In September, GPA officially started its new fast-track routing process for container vessels entering the Port of Savannah, optimizing the Savannah River transit for inbound vessels to Garden City Terminal. According to GPA, inbound vessels will temporarily dock at Georgia Ports’ Ocean Terminal “lay berth” until a berth at Garden City Terminal opens. The first vessel to experience this process saved 12-15 hours.
“This lay berth, combined with our eight start times for ship labor, creates exciting new possibilities for ships to stay on schedule or make up time. This is a gamechanger for GPA and our customers,” said GPA President and CEO Griff Lynch. The key point of the lay berth is the reduction in berth idle time from 12-15 hours down to three hours which translates into better supply chain velocity and competitiveness. “Our mission is to make it easy to do business. “We’re really focusing on high productivity at the berth, the container yard, the truck gates and the rail—and the numbers show it.”
In the Port of Brunswick, autos and machinery through Colonels Island Terminal decreased (-14.3%) year-over-year to 63,926 units in August and (-11.8%) to 132,918 units in fiscal YTD 2026.
Port activity in Georgia now supports nearly 651,000 full- and part-time jobs across the state, according to an economic impact study by the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business. The statewide number has grown by 41,770 jobs or 7% compared to fiscal year 2023, the period covered by the previous study. GPA now helps sustain 12% of total state employment, according to the study.
According to the new findings, the statewide economic impact of Georgia’s ports in fiscal year 2024 (July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024) includes:
- “$174 billion in sales, accounting for 11% of Georgia’s total sales, an increase of 2 percent or $3 billion compared to FY2023.
- “$77 billion in state GDP, or 9% of Georgia’s total GDP, up 7% or $5 billion compared to FY2023.
- “$43 billion in personal income, amounting to 7% of Georgia’s total personal income, an increase of 7.5% or $3 billion compared to FY2023.”
GPA’s Board approved approximately $614 million in infrastructure improvements for Ocean Terminal civil works in the container yard, terminal and maintenance and operations building.
“Our port master plan is designed to deliver the capacity our customers need to grow their business in Georgia,” said GPA Board Chairman Alec Poitevint. “As part of that overall plan, Ocean Terminal will play an important role in growing our capabilities and providing the most competitive port operations in the nation.”
The first half of the Ocean Terminal container yard renovation will be completed in 2027, the second half in 2028. The $1.54 billion overall project, GPA says, will allow the 200-acre facility to serve two large container ships simultaneously. In addition to the yard improvements, the terminal’s two berths are being renovated to serve larger vessels. The project also includes expanded truck gates, and a new exit ramp for trucks. GPA funded the $29 million overpass to carry departing truck traffic directly onto U.S. 17/Interstate 16, avoiding neighborhood streets.
“I want to thank our Board for the outstanding investments they have approved for GPA’s future,” Lynch said. “With our plan to add new terminal space and big ship berths over the next 10 years, Georgia’s ability to take on new business is outpacing other U.S. ports to meet market demand in Georgia and the Southeast region.”
Over the next 10 years, GPA says it plans to invest $4.5 billion in infrastructure. In addition to the two renovated berths at Ocean Terminal, GPA will add three new big ship berths at the planned Savannah Container Terminal on Hutchinson Island, just across the Savannah River. By the mid-2030s, Savannah Container Terminal will add more than 3.5 million TEUs of annual capacity at the Port of Savannah, according to GPA.
