NORTH AMERICA

NEW YORKS CHANNEL DEEPENING COMPLETED

21 years ago

The newly deepened 45-foot Kill Van Kull and Newark Bay Channels into the Port of New York and New Jersey are now officially open, allowing ships carrying more than 4,500 TEUs to call on the East Coasts largest port.

The Secretariat of Ports wants these new concessions to be awarded as soon as possible so that existing terminal operators do not have to seek extensions to their existing contracts. In fact, attempts by Cargill to extend its existing concession at the end of last year were vetoed by the Port Authority

The project began in 2000 and cost US$360m, US$270m of which was financed by the federal government, with the Port Authority paying the remaining US$90m. The project was completed ahead of schedule and under budget.