Port Houston has moved 3.12 million TEU so far this year, a 10 per cent increase over the same period in 2023, reports London's Port Technology International.

Loaded imports were up four per cent in September and eight per cent year to date. Loaded exports dipped eight per cent in September but are up 10 per cent year to date.

Last month, total container volume increased by one per cent to 329,462 TEU from September 2023.

Charlie Jenkins, CEO of Port Houston, said: "At Port Houston we are moving more containers than ever before, having reached the three million TEU mark already this year.

"This milestone reflects strong customer demand and our commitment to delivering a low cost and low risk proposition to our customers that is anchored in service excellence."

The 11,356-TEU CMA CGM Cassiopea, the biggest-ever vessel to dock at Port Houston's Bayport Container Terminal, arrived in September.

By the end of November, 15,000 TEU neo-Panamax vessels will be permitted to make routine calls to Bayport as part of the ongoing Houston Ship Channel Expansion, often known as Project 11.

Port Houston, as the local advocate for the Houston Ship Channel, the nation's busiest waterway, has spearheaded these improvements to benefit all Channel users, improving safety for two-way traffic of liquid bulk tankers and large neo-Panamax container vessels, and reducing navigation restrictions.

Total tonnage across all Port Houston public facilities was 39,444,673 tonnes in the first nine months of the year, a 4 per cent increase from 2023.

In August, Port Houston witnessed a 20 per cent TEU increase, hitting 367,653 TEU for the month.