TRANSPORTATION, INFRASTRUCTURE & LOGISTICS INTERVIEW
Master plan A number of capital improvement projects are under way at Port Everglades
Jonathan Daniels Chief Executive Officer – Port Everglades Authority deepening and widening of the Port’s navigation channels. As the first phase of this larger channel project, in February we received $29.1 million in funding under the Corps FY 2020 Work Plan, which will be used to build a new facility at U.S. Coast Guard Station Fort Lauderdale to allow the Intracoastal Waterway to be widened by 250 feet A new 1,818-space garage for cruise passengers in our Northport area is close to completion. The state-of-theart facility will feature an elevated, air-conditioned passenger bridge with moving walkways to deliver guests to their terminals.
What major projects are scheduled for development within the Port Everglades master plan? Our 20-Year Master/Vision Plan, which maps out capital improvements and operational efficiencies over the next five-, 10- and 20-year horizons, includes several sizeable construction projects – totaling $1.6 billion –that are purposely moving forward at a rapid pace. Currently underway is a $471 million berth expansion, the largest infrastructure project in the Port’s 92-year history. The Southport Turning Notch Extension project will add new cargo berths by lengthening the Port’s existing turn-around area from 900 feet to 2,400 feet. Part of this effort includes installing crane rail infrastructure for new super post-panamax container gantry cranes. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is in the preconstruction engineering and design phase for the 116
How is this project pipeline impacting containerized cargo? The current construction projects underway are having minor impacts on our containerized cargo operations. Once the Southport Turning Notch Extension is completed, which will add up to five new berths and six new super post-panamax gantry cranes, the Port’s container throughput is expected to nearly double by 2038. Since the Port is land-constrained, expansion needs to be thought of in terms of not only extending out, but up. Our container terminal partners are looking to densify existing land by going vertical with the addition of RTGs – rubber-tire gantries – that will allow terminal operators to stack containers higher, thereby increasing capacity on the same footprint. What is your outlook for Port Everglades? It will take some time before we return to pre-pandemic levels. Resiliency and planning will be key. We are very confident in the port’s long-term prospects and will emerge stronger from this crisis with a keen eye fixed on our Master/Vision Plan. With collaboration and an organic path to growth, we will work with our existing customers to grow our market share in cruise, cargo, and energy.
| Invest: Greater Fort Lauderdale 2021 | TRANSPORTATION, INFRASTRUCTURE & LOGISTICS
