APMT invests $40m at Port of Mobile

APM Terminals outlined its plans to prepare for growth at the Port of Mobile with expansion of the terminal’s container yard and the addition of two cranes.    APM Terminals Mobile is investing $40 million in infrastructure to expand its container yard by 20 acres and add two super-Post Panamax STS cranes to the terminal.
   The Mobile terminal currently has a throughput capacity of 350,000 TEUs, and with the expansion, throughput capacity will increase to 475,000 TEUs annually. The terminal has the capability to upgrade to an annual throughput capacity of 1.3 million TEUs in the future, APMT said in a statement.
   APM Terminals Mobile is currently equipped with two post panamax cranes. With the addition of two more cranes and the expansion of the container yard, the terminal will be better prepared to handle expected growth.
   Contributing factors to growth at the Port of Mobile include construction of an intermodal container transfer facility, scheduled for completion in Spring 2016; shipments from the Port of Hamburg to APM Terminals Mobile consisting of Airbus parts for its new assembly plant just a few miles from the terminal, expected to commence production this summer; the widening of the Panama Canal; and growing industries including automobile manufacturing, steel, and exports of poultry and forest products. 
   APMT partnered with the Alabama State Port Authority in 2005 to construct the first phase of the terminal, which officially opened in 2008, the port authority said.
   The Port of Mobile is currently the U.S. Gulf’s deepest port. APM Terminals Mobile has a depth of 13.7 meters and has the ability to handle vessels with capacity of up to 8,400 TEUs. Once the Panama Canal is widened, the terminal will be able to handle 12,600-TEU vessels.