Port Everglades is seeing more and more business.
For the sixth consecutive year, Port Everglades container numbers exceeded one-million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units, the industry’s standard measurement for containers) for a total of 1.05 million TEUs, according to a preliminary year-end Fiscal Year 2019 (FY19) report (Fiscal Year runs October 1, 2018 through September 1, 2019). The number of cruise passengers grew by one percent to 3.89 million during FY19 and petroleum volumes increased by 2 percent to 125.9 million barrels (42 gallons in a barrel). Overall revenue increased 2 percent from $168 million in FY18 to $170.7 in FY19.
“These numbers are strong, especially considering the high amount of construction underway at the Port,” said Acting Chief Executive & Port Director Glenn Wiltshire. “We anticipate similar stable numbers over the next two years as we continue with the Southport Turning Notch Extension to add new cargo berths and Super Post-Panamax gantry cranes.”
New automobiles highlighted the year as Horizon Terminal Services, which opened a new terminal in January 2018, increased the number of new vehicles moving through Port Everglades by 76 percent year-over-year to nearly 51,000.
“New vehicles are a new business line for the Port, and further diversifies our revenue stream,” said Jim Pyburn, Port Everglades director of business development.
Port Everglades is one of the leading containerized cargo ports in Florida, the third largest cruise port in the world, and South Florida’s main seaport for receiving petroleum products including gasoline, jet fuel, and alternative fuels.
Cruise business increased slightly during FY19 to a total of 3,892,215 passengers. The number of multi-day cruise passengers rose from 3,741,408 in FY18 to 3,773,062 in FY19.
Cruise Terminal 25, one of the industry’s most revolutionary cruise terminals, opened early in FY19 in time for the arrival of Celebrity Cruises’ first new ship class in a decade, Celebrity Edge. The Port also welcomed Holland America Line’s newest Pinnacle-class ship, the 2,650-passenger Nieuw Statendam.
Petroleum volumes increased two percent to 125,874,463 barrels. Approximately 38 percent of the petroleum consumed in the state of Florida is stored and distributed by companies located within Port Everglades. Petroleum products, primarily gasoline and jet fuel, are delivered by tankships and barges to companies at Port Everglades and distributed to 12 counties and four international airports in South Florida.
