A supersized lesson
In late March, the shipping industry almost went sideways. In darkness and buffeted by sandstorm winds, the supersized 1,312-foot Ever Given container ship’s bow snagged a sandbar on a bank of the Suez Canal. Its stern drifted toward the other bank, leaving the ship diagonally blocking one of the world’s busiest wate[...]
(In)land of opportunity
Now more than 80 years old, Richmond Marine Terminal is hardly acting like an old-timer. Nestled along the west side of the James River, about five miles south of downtown, it’s one of two inland ports operated by the Port of Virginia — terminals situated in the interior of the commonwealth that extend the reach [&hellip[...]
Turn up the volume
The Port of Virginia is benefiting from pent-up demand for goods, seeing a significant uptick in cargo volume since last fall, which translates into more work for truckers. The $800 million-plus investment made in the port’s Virginia International Gateway and Norfolk International Terminal has allowed more room for vessels[...]
Guest opinion: A pandemic game-changer
Each year, we lament the relative instability of the international shipping industry, analyzing unpredicted challenges and looking for signs of smoother sailing in the months ahead. It goes without saying that 2020 set a new bar for instability across the board. As the COVID-19 pandemic spread and lockdowns were implemented in t[...]
Authority of the port
In January, Stephen Edwards became the new CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, which oversees the Port of Virginia. The former CEO of Los Angeles-based TraPac, which operates container terminals in California and Florida, Edwards succeeds John Reinhart, who retired after seven years at the authority’[...]
On the road again
Major road projects are happening across the state, but the undeniable headliner is the largest infrastructure project in state history, the $3.8 billion Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel expansion. In October 2020, crews broke ground on the HRBT expansion, which will increase tunnel and interstate capacity along 9.9 miles of Intersta[...]
Passing the baton
John F. Reinhart Former CEO, executive director of Virginia Port Authority Reinhart retired at the end of March as CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, a position he began in 2014. During his tenure, the Port of Virginia started and completed a nearly $800 million expansion of its terminals in Hampton Roads […]
A fair trade?
While President Joe Biden will likely strike a more diplomatic tone with China than his predecessor, economists and other observers believe the United States’ rocky trade relationship with its biggest economic rival will remain contentious — which will impact Virginia’s economy. Under former President Donald Trump,[...]
Making it rain
For Hanover County Economic Development Director Linwood Thomas, things couldn’t get much better. “It’s really been a perfect storm,” Thomas says. That storm — the good type — is a deluge of distribution centers and warehouses that have opened recently or are currently in the pipeline for the county of about [...]
A rising tide
When it comes to Old Dominion University’s role in the maritime industry, Nancy Grden has high aspirations. “We’re not globally recognized today,” says Grden, associate vice president of ODU’s Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship, “but that’s our goal.” ODU’s leaders decided on th[...]
High expectations
Dante Billington-McCoy wanted to be ready to launch a new career when he leaves the Army next fall. So, he made a call to Tidewater Tech to get information about their automotive technician program. Or he intended to. Instead, the 24-year-old Hampton Roads resident got Virginia Beach-based private, for-profit Centura College on [...]