Port of Savannah Wins Approval for $2.3 Billion Container Terminal

The Georgia Ports Authority has secured federal approval for a new $2.3 billion container terminal in Savannah, clearing a major hurdle in its plan to expand the port’s annual handling capacity to 12 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs).

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved the Savannah Container Terminal permit following a three-year review, Georgia Ports President Kevin Price announced Wednesday at the authority’s annual State of the Port of Savannah event.

The planned 350-acre facility on Hutchinson Island will add 3.5 million TEUs of annual capacity and accommodate the largest container ships. Construction is scheduled to begin in January 2028, with completion expected in the mid-2030s.

“We’re excited about the Savannah Container Terminal’s role in our future growth and investment plans to take us to a 12 million TEU gateway container port, serving customers in Georgia and our nation with the best infrastructure in a high growth region,” Price said.

Savannah currently has annual container handling capacity of 7.75 million TEUs.

The project is a centerpiece of Georgia Ports’ nearly $5 billion infrastructure investment plan for the next decade, which includes five additional large containership berths in Savannah and expanded roll-on/roll-off capacity at the Port of Brunswick.

Another major piece of that expansion is already underway at Savannah’s Ocean Terminal, where a $1.6 billion redevelopment will increase annual container capacity from 200,000 TEUs to 1.75 million TEUs. The project, which was more than 60% complete in late September, is expected to be finished by the end of 2028.

Other planned improvements include work on the Talmadge Bridge, Savannah Harbor widening and deepening, and expanded inland freight connections.

“Our $5 billion investment in future port infrastructure is the largest in the nation and a reassuring roadmap to customers which comes on the heels of our $4.13 billion investment the last ten years in port and inland infrastructure,” Georgia Ports Authority Chairman Alec Poitevint said. “We play the long game here.”

The announcement comes as Savannah continues to report strong container volumes. The port handled a record 504,015 TEUs in September, up 3.7% from a year earlier, pushing container traffic for the first quarter of its fiscal year above 1.5 million TEUs.

The expansion plans also come ahead of a leadership transition at Georgia Ports. CEO Griff Lynch, who has served in senior leadership roles at the authority since 2011, is scheduled to retire August 1, 2027, with Price set to succeed him.

During Lynch’s tenure, Georgia Ports’ container volumes have increased 90%, while roll-on/roll-off volumes have risen 60% and revenues have climbed 213%, according to the authority.

“I’m proud of our people, thankful for our customers and confident in the port and inland infrastructure we’ve built,” Lynch said. “We’re never done growing.”

With the latest permit secured, Georgia Ports can move ahead with development of the Hutchinson Island terminal, one of the largest projects in its long-term effort to expand Savannah’s capacity and accommodate future growth in container trade.