Tampa completes terminal expansion

Tampa completes terminal expansion    The Tampa Port Authority said it has completed the latest phase of the ongoing expansion of its container terminal, increasing the paved storage area from 25 to 40 acres.
   The terminal now includes 2,100 feet of berth length, three rail-mounted container gantry cranes and a 100-ton mobile harbor crane, all on a 43-foot deepwater channel. The next phase of expansion is underway and includes a further extension of the container gantry crane rails and lengthening the berth to 2,800 feet, to be completed this summer.
   The port said that together with terminal operator Ports America, it plans to quadruple the size of the terminal to more than 160 acres over the next several years. This planned build-out will be on adjacent land owned by the port authority and ready to be developed as market demand grows, providing capacity to handle upwards of 1 million TEUs per year.
   The port said a primary driver of the investment is to position the port for increased trade opportunities with Latin America, as well as Asia, resulting from the expansion of the Panama Canal.