Cargo Business Newswire

Monday, September 22, 2014

S.C. port volume up 13 percent, port CEO gets raise and bonus

SC Ports Authority posted container volumes that were up 13 percent fiscal year to date, a strong start to the first two months of the fiscal calendar.

The SCPA said it handled 163,970 TEUs in August, an increase of about 12 percent compared to the 144,649 TEUs moved during August 2013.

In non-containerized cargo, Charleston handled 134,105 tons of breakbulk cargo in August. Georgetown handled 124,080 pier tons in July and August, up 6.6 percent yare-over-year.

"Strong container volumes are driving exceptional fiscal year to date operating earnings, which were nearly 70 percent higher than last July and August," said SCPA president and CEO Jim Newsome. "Over the next several months, we will be watching the development of vessel sharing agreements and evaluating the impacts they will have on our FY2015 volumes, as well as implementing our new customer contract approach."

In related news, S.C. State Ports Authority is giving Newsome a raise, a performance bonus and a contract extension that will keep him leading the port for another seven years, according to the Post and Courier. The port head will earn $410,000 annually starting Jan. 1, 2015. The $15,000 raise equates to a 3.8 percent increase.

He also will receive a $120,574 annual bonus based on the port's cargo-volume growth and its cash-flow performance for the fiscal year that ended June 30.

Newsome reportedly said he was honored by the confidence the board indicated by offering him a new, long-term contract that runs through December 2021.

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