ICTSI Portland lease passes key milestone

ICTSI Portland lease passes key milestone    A lease agreement between the Port of Portland and Philippines-based terminal operator International Container Terminal Services, Inc. has passed the second of three key milestones, the port told American Shipper Thursday.
   In May, ICTSI won a concession from Portland to operate the port's T-6 container and breakbulk terminal. A port spokesman said the port on Thursday closed financially on the 25-year lease with ICTSI Oregon, a newly formed subsidiary of the Manila-based company. The final milestone to be reached is ICTSI Oregon commencing operations.
   The port expects that transition to occur in February 2011. T-6 has until now been operated by the port, the last major container terminal on the U.S. West Coast to be publicly operated. It’s the first U.S. terminal for ICTSI, which manages a diverse portfolio of niche ports around the globe.
   Under the lease agreement, ICTSI Oregon committed to pay the port $8 million at closing, in addition to an annual rent payment of $4.5 million, subject to any increases in the consumer price index. As terminal volumes increase over time, ICTSI Oregon will pay the port additional incremental revenue per container moved.