The Port of Mobile, Alabama, is enhancing its cargo handling capabilities with a new steel handling facility, the addition of new super-Post-Panamax gantry cranes at one of its largest container terminal, and investment in a new Intermodal Container Transfer Facility.

A few weeks ago, Alabama Steel Terminals, LLC (AST) dedicated its new $36 million facility at the port, specially configured for the handling of import/export steel coil cargoes.

Located on the port’s main docks complex, the rail, truck and barge-served facility was constructed on a 40-foot deep channel and provides 178,200 square feet of covered bay area equipped with three 50-ton capacity overhead bridge cranes and 168,000 square feet of open storage yard. The new facility can handle an estimated 700,000 tons of steel annually.

At full build out, Alabama Steel Terminals, LLC will add 194,400 square feet bay area equipped with three additional 50-ton capacity overhead bridge cranes

The port also said that container terminal operator APM Terminals will add two new super-Post Panamax gantry cranes and expand its 380-acre Choctaw Point container facility.

The crane acquisition is part of a concession agreement reached in 2005 between the Alabama State Port Authority (ASPA) and APM Terminals that called for APM to construct Phase I of the container terminal and manage its operations throughout the entire construction process.

APM Terminals has invested $40 million infrastructure in expanding the facility’s size by 20 acres. Annual throughput at its terminal will grow to 475,000 TEUs at the completion of this phase of expansion with future expansion capabilities to grow its annual throughput capacity to over 1.3 million TEU.

The expansion will compliment approximately $50 million invested by the ASPA to construct an Intermodal Container Transfer Facility (ICTF) that could be serviced by five Class I railroads, the Canadian National, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Kansas City Southern and BNSF.

The Mobile ICTF is currently under construction with completion expected in the first quarter of 2016.