Evergreen’s switch to APM’s Portsmouth terminal not a done deal
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Reports of Evergreen Line’s imminent defection from the Virginia Port Authority’s Portsmouth Marine Terminal to APM Terminals’ new 1 million-TEU capacity facility is “premature,” a spokeswoman for the Taiwanese carrier told The Virginian-Pilot.
Barbara Yeninas, in charge of Evergreen’s public relations in the United States, is quoted as saying that the company, the world’s fourth-largest container line and one of APM’s biggest customers worldwide, is exploring its options ahead of the expiry of its contract with the port authority’s operating company, Virginia International Terminals Inc. “There are always talks going on when one contract is over,” she said.
The port authority’s Joe Harris said he doesn’t foresee any changes to the “longstanding relationship” with Evergreen.
South Korean company Hanjin Shipping is another line whose contract with VIT is due to expire within the year.
APM, part of Danish shipping and industrial conglomerate A.P. Moller – Maersk, last September officially opened the $450 million, 291-acre terminal, which features the first remote-controlled cranes in the United States.