Port of Los Angeles FY 2017/18 budget totals $1.17b

The fiscal year budget will help the port stay “laser-focused on targeted infrastructure improvements, technology solutions and strategic resource use,” according to Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka.    The Port of Los Angeles’ budget for fiscal year 2017/18, which will begin July 1, 2017, totals $1.17 billion, the port said Thursday.
   “This budget will help us stay laser-focused on targeted infrastructure improvements, technology solutions and strategic resource use to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our marine terminal customers and the carriers they serve,” Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka said.
   The FY 2017/18 adopted budget’s operating receipts, which are the principal mechanism for funding day-to-day port operations, are expected to total $475.4 million. Shipping service revenues are projected to comprise about 83.4 percent of operating receipts.
   The FY 2017/18 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget of $97.7 million is less than prior-year levels. This is due to decreased spending on major terminal and transportation-related projects that have been largely completed, such as improvements at the TraPac and Yusen (YTI) terminals, the port explained.
   Terminal improvements for FY 2017/18 will represent 42.6 percent of the CIP budget.
   Some of these terminal improvements include:
     • An $11.2 million Word Cruise Center Alternative Maritime Power upgrade;
     • $8.1 million for improvements at YTI, including a rail expansion of the terminal’s Intermodal Container Transfer facility, which will boost the terminal’s on-dock rail capacity by 25 percent;
     • And $2 million for environmental document preparation and the design of infrastructure improvements and terminal reconstruction at EverPort, along with other smaller projects.
   In addition, 19 percent of the CIP budget will be dedicated towards public waterfront and enhancement projects. For FY 2017/18, operating expenses are expected to reach $256.5 million, an increase of 3 percent year-over-year, primarily fueled by a boost in salaries and benefits, as well as city services.
   Meanwhile, cargo volumes at the Port of Los Angeles for FY 2017/18 are expected to increase by 5.6 percent relative to the prior-year adopted budget. The port currently handles more containers per ship call than any other port complex across the globe.
   The Port of Los Angeles is currently called by 23 liner services that connect the port to regions outside of the West Coast of North America, 22 of which deploy fully cellular containerships and one that deploys pure car/truck carriers, according to ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting’s Port Dashboard tool.