October5, 2026 | Page 37

Ports of the Americas

Special Report

The revised rotation for the Sentosa service will be Port Kelang, Laem Chabang( Thailand), Cai Mep( Vietnam), Yantian, Xiamen, Long Beach, and then Busan, Ningbo, Singapore, and Port Kelang on the return.

MSC’ s revised Pearl service will be upgraded from 5,000-TEU ships to 8,000-TEU vessels, according to Alphaliner, with weekly port rotations of Yantian, Long Beach, Oakland, Haiphong( Vietnam) and Yantian.

Hacegaba said TTI has proven it can handle large container ships without disruption, noting that in the last week of August, the terminal handled roughly 41,000 vessel lifts, 12,000 rail lifts and more than 24,000 gate transactions.“ Given these significant numbers, TTI is moving cargo about as seamlessly as reasonably possible,” he said. TTI did not respond to a request for comment.

Emphasis on handling rail cargo

Dan Smith, principal at freight transportation consulting firm Tioga Group, said that given the high volume of inland point intermodal rail containers in Los Angeles- Long Beach and the importance of data-sharing on vessel stowage and rail car destinations, moving rail cargo efficiently will be key to handling big ships.

“ You don’ t want to take the rail containers into the stacks and then move them to rail,” Smith said.“ That’ s making two moves instead of one.”

“ You don’ t want to take the rail containers into the stacks and then move them to rail. That’ s making two moves instead of one.”

Mark Sisson, VP and senior port planning analyst at engineering and consulting firm AECOM, said TTI and Long Beach already have the appropriate infrastructure in place to handle volume surges, notably a large, rectangular terminal with deepwater access and sufficient post- Panamax ship-to-shore cranes.

Operationally, Sisson said TTI must be prepared to flex up, as needed, to handle the weekly surges with measures such as extended hours and late-night“ hoot” shifts for dockworkers, which add terminal costs. TTI may also wish to consider container dray-offs to nearby yards for