CONTAINER terminal capacity across ports in the Mediterranean has swung from boom years to the overcapacity suffered in the 2008-09's global downturn, but then to recovery on burgeoning Far East to US trade.

Netherlands-based maritime consultancy Dynamar says the region's 98 container terminals in 42 ports have an annual capacity of 70 million TEU. And 46 million TEU will be added in the coming decade from 2012-2021 to reach a high of 114 million TEU in 2030.

Dynamar also said that today's container volume for Far East and US trades together accounted for 43 per cent of the total throughput of 47 million TEU at all 42 Mediterranean ports.

During the period of recovery Far East volume increased 38 per cent while throughput to the US went up 20 per cent, according its report, "Container Volumes and Terminal Capacity in the Mediterranean".

The region's 98 container terminals in 42 ports have an annual capacity of 70 million TEU. A further 46 million TEU will be added in the coming decade from 2012-2021 to reach a high of 114 million TEU, cited the report.

In 2011, the ports possessed 440 ship-to-shore gantries, 120 mobile harbour cranes for load/discharge and a total of 72 kilometres of quay.

Trades on both Mediterranean-Far East and North America have increased by 133 per cent in the last decade with the majority of terminal capacity and handling in the south European part of the west Mediterranean at 45 per cent share. The five Levant countries took 19 per cent, equal to 13.5 million TEU.

Mediterranean port projects number 31 with a view to increase capacities from 400,000 TEU to three million TEU in either new greenfield (undeveloped land) projects or brownfield (developed land) projects. One bluefield (floating port offshore) project will be built in the Upper-Adriatic, a few nautical miles outside of Venice Lagoon.

Turkey will hold most of the new capacity in the region, according to Dynamar. This will include a minimum of seven new terminals of which four will be on the shores of the internal Sea of Marmara, having a combined capacity of 7.4 million TEU, thus creating 16 million TEU of new capacity on developed and pre-developed sites.

Turkey's big box port at Izmir on the Aegean competes with two new terminals at Aliaga and Nemrut Bay 50 kilometres north, with one facility possessing rare double-boom ship-to-shore gantries. Nemrut will be run by APM T, which promised a kick-start in building work while Aliaga began construction mid-2010.

It is forecast to reach overall ports capacity of 30 million TEU within a decade of which 80 per cent will come by sea in US$500 billion worth of foreign trade against 2011's 11 million TEU capacity and $135 billion in trade value.

International global stevedores take stakes of between 18 per cent to 100 per cent in more than 50 terminals in the Med which highlights the importance of the region for trade, said the report.

While mega ships of 14,000 TEU come by once a week to dock at Istanbul/Ambarli terminal and at Izmit Bay, the average ship on the Far East-Med run is 8,400 TEU and ones on the Med-America are in the 4,000 TEU range.

(Source:seatrade asia online)