By Molly Parker
mparker@scbiznews.com
Published Oct. 1, 2009

With container volume down to levels of a decade ago, S.C. State Ports Authority CEO Jim Newsome said his top priority is bringing new business to the Port of Charleston.

The economic recession is not solely to blame, nor is it a viable excuse for Charleston’s loss of market share on the East Coast, Newsome said. Container volume, measured in TEUs, fell 19.3% in fiscal 2009 when compared to the year-ago period.

“That’s just not acceptable,” Newsome said during a visit this morning with the Charleston Regional Business Journal. Newsome, a Savannah native and the former chief of Hapag-Lloyd’s American division, marks his one-month anniversary with the ports authority today.

Newsome said he could not specifically lay blame on any single factor that led to such stark volume declines in Charleston. Reversing course after two years of double-digit percentage declines requires an evaluation of competitive logistics factors both internally and externally, he said.

That means reconsidering contract arrangements with the SPA’s customers, Newsome said, and looking for creative ways to expand operations within the existing footprint. Rolling cargo — including BMW vehicles manufactured in the Upstate, but also other heavy machinery, equipment and boats — could be moved to Veterans Terminal, or to the existing North Charleston Terminal, as more space is needed, Newsome said.

Growing business also means looking for ways to mitigate cost and logistics disadvantages related to factors beyond the Port of Charleston’s gates. For instance, the SPA is in discussions with the S.C. Department of Transportation about the potential for special permits to increase weight load limits on the state’s highways specifically for the transportation of poultry. Currently, much of the state’s poultry exports are leaving by way of Georgia or North Carolina, where the weight limits are greater.

“I think we have the ability to overcome these factors and re-establish the competitiveness of our port,” Newsome said.

Newsome describes himself as a leader who is set on looking ahead and finding solutions within the current framework, as opposed to getting tangled up in politics of the past. As CEO, Newsome said he has four main goals. Growing business tops the list.

His three other goals are:

• To lead and motivate the local maritime community and assist in economic development for the state.
• To assist in the development of second-generation distribution centers driven by imports.
• To roll out and continue to develop the SPA’s strategic plan. The SPA board is expected to approve the strategic plan at its October board meeting, at which time it would be made public.

Read more about Jim Newsome’s strategy and vision for the S.C. State Ports Authority in the Oct. 12 issue of the Charleston Regional Business Journal.

Reach Molly Parker at 843-849-3144.