Panama Canal and South Carolina Ports Authority Renew Alliance
(blogs.customhouseguide.com) The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) and the South Carolina State Ports Authority (SCSPA) have formally renewed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a 3-year term. The parties hope that the reaffirmed alliance will help them better meet their short- and long-term goals and benefit shipping through increased cooperation and information sharing. The agreement was first initiated in July 2003.
“Through the renewal of this MOU with the South Carolina State Ports Authority, we are investing in a strong partnership based on close strategic coordination,” said ACP Administrator/CEO Alberto Alemán Zubieta. “This alliance is grounded in our common mission to provide the best service available to our customers and contribute to the growth in trade and commerce of our respective communities, and the industry, through key modernization projects and improvement.”
Areas of collaboration between the ACP and the SCSPA include, among others, joint marketing efforts, exchange of data, market studies, expansion plans, training, and technology. Thenewly extended partnership also will seek to boost the all-water route from Asia to the U.S. East Coast via the Panama Canal. Major products that currently travel through the Panama Canal via Charleston, S.C., include household products, such as furniture, machinery, forest products, and consumer goods.
“When you combine Panama’s tremendous role in global trade with Charleston’s world-class productivity, expansion opportunities, navigational advantages, and distribution center developments, the importance of this partnership becomes clear,” added SCSPA President and CEO Bernard S. Groseclose Jr.
The Panama Canal expansion will build a new lane of traffic along the Panama Canal through the construction of a new set of locks, which will double capacity and allow more traffic and longer, wider ships.
Moreover, in anticipating the infrastructure needs of the future, the Port of Charleston is laying the groundwork to prepare for the bigger vessels that will transit the expanded Canal. The Port of Charleston has a 45-foot water draft at low water and already handles vessels with drafts of 42 feet and greater. Post-Panamax ships make routine first-in and last-out calls in Charleston.
