Partner News

Philadelphia Regional Port Authority Expansions:

Philadelphia Regional Port Authority Welcomes Sea Star Line, LLC To Port of Philadelphia

Philadelphia, PA - John H. Estey, Esq., Chairman of the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (PRPA) is pleased to announce that Sea Star Line, LLC, a major carrier serving the US, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean region, will begin calling PRPA’s Tioga Marine Terminal in Northeast Philadelphia beginning in April.  Sea Star Line will initiate a weekly ship call beginning on Friday, April 23, and expects to bring a ship to Tioga Terminal every Friday after that.  Sea Star will handle a variety of containerized cargoes, as well as roll on/roll off cargoes.  Tioga Marine Terminal is operated by Delaware River Stevedores, Inc.

“This is great news for the Port of Philadelphia, and for one of our most efficient terminals,’ said Chairman Estey.  “Tioga Marine Terminal has two container cranes, a mobile harbor crane, ample space for containers, an experienced labor force, and so many other attributes.  It’s a great fit for Sea Star Line.”

“To have fifty-two ships a year that we didn’t have before, that’s really saying something,” said PRPA Executive Director James T. McDermott, Jr.  “Over the course of a year, those ships will provide thousands of ILA man-hours to our labor force, supporting and expanding the family-sustaining jobs that are so important to our operations.  Indirect jobs, business revenues, state and local taxes, and many other economic spin-offs will also result.” 

The Port will see many diverse, new cargoes as a result of Sea Star Line. A typical Sea Star vessel at the Port of Philadelphia will include cargoes such as consumer goods, chemicals, and machinery.

In the company’s own announcement about its new service in Philadelphia, Sea Star Line President and Chief operating Officer Frank Peake extolled the virtues of the new service, concluding with the following: “Tioga Marine Terminal is an ideal partnership because it provides ready access to highways and intermodal facilities, quick gate turns, on-site warehouse space, reefer plug availability, heavy-lift cranes, and ample space.”

PRPA will provide further information about Sea Star Line’s new service once it commences next month.  Shippers who have an interest in this new service should contact PRPA’s Marketing Department at (215) 426-2600 at their convenience.

Source: Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (March 24, 2010)

Finnish Paper Company M-real Selects Port of Philadelphia For Its U.S.-Bound Cargoes

150,000 tons of new cargo, up to 24 vessel calls will result

Philadelphia, PA - John H. Estey, Esq., Chairman of the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (PRPA), today announced that the European paper company M-real, based in Finland, has selected the Port of Philadelphia as its primary U.S. port of entry for its high quality paper products.  Effective May 7, Wagenborg Shipping B.V., a major forest products carrier, will begin delivering M-real’s cargoes to PRPA’s Forest Products Distribution Center at Piers 78 & 80.  The facility is operated by Penn Warehousing & Distribution Company, Inc.

“High-quality paper has long been one of our signature cargoes at the Port of Philadelphia,” said Chairman Estey.  “So it’s especially appropriate that such a significant piece of new business for our port has now come from that industry.”

The new cargo, which previously entered the US via the Port of Baltimore, will result in 18 to 24 new vessel calls per year at Piers 78 & 80, and about 150,000 metric tons of new cargo, according to projections.  High-quality paper is shipped in heavy rolls in vessels designed especially for this sensitive cargo.

“The excellent reputation of Penn Warehousing & Distribution Company and its ILA/Teamster workforce, as well as the PRPA’s recent addition of a new warehouse specially designed for paper at nearby Pier 74, were major factors in M-real’s decision to relocate to Philadelphia,” said James T. McDermott Jr., PRPA’s Executive Director.  This is great news for the Port of Philadelphia, and we intend to provide a high level of service and support for M-real.”

John Brown, president of Penn Warehousing, welcomed the news.

“We are delighted by M-real’s decision to come to the Port of Philadelphia,” he said.  “Our labor force is specially trained for this work, and our facilities are designed to insure the safety and integrity of the cargo.  We look forward to a productive working relationship with M-real.”

PRPA will provide further information about M-real cargoes moving through the Port of Philadelphia once vessel calls commence in May.

Source: Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (March 31, 2010)

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