The Port of Savannah handled a record 504,015 TEUs in September, marking a 3.7% increase compared to the same month last year. This result lifted the Georgia Ports Authority’s (GPA) first fiscal quarter above 1.5m TEUs, up 2.7% and standing as the second-highest quarterly volume in the authority’s history. Growth was driven primarily by an extended peak shipping season, resilient consumer spending, and cargo shifted from typhoon-delayed Asian ports, with import loads leading the momentum at a 5.5% year-over-year rise.
To sustain this throughput, GPA is advancing major infrastructure upgrades, including the $1.6bn Ocean Terminal renovation, which is now over 60% complete and will lift capacity from 200,000 to 1.75m TEUs. Inland connectivity also strengthened, with Appalachian Regional Port volumes climbing 13% for the quarter and the newly opened Brampton Road Connector establishing a third dedicated freight corridor directly into Garden City Terminal.
Broader supply chain flows are expected to benefit from recovering water levels at the Panama Canal, which will restore maximum daily Neopanamax transits to 10 by mid-October. Meanwhile, the Port of Brunswick moved 43,415 Roll-on/Roll-off units during September; while total RoRo dropped 22% amid competitive global automotive market conditions, heavy machinery cargo rose nearly 12% to reach 3,754 units.