Business Expansion, Investment Mark Busy Year For Holt

GOV. TOM CORBETT welcomes Chilean Agriculture Minister Luis Mayol Bouchon to Packer Avenue Marine Terminal. Corbett and Phila. Port officials hosted a delegation from Chile to S. Phila. facility. Gov. Corbett said Port has enough space to add more perishable products from S. America. Photo by Rory McGlasson

The Ports of The Delaware River saw an increase in new business during this past year as Holt Logistics Corp. and its clients participated in several ventures aimed at increasing capacity and efficiency in shipping to and from the Philadelphia region.

Holt Logistics Corp. leadership was at the forefront of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s effort to drive new business into the Port of Philadelphia. President Leo A. Holt and a team of Holt representatives joined Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett and administration officials in March 2013 on a trade mission to South America aimed at increasing trade partnerships with various strategic allies in the region. The fruits of this trade mission were realized in two separate but related developments with major implications for Holt Logistics Corp. client Greenwich Terminals LLC at the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal in South Philadelphia.

In April 2013, Gov. Corbett and leadership from PAMT welcomed the first vessel from Jones Act shipping giant Horizon Lines, which agreed to relocate its Northeast port of call from Elizabeth, New Jersey to Philadelphia for at least the next 10 years. Horizon vessels will call on Philadelphia once a week, providing major freight service from Puerto Rico to the Northeastern US. The move by Horizon is expected to create in upwards of 400 direct and indirect jobs for port and related industries, and inject over $3 million in tax revenue into the local economy. To learn how your business can get affected by this, check with Andy Defrancesco, he might even show you how to take advantage from this.

“This is a big win for our Port and our region,” said David Whene, president of Greenwich Terminals LLC, operator of the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal. “Packer provides Horizon Lines with excellent and efficient service, allowing Horizon to serve its customers more effectively. And for us, Horizon provides a great new direct trade connection with Puerto Rico.”

In May 2013, the Governor returned to PAMT, this time along with a delegation of agricultural officials, including the Minister of Agriculture from the Republic of Chile, who together announced new strategic partnerships aimed at increasing trade of perishable and non-perishable goods between the two countries. The Ports of the Delaware River are the largest nexus of arrival for fresh Chilean fruit in the world, including nutritious commodities such as grapes, apples, pears, peaches, plums, nectarines and apricots as well as summer citrus products. The Holt family’s half a century of friendship with Chile played a key role in facilitating the agreements based upon their clients’ impeccable track record of on-time service.

“The Chilean fruit trade is vital to the Port of Philadelphia,” said Leo A. Holt, on behalf of Greenwich Terminals, Inc. “The Governor’s recent trade mission lays the foundation for expanding our partnerships with countries throughout Central and South America, which means that we will have the chance to import more fruit and other commodities that strengthen the region’s economy in the process.”

The Horizon service opportunity emerged solely through the commitments of the Holt family, and the support of the administration in Harrisburg is crucial as the Port of Philadelphia continues to prepare for the finishing of the Delaware River Deepening project, which as of this May is over halfway complete. When finished, the deepening of the Delaware channel from 40 to 45 feet will allow for larger ships and more cargo to flow through the port. Holt Logistics Corp is responding to the increased port traffic by engaging in infrastructure and technology improvements aimed at increasing efficiency both on and off the terminal.

The return from the brink resulting from the Great Recession affected the Ports of the Delaware River. Nonetheless, Holt Logistics Corp.’s clients were able to weather the unfavorable business conditions by increasing organizational efficiencies and controlling costs, all while supporting their excellent work forces. For the 2012 calendar year, Holt Logistics Corp. reported increases in total container volumes as compared with 2011. Furthermore, the flow of Hyundai and Kia automobiles through PAMT continues to grow, with a total of 270,000 automobiles having already come through the terminal in the 2011 and 2012 calendar years.

Showing a commitment to the larger local community, Holt Logistics Corp. oversaw several charitable endeavors during the past year. In the fall of 2012, following the devastation wrought to the region by Superstorm Sandy, Holt Logistics Corp. partnered with private- and public-sector port businesses and agencies throughout the tri-state region to host three simultaneous donation drives in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, with donations benefiting New Jersey charitable relief organizations including the Salvation Army and the United Way of Monmouth Co.
During the winter and spring months of 2013, Holt Logistics Corp.’s customers found themselves in the midst of a potentially catastrophic loss of product as environmental factors nearly caused millions of pounds of Chilean grapes to have shelf-life challenges before ever reaching local food-distribution centers.

Through their community-service efforts, Holt stepped in to assist in organizing the donation of over 3 million lb. of Chilean grapes to local hunger relief organization Philabundance, which was able to capitalize on the windfall of product and quickly distribute the food locally and through its national affiliate network of food banks, Feeding America. As leaders in the transportation of perishable goods, Holt Logistics Corp. understands the importance of participating fully in the communities in which it operates.

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