Georgia Ports Authority to shift breakbulk operations to Brunswick

The Georgia Ports Authority is planning to shift breakbulk cargo from the Port of Savannah’s Ocean Terminal to the Colonel’s Island Terminal at the Port of Brunswick as part of a broader effort to expand container operations at the Port of Savannah.

GPA intends to shift the breakbulk cargo carried by Wallenius Wilhelmsen Ocean to Brunswick, as well as realign the docks at Savannah via a two-phrase project.

Breakbulk cargo pertains to individual pieces of cargo that do not fit into a container and as a result cannot be carried in bulk.

“For nearly 40 years, Ocean Terminal has been handling a mix of container ships and breakbulk vessels. The realignment is part of a broader effort to transform the terminal into an all-container operation, shifting most breakbulk cargo to the Port of Brunswick,” GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch said in a Monday news release. “Completion of this project will improve our flexibility and allow Georgia Ports to optimize cargo movement, supporting our customers in delivering goods to market efficiently.”

The shift entails constructing a 360,000-square-foot warehousing space at Brunswick that will serve auto processing. There will also be three additional buildings and 85 acres of auto storage space on the south side of the island, GPA said.

At the 200-acre Ocean Terminal at Savannah, GPA will rebuild the docks to provide 2,800 linear feet of berth space. This will enable the docks to serve two big ships simultaneously. There will also be eight new ship-to-shore cranes at the docks.

Wharf renovations will begin in January, with 2026 as the target to complete the terminal redevelopment. GPA said the overall project will bring expanded gate facilities and enable 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units of annual capacity.

GPA will continue to operate container ships at Ocean Terminal during dock construction, the port authority said.

Last month, GPA reported that October volumes totaled 552,800 TEUs, up 9.6% year over year and making October the Port of Savannah’s second-busiest month on record, behind only August of this year.

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