SIMIC

IN September 2023, the Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) witnessed a substantial increase in total container volumes, marking a 15.5 per cent rise, with a total of 329,609 TEU being handled, reports London's Port Technology.

This performance in September represented the highest monthly total for the year.



It was primarily propelled by consistent vessel arrivals and a growing intact intermodal rail volume.



Implementing improved vessel scheduling also positively impacted export volumes, with full-month imports surging 31.8 per cent and full-month exports seeing a 33.6 per cent increase.



Although this September's performance exhibited improved year-on-year volume comparisons, it is anticipated that market conditions characterised by low import demand will persist in the short term.



For the year-to-date figures, container volume fell 16.3 per cent to 2,203,757 TEU. This decline is associated with full imports decreasing 19.1 per cent and full exports declining 0.8 per cent.



NWSA's managing members have also approved US$9 million in financing for the final design phase of the proposed shore power project at Terminal 18 in Seattle.



This funding includes a $1 million grant from the Washington State Department of Ecology, and the design phase is anticipated to be completed in the coming year.



In the context of domestic container volume, there was a slight year-to-date decline of 0.8 per cent.



Meanwhile, container volumes in Alaska experienced a 1.9 per cent increase, while volumes in Hawaii declined 12.7 per cent.



In August, the NWSA reported a total container throughput of 242,700 TEU for that particular month.