The North Carolina State Ports Authority said recently that its fiscal 2024 results were “mixed, yet balanced,” with volumes above budget at both the Wilmington and Morehead City ports.
Financial figures were not included in the July 25 announcement, which are expected to be made public later this year.
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“Fiscal Year 2024 marked a robust year for investment in our ports and a record year for intermodal volume, demonstrating NC Ports’ commitment to strengthening the efficient movement of goods across the state of North Carolina and growing multimodal capabilities from port berths to the hinterlands,” North Carolina Ports Executive Director Brian E. Clark said in a statement.
The authority said strong cash flow from operations and state appropriations allowed it to pour $80 million into its Wilmington and Morehead City seaports and its inland facility in Charlotte.
Officials pointed to projects at the Wilmington port including the second phase of the authority’s refrigerated container yard and container yard expansion. They said new warehouse space and berth renovations in Morehead City are nearly complete.
New gantry cranes are on order for both ports to keep pace with what officials characterized as strong general cargo demand.
The authority said state ports moved a record 17,000 containers by rail during the year, 13% above budget.
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The Wilmington and Morehead City ports moved nearly 4.2 million short tons of bulk and breakbulk cargo during the year, 5% over budget. Officials said the ports handled “substantial volumes” of natural rubber, steel, lumber, cement, wood chips and wood pellets and noted that the commodities support “everything from U.S. infrastructure, aerospace and the region’s growing automotive industry.”
The authority also noted a nearly $11 million United States Department of Transportation grant through the Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program. The money will go toward relocating the Wilmington port’s north gate closer to the designated truck route and away from neighborhood streets.
The authority noted a groundbreaking for an intermodal rail yard that will expand capacity to more than 50,000 container movements annually.
Officials also noted new roll-on/roll-off business at the Morehead City port. This includes imported finished vehicles such as coach buses and commercial vans and breakbulk and project cargo, including wind turbine blades, nacelles and towers for Timbermill Wind near Edenton.
Morehead City also has a new monthly ConRo liner service that Spliethoff Group launched between Belgium, the UK, and U.S. East Coast.
The authority said North Carolina, like other East Coast ports, faced global challenges in the container market, but there were bright spots.
“Given the challenges felt across the broader container shipping industry in FY24, remaining diversified between containers and general cargo continues to serve us well and remains a focus,” Clark said.
