Puyallup, Washington-based Westwood Shipping Lines is
shifting its maritime operations from Terminal 5 at the Port of Seattle to the
Husky Terminal at the Port of Tacoma near the end of the month, the company
said July 7.
The move is necessitated by the discontinuation of cargo
operations at Terminal 5 so that the terminal can be renovated. Westwood says its
last ship call at Seattle is expected to be the Westwood Olympia
61E, arriving at Terminal 5 on July 23.
Utilizing Husky Terminal will allow Westwood to maintain its
service levels for container and project cargo customers without any
interruption to its vessel or rail schedules, the company said in a statement
on its website announcing the shift.
The first import ship call at Husky Terminal is slated to be
the Westwood
Discovery
29E, which arrives July 30; the first export ship is planned to be the Westwood
Discovery
30W, which is scheduled to sail Aug. 6.
Westwood operates about half a dozen sailings monthly
between the Pacific Northwest and Asia.
The Port of Seattle in May announced a plan to modernize
Terminal 5 in order to accommodate larger ships. As part of the plan, Eagle
Marine Services, which operates the terminal, is relocating its cargo and break
bulk activities to Seattle’s Terminal 18.
“We are pleased Westwood Shipping, when faced with the need
to find a new terminal, has opted to remain in the Puget Sound gateway,” Tacoma
Commission President Clare Petrich, who indicated that the Seattle to Tacoma
shift was the result of a discussion agreement between the two ports that was
formed in January and allows them to “gather and share information” with one
another.
“The ongoing conversations between commissioners at the
ports of Tacoma and Seattle, under a Federal Maritime Administration Discussion
Agreement, are focused on this exact situation – ensuring valued shipping lines
remain in Puget Sound and that we work together to attract new services,”
Petrich said.
