POLB
POLB CEO Noel Hacegaba on Jan. 15 gave his first State of the Port address, announcing a “record-setting 2025,” with nearly 9.9 million cargo containers moved with no backlogs or delays, and projecting that the Port will move 20 million containers annually by 2050. Hacegaba was elevated to the leadership role Jan. 1, following Mario Cordero’s retirement.
“We have 24 years to prepare to double our container throughput and figure out how we’re going to handle all that additional cargo quickly, safely, efficiently and sustainably,” Hacegaba told 1,300 industry partners, community members, and civic and labor leaders gathered at the Long Beach Arena for the State of the Port address. “We have set our sights on 2050 because thinking big and planning ahead are critical to our collective success. Speed to market is the key to our success and rail connectivity is the key to our future.”
Hacegaba noted that the $1.8 billion Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility project is on track for completion in 2032. Aimed at tripling the volume of cargo moved by on-dock rail to 4.7 million TEUs (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), the project will help move cargo containers from ships to trains in less than 24 hours and improve connectivity with inland destinations.
According to Hacegaba, achieving environmental goals while maximizing operations “remains a priority as the Port explores the proposed development of the first conventional, zero-emissions container terminal in the world.” If approved, the Metro Express Terminal at Pier S is slated to handle up to 1.8 million TEUs annually to serve express vessel services.
Hacegaba also announced the Port’s latest development in its “ongoing quest to improve visibility”: CargoNav. This digital platform, he said, is “designed to give you the ability to track shipments, plan operations and maximize visibility and efficiency with real-time, accurate data.” It will allow shippers to “navigate the supply chain one container at a time, from point of origin to arrival at the dock, and shipment to final destination.” CargoNav will also be equipped with a Universal Trucking Appointment System—what the Port called “a one-stop shop that was partially funded by the [California] Governor’s GoBiz office and will allow motor carriers to schedule the pickup and drop-off of containers at any of the Port’s six marine terminals—and eventually the entire San Pedro Bay.”
POLB’s share of the cargo moving through the San Pedro Bay rose to 48.9% in 2025 and is expected to grow over the next several years, according to Hacegaba.
The Port ended 2025 with 9,881,595 TEUs processed, up 2.4% from the previous record of more than 9.6 million TEUs in 2024. Imports rose 1.1% to 4,779,559 TEUs, a record Hacegaba attributed to “all the frontloading of cargo by importers wanting to get ahead of new tariffs”; and exports fell 5.5% to 1,141,113 TEUs compared with 2024, which he said was “still strong considering all the retaliatory tariffs imposed on U.S. exports.” Empty containers moving through the Port were up 6.7% to 3,960,925 TEUs.
According to Hacegaba, for the first time, five of the Port’s six container terminals handled more than 1 million TEUs each in 2025—two processing more than 2 million TEUs each.
Looking ahead, Hacegaba said 2026 “would be another busy year shaped by changes in trade policies, tariff normalization and shifts in manufacturing sourcing.” He projected more than 9 million TEUs would move through Long Beach this year, making it one of the Port’s five busiest years on record.
The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles in 2025 extended their agreement with Anacostia Rail Holdings’ Pacific Harbor Line to provide railroad operating and maintenance services within the San Pedro Bay ports complex. Union Pacific and BNSF move cargo in and out of the complex.
Further Reading:
- POLB: Cargo Volumes ‘Steady’ Through October
- POLB Experiences Cargo Dip in September
- POLB: Second-Busiest August on Record
- POLB Releases Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility Draft Supplemental Study
- For Ports of LA, Long Beach, ‘Record’ July Cargo
- Jacobs Tapped for POLB Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility
SC Ports
SC Ports on Jan. 20 reported that CSX-served Inland Port Dillon marked its busiest calendar year on record, moving 48,761 rail containers in 2025, a 33% increase from the prior year. “Retail growth and a successful soybean season for regional farmers accounted for the additional volume,” it noted.
Last year, SC Ports partnered with the South Carolina Department of Agriculture and private stakeholders to connect soybean farmers to new international markets, which it said boosted exports through Inland Port Dillon by 35% in both July and August 2025.
According to SC Ports, in December:
- Inland Port Dillon handled 4,917 rail moves.
- At the Port of Charleston, SC Ports moved 194,610 TEUs, closing out 2025 with more than 2.6 million TEUs, and handled 11,649 vehicles, reaching a year-end total of 168,089.
- Recently expanded and Norfolk Southern-served Inland Port Greer handled 12,954 rail moves, finishing 2025 with a total of 197,805 moves.
“Robust inland connectivity is a critical component of our port operations, and gives shippers greater competitive access to global markets,” said Micah Mallace, who became SC Ports President and CEO last fall. “We are thankful to our Inland Port Dillon team, CSX and all of our partners for running an efficient inland port and working collaboratively to grow new export markets for customers.”
“SC Ports worked hard on behalf of South Carolina farmers in 2025,” SC Commissioner of Agriculture Hugh Weathers said. “As part of a rapid response to a domestic plant closure and tough economic conditions, the South Carolina Department of Agriculture, SC Ports and other local partners loaded and exported an additional 1.2 million bushels of soybeans, creating further opportunities for our farmers.”
