Georgia, South Carolina chassis pool gets FMC OK

Chassis lessors had raised objections to the agreement.    The South Carolina Ports Authority and Georgia Ports Authority will be able to establish a common chassis pool for customers throughout the Southeast as the result of the Federal Maritime Commission deciding on Wednesday to take no action to prevent the Southern States Chassis Pool Agreement (SSCPA) from becoming effective.
   The two ports filed their agreement to create the joint pool for chassis for international containers on June 18, with an effective date of Aug. 2.
   While an existing pool in the region, Consolidated Chassis Management’s South Atlantic Chassis Pool, has about 53,000 chassis, the two ports said there is a need for an additional 10,000 chassis in the pool.
   They also said there was a need for better chassis with features like LED lights, radial tires and anti-lock brakes.
   Griff Lynch, the executive director of the Georgia Port Authority, had explained that in the past three years, “volumes through the ports has grown by about 30 percent in round numbers and the pool has been increased in size by about 3 to 5 percent, so clearly there’s a problem. Both ports have come together for the betterment of the Southeast.”
   Dozens of letters were sent to the FMC  by shippers in support of the joint pool, but the Institute of International Container Lessors (IICL) raised objections in a letter to the FMC.
   IICL said the agreement should be rejected because it is not “complete and definite” as required by the Shipping Act of 1984 and it may reduce competition.
   IICL and its attorney had no immediate comment on the FMC action.
   Under the terms of the agreement, the two port authorities will establish and administer a common chassis pool serving the ports in Charleston and Savannah as well as associated intermodal terminals and depots located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. The ports said other ports such as Wilmington, N.C., or Jacksonville, Fla., might join the pool at some point.
   The agreement will remain in effect indefinitely and is subject to similar monitoring and reporting requirements as other agreements on file at the FMC.