Year-to-date export volumes at Port Houston have reached 349,964 TEU.
This is the highest monthly volume for laden exports in its history, with a 26 percent increase in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year and a 10 percent increase compared to March 2022.
Imports of empty containers increased 111 percent compared to the same month last year.
Despite a 3% decrease in total TEU in March, container volumes through Port Houston are on schedule to surpass 1 million TEU earlier than ever before, per the port.
Port Houston handled 934,031 TEUs in the first quarter of 2023, a 3% increase from the same period last year.
The Bayport Container Terminal of Port Houston is preparing for the arrival of three new STS cranes and the completion of Wharf 6 later this year, while the Barbours Cut Container Terminal is undergoing numerous upgrades with the arrival of seven new RTGs in November and seven in January 2024.
Over the next five years, the port also intends to invest $1.4 billion in landside infrastructure.
The port recently announced the completion of the first segment of the Houston Ship Channel Expansion – Project 11, which is anticipated to increase safety, decrease congestion, and improve vessel transit times by eliminating daylight restrictions.
Roger Guenther, Executive Director of Port Houston, stated that despite a softening of import demand across the United States and in Houston, where loaded import container TEU were down 12 percent in March, “total throughput is offset by the strong export market we have in Houston and our ability to provide both export and import customers with excellent customer service, skilled labour, and an efficient gateway.”
February was also a successful month for Port Houston, with a total of 313,452 TEU.