Port Houston surpasses 3 million TEUs in record time
steel imports also up 25% in September

Port Houston continues to shatter records, in September surpassing three million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) faster than ever before. Port Houston has recorded 3,120,589 TEUs so far this year, a 10% increase compared to the same period in 2023. Loaded imports were up 4% for the month of September and 8% year-to-date. Loaded exports, although down 8% for September, are up 10% year-to-date primarily due to continued demand for resins.

Total container volume for the month of September was 329,462 TEUs, an increase of 1% compared to September 2023.

“At Port Houston we are moving more containers than ever before, having reached the three million TEU mark already this year,” said Charlie Jenkins, CEO of Port Houston. “This milestone reflects strong customer demand and our commitment to delivering a low cost and low risk proposition to our customers that is anchored in service excellence. I am proud to be a member of the Port Houston team during these exciting times and am committed to continuing our investments in people and infrastructure to stay ahead of the demand.”

In September, Port Houston’s Bayport Container Terminal welcomed its largest vessel on record, the CMA CGM CASSIOPEIA. The vessel, measuring 1,188 feet in length and 150 feet in width, arrived with 11,356 TEUs, and 7,327 moves were completed during its stay. By the end of November 15,000 TEU neo-Panamax vessels will be approved to routinely call Bayport, the result of the ongoing Houston Ship Channel Expansion, known as Project 11. This project is widening the Channel from 530’ to 700’ and making other safety and efficiency improvements. As the local advocate of the Houston Ship Channel, which is the nation’s number one waterway, Port Houston has spearheaded these improvements to benefit all users of the Channel, enhancing safety for two-way traffic of liquid bulk tankers and large neo-Panamax container vessels, with fewer restrictions to navigation.

“Port Houston has invested heavily in the Channel expansion because we understand the pivotal role we play in our region’s economic vitality,” said Jenkins. “We are excited to see larger ships arrive to Bayport, but Project 11 is bigger than our public terminals. It’s a vital project for our nation’s largest petrochemical complex. It’s important for safety along the waterway, and it helps secure the positive economic impacts the Channel has for generations to come.”

At Port Houston’s multipurpose facilities steel imports were also up this month, showing growth of 25% in September compared to the same month last year. Total tonnage across all Port Houston’s public facilities is 39,444,673 tons through the first nine months of the year, growth of 4% compared to 2023.