Gulftainer launches operations at Port Canaveral, Florida
Gulftainer’s new Canaveral Cargo Terminal at Port Canaveral in Florida, USA, officially opened for business with a major launch ceremony attended by more than 300 local, state, and national public officials, alongside leaders of business and trade across the Florida region, the company said in its press release.
The new cargo terminal opening comes one year after Canaveral Port Authority signed a 35-year agreement with GT USA, the US arm of UAE-based global ports and logistics company Gulftainer, to operate and further develop the container and multipurpose cargo terminal. GT USA, which has established its headquarters at the Canaveral Port Authority offices, expects to contribute more than US$630 million to the local economy, creating 2,000 direct and indirect jobs when fully developed.
The unveiling of new terminal and first container movements included the maiden call of the ‘CMA CGM Jamaica’, a 264-metre container vessel with a capacity of 4,298 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) that berthed at the port, as the deepest vessel to ever call at Canaveral in its 60 year history, before resuming her voyage across the Atlantic and to Europe. A long-time business partner of Gulftainer, CMA CGM is one of the world’s leading shipping companies and is associated with Gulftainer at several locations around the world. Earlier this month, Gulftainer welcomed CMA CGM’s largest container vessel at its Khorfakkan Container Terminal in Sharjah, the ‘CMA CGM Kerguelen,’ with a total capacity of 17,722 TEUs.
The Canaveral Cargo Terminal, which begins operations with a TEU cargo capacity of 200,000 TEUs, has ambitious plans to triple capacity to 750,000 TEUs. An ideal gateway for container shipping to the central Florida market and beyond, the new terminal provides an excellent connection to central Florida’s bustling consumption centres and growing number of distribution centres. The terminal is able to turn around cargo imported into Port Canaveral to the Orlando area within one hours, the fastest transit time when compared to other container terminals in the State.