THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 18, 1996 TAG: 9601180453
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CHRISTOPHER DINSMORE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
The port of Hampton Roads, already the East Coast's second largest port, should continue to grow this year and should even eclipse a banner 1995.
``Ninety-five percent of the vessels that call on the U.S. East Coast in liner trade call here, probably more,'' said Joseph A. Dorto, who heads the company that operates the three state-owned terminals in the port. ``If things go right, hopefully that will grow by next week.''
On Wednesday, Dorto, general manager and CEO of Virginia International Terminals Inc., gave his annual ``State of the Port'' address to a luncheon meeting of the Hampton Roads Foreign Commerce Club.
He later said another shipping line may be about to start calling on the port of Hampton Roads. He declined to identify the line the port is endeavoring to attract, but said the service would be substantial.
``If it happens it will be good,'' he said.
The port grew dramatically in 1995. For the second year in a row, general cargo shipped across port docks grew by more than 1 million tons. The double-digit increase puts the port's tonnage over 9 million tons for last year, Dorto said.
``We cemented our position as the No. 2 port on the East Coast behind New York, not only in general cargo, but in containers, surpassing Charleston, S.C., for the first time,'' he said.
Dorto estimated that the port would grow 4 percent to 8 percent in 1996. He called the estimate ``real,'' not conservative.
But 1996 is not going to be without its challenges.
Contracts with eight shipping lines, including giants like Evergreen Marine Corp., Maersk Inc. and Atlantic Container Lines, are expiring this year and need to be renegotiated, Dorto said. The contracts cover the rates the lines pay and what services they receive in Hampton Roads.
``It's a big deal,'' Dorto said. ``We have to take it very seriously. . . . I believe this is where they want to be and if we can offer them competitive rates, they'll stay.''
Added to that pressure, ports such as Wilmington, N.C., and Baltimore will try to lure away business, he said.
Still, Hampton Roads is positioned well to continue to grow by taking advantage of several trends in the shipping industry. A consultant's study showed last year the port should at least double in size by 2010.
Shipping lines are building bigger and bigger container ships to take advantage of increased economies of scale by shipping more on one vessel.
``The bigger the vessels get, the better Hampton Roads position is,'' Dorto said.
Because Hampton Roads has the deepest channels and water of any East Coast port, it can handle these new, larger ships, he said. It also has quicker access to the open ocean than some other ports.
Hampton Roads also has the ability to expand its facilities to meet future demand. The port has embarked on a plan to double the size of its largest terminal, Norfolk International Terminals, by adding three new berths there.
``A lot of our competitors are out there saying we're full and that we've got no more capacity,'' Dorto said. ``That's bunk. . . . Our job is to go out to shipping lines and show them we can grow with them.'' by CNB