Portland Reviving Container Shipping Business

Port of Portland After over a year and a half, Port of Portlands Terminal 6 in Oregon will get a container shipping service as Singapore-based liner company Swire Shipping has committed to start a new service at the terminal as of next year. Swire Shipping will begin offering a mix of general, non-containerized cargo and container service starting in January 2018, the Port of Portland said. The deal was finalized last month during Governor Kate Brown’s trade mission to Asia when Brown and Curtis Robinhold, Port of Portland Executive Director, met with Swire executives in Hong Kong. The ship call at Terminal 6 is likely to be monthly and includes export shipments of Western Star trucks to Australia, export containers to Australia/New Zealand, and import containers from Asia. The trucks are manufactured by Daimler Trucks North America at their Swan Island plant in Portland. As highlighted by the port, this is a critical first step toward restarting container service at Terminal 6 and will aid in efforts to attract an additional service in the future.

“The port is focused on giving our local shippers a variety of options to move their goods efficiently,” said Robinhold. “Most importantly, this signals that T-6 is open for business. We very much appreciate the growing partnership we have with Swire.” Swires new shipping service is supported by a USD 250,000 Strategic Reserve Fund investment aimed at helping Oregon businesses get their products to international markets, and support Northwest shippers. While this is an initial step toward maximizing of T-6 long-term, it is pivotal to Oregons economic competitiveness and the growth of Oregon businesses, the port added. In 2015, German container line Hapag-Lloyd and Hanjin Shipping pulled out of the terminal following ILWUs work stoppages and slowdowns. In 2016, Washington-based Westwood Shipping also abandoned the terminal leaving the port without a container service.