incoming ships and moving containers throughout the site. The video cameras monitor safety violations, provide accident verification, and monitor vehicle and foot access to and from the facility, Firetide said. The network includes 54 Firetide HotPort 7020 wireless mesh nodes and 70 Bosch VG4 500i series point-tilt-zoom IP surveillance cameras at multiple locations throughout the facility.
Aging infrastructure for marine ports, inland waterways, and airports threatens more than 1 million U.S. jobs, said a report by the American Society of Civil Engineers. About $30 billion must be invested in ports and waterways by 2020, it said, but planned expenditures are about $14 billion. Another $114 billion is needed for airports by 2020, it said, but anticipated spending is $95 billion. The report said without the investment, transporting goods will become costlier, prices will rise, and the U.S. will become less competitive in the global market. "Congestion and delays lead to goods waiting on docks and in warehouses for shipment, which in turn leads to higher transportation costs and higher-priced products on store shelves," said ASCE President Andrew Herrmann. "The fact is we must invest in U.S. airports today to ensure the global competitiveness of our country tomorrow," said Greg Principato, president of Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA).
As the federal government faces sequestration and otherwise looks for ways to reduce spending, the American Association of Port Authorities said it's imperative to focus scarce federal resources in those areas that can have the greatest impact on economic growth, immediate and long-term job creation, national security, and our current and future competitiveness in the global economy.
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corp. said it received a $24.2 million contract for maintenance dredging in the Port of Baltimore. The contract was awarded by the Army Corps of Engineers’ Baltimore District and will be done with two clamshell dredges and be completed by year end, it said.
Zepol Corp. said U.S. import shipment volume for August, measured in TEUs, was down in August from July by 3%, and by 0.3% from August of 2011. The firm said it's unusual to see a drop in imports from July to August because the trend for the past three years has been a spike in August. "The lower August numbers could be due to early holiday purchases in July, which saw abnormally high TEU numbers," said Zepol CEO Paul Rasmussen, but he said it "may also have to do with the potential for labor strikes at east coast ports from the International Longshoremen's Association and United States Maritime Alliance." Zepol's said its U.S. Customs data shows that TEU imports for the first 12 days in September were 10% higher than the 12 days of September in 2011. Most Asian countries had a drop in shipments to the U.S. in August, it said, but Germany was up 1.9% and Italy 3.4%. The Port of Los Angeles decreased from July by 3.9% and the Port of Oakland 7%, but the Port of Savannah had a 7.6% increase.