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IT
may not be quite the year that many had
hoped for in terms of trade growth, but
for the Port of Long Beach its management
is looking ahead and its sees a bright future
on the horizon.
HKSG
Group Media caught up with the executive
director for the Southern Californian port,
J. Christopher Lytle, to learn why he sees
a reason to smile in a period of gloom for
the shipping industry.
"I
think one of the things that you need to
keep in mind is that this is not a 100-metre
sprint. This is a marathon. Even though
the last two years have been relatively
flat, what's happening is that we are investing
now with our capital program, that's over
US$4 billion," Mr Lytle said...
The
executive director said that money is now
going into investing in terminals, rail
facilities, bridges, roads and much more
to ensure that the port is equipped with
the necessary infrastructure to take advantage
of the market when it rebounds in the coming
years.
"There
are going to be more big ships that are
going to call and we are investing in that
infrastructure," he said.
Mr
Lytle said that the port is seeking Harbour
Commission approval in November so it can
commence construction on its Pier S terminal
facility.
Additionally,
¡§K" Line's Pier G terminal, which
is a half-billion-dollar project, is now
approaching completion.
Mr
Lytle also noted that construction on the
port's Middle Harbour project, which Hong
Kong's OOCL signed a 40-year lease agreement
for earlier this year, is now moving ahead.
A
new on-dock rail support yard is also being
planned, with the Harbour Commission expected
to consider approval in 2013.
"So
while the numbers are going to be relatively
flat, long term we feel that we are going
to be ready to handle the volumes that are
going to come and we will be ready for those
big ships as they continue to come in as
well," he said.
One
other reason that Mr Lytle can smile is
that many of the projects that the port
is looking to go ahead with are turning
out to be less costly than first projected.
In fact, at times the cost has come in at
as much as 25 per cent below engineers'
expectations.
"This
is the time to move forward. We're getting
ourselves ready to maintain our competitive
edge going forward," Mr Lytle said.
The
executive director is also quick to point
to some encouraging signs in the US economy
that could spell good news for shipping
volumes going forward.
"We're
starting to see now that glimmer of hope
with more and more positive news coming
out. We're seeing increases in our auto
sales and production. We're seeing now that
we're starting to come out of the housing
crunch, and we're seeing sales in the US
for housing starting to improve," he
said.
These
encouraging signs, which are indicative
of an improving market, serve to affirm
Long Beach's belief that ports must use
this current period of time to prepare for
strong growth again in the future, or simply
miss out when it comes.
"It
has been a challenging couple of years,
but in terms of the long term, we think
we're being very well positioned as we move
forward with our programs."
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