Terminal operators in Los Angeles-Long Beach should expect in the next few years to receive regular calls by vessels with capacities of 18,000 20-foot container units, while East Coast ports sooner than they expect may be served by the new Panamax vessels of up to 14,000-TEU capacity, according to a port planner.
In order to handle these huge vessels, U.S. container terminals of the future must invest in varying degrees of automation depending upon the amount of volume that each vessel call is expected to generate at
their facilities, said Larry Nye, vice president in charge of port planning at engineer firm Moffatt & Nichol.
Nye’s comments challenge conventional thinking of port planners who believe U.S. ports will gradually grow into becoming gateways for the newest generation of mega-ships.