Drew Dixon
Jacksonville’s port officials are touting many of their major additions in the past year.
JAXPORT CEO Eric Green was the keynote speaker for a “State of the Port” address before a crowd of several hundred port-related business leaders at the event organized by the Jacksonville chapter of the Propeller Club of the United States.
Green said the Jacksonville Port Authority has positioned the North Florida port as a key player in worldwide transportation and logistics — and recent developments bolster their position.
“JAXPORT and our partners have celebrated a series of significant developments already this year,” Green said. “From the addition of new trade lanes and public-private partnerships to a new cruise service, we are building on our diversification of business and preparing for growth across key cargo types and business lines.”
The first month and a half of 2024 landed some substantial additions to JAXPORT’s portfolio. The most recent was announced this month when a second cruise line committed to Jacksonville.
Norwegian Cruise Line will provide a ship to dock at Jacksonville’s cruise terminal on the north bank of the St. Johns River, within a few miles of the mouth to the Atlantic Ocean.
Norwegian won’t begin Jacksonville operations until November 2025. But the cruise ship “Gem,” which can handle up to 2,394 passengers, will run from Jacksonville to the Bahamas and the eastern Caribbean.
Norwegian will join the Carnival Cruise Line in North Florida. Carnival already has a ship that’s operational at the Jacksonville hub.
Other highlights Green touted during his speech included:
— The port finalized a long-term agreement with terminal operator Enstructure to expand its existing footprint at the Talleyrand Marine Terminal in downtown Jacksonville. The agreement announced in January detailed that Enstructure will assume the adjacent acreage Southeast Toyota is vacating and construct new on-terminal covered storage to accommodate more non-containerized cargo.
— JAXPORT’s first and only direct container service with the West Coast of South America will begin this Spring.
— European fashion retailer Primark cut the ribbon on its new Jacksonville distribution center — only the second of the company’s facilities in the United States and its first in the Southeast United States.
— Green also detailed another $119 million in infrastructure upgrades to port operations as well.
JAXPORT Chief Commercial Officer Robert Peek said the international attraction to Jacksonville’s port points to even more expansion in the near future.
“Jacksonville’s position as America’s Logistics Center continues to evolve because of the many investments and partnerships working to increase cargo handling now and into the future,” Peek said.
