Container-to-barge shuttle services are now available at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge.
The services, to be operated by SEACOR AMH, will allow petrochemical companies to load products into empty containers at the Inland Rivers Marine Terminal, a Port of Greater Baton Rouge facility located on a slack water canal off the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway near Port Allen. SEACOR AMH will deliver the products to the Port of New Orleans, via the Mississippi River.
Richard Teubner, SEACOR AMH vice president, says the delivery service has been well received since it started.
“The service has attracted area shippers in the petrochemical industry that currently move containers to, and through, the region,” Teubner says. “We are extremely excited about the level of interest so far.”
The service operates with a tug boat and up to six barges at once. SEACOR AMH has facilities in New Orleans and has open terminal at the Port Allen Canal.
Teubner says the delivery services help eliminate the congestion that can occur on both ends of the supply chain, as well as improve port throughput, reduce dwell time and offer an additional overweight corridor for transportation.
Each container can store up to 5 more tons of cargo than a truck is capable of handling, thus eliminating weight restrictions and further alleviating traffic congestion, port officials say.
