Port Finance International: Online news and conferences worldwide

Danish shipping firm Maersk Line has announced plans to end its Trans-Pacific 5 (TP5) service from 15 January 2015 in a bid to cut costs. The service currently runs from North Asia to the US West Coast.

Deutsche Bank has arranged €135 million in financing for Damen Shipyards and the Government of the Bahamas to support port facilities enhancement and fleet renewal in the island state.

Construction is due to commence this month on a $2.55 million upgrade project at the South Terminal at Port of Everett in Washington State.

U.S. vice president Joe Biden has called for greater investment in U.S. ports, proclaiming the port sector as “the lifeblood of the U.S. economy," and responsible for $650 billion of income as well as 13 million jobs.

Construction of Phase 1 work at ICTSI’s Port of Manzanillo in Colima, Mexico has been completed at a cost of $222 million, Hellenic Shipping News reports.

The first round of investment in Cuba’s Mariel Special Development Zone (ZEDM) is expected later this year or early 2015, the state’s news agency Granma reports.

Terminal operator APMT has dropped its plans to form a joint venture for its Elizabeth terminal in New Jersey after negotiations with port authorities failed to reach satisfactory conclusion.

Terminal operators Kingston Wharves Limited (KWL) have announced plans to begin construction next month of a new $20 million logistics centre at their site in Newport West, Jamaica. The facility will cover more than 150,000 square foot and is expected to be complete in 2015.

The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) may privatise the busiest terminal at the Port of Boston in order to pay for ongoing dredging work.

The Jamaican government has commenced negotiations with Terminal Link Consortium to privatise the island state’s Kingston Container Terminal (KCT).