The port of Savannah saw a significant decrease in business last month compared to August a year ago when the terminals recorded their busiest-ever month as construction for future expansion reduced the number of berths where freighters could dock.
The Georgia Ports Authority said the number of containers that passed through Savannah was 28% lower in August than a year ago, citing construction as the key factor. The ports authority earlier late last year launched a plan to renovate docks at its Ocean Terminal in Savannah to handle more container traffic, creating flexibility to grow over the next eight to 10 years.
In contrast, business was up at the state’s other port, the Port of Brunswick, which handles primarily autos and machinery. Those shipments were up 8% from last year.
Traffic through the Savannah and Brunswick ports are key economic indicators for the state. It’s unclear if construction will depress business so significantly in the months ahead, though the authority said it is “well-positioned for future growth.”
Despite the overall dip in cargo going through the Port of Savannah, rail traffic is growing as businesses move more goods via trains rather than trucks, according to Griff Lynch, chief executive of the Georgia Ports Authority.
Rail traffic thus far this year has been up 6% so far this year compared to the first eight months of 2022, and up a similar amount last month compared to August a year ago.
The additional cargo handled by rail came after completion of the port’s Mason Mega Rail project on 90 acres next to the Garden City terminal, Lynch said. Even when the port carried record cargo “a year ago, rail was declining. Now customers are returning to rail.”
Traffic through the Port of Savannah has grown dramatically in the past few years, the result of a combination of factors.
Diversification of American manufacturing has meant more goods coming from outside China, as well as exports from the southeastern United States to various trading partners. Delays in West Coast ports, as well as periodic labor trouble, gave shippers reason to divert cargo to Savannah.
Meanwhile, the authority has made billions of dollars worth of improvements, some with federal funding, expanding facilities to handle much more traffic and deepening the harbor to permit unloading of much larger ships.
