Inland Port Greer launches expansion project, grows cargo capacity.

On the heels of opening of a new terminal in Charleston, the S.C. Ports Authority today announced plans to expand Inland Port Greer a pair of developments drawing praise from some players in the manufacturing and logistics sectors.

The installation of Charleston's Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal has already spurred one Upstate-based logistics company, Greer-based TA Logistics, to consider doubling or tripling his personnel over the next 12 months.

Swafford Transport and Warehousing, a logistics company with several foreign-trade area warehouses within a few miles of the inland port, also has seen a sign of greater things to come.

Dusty Locke, vice president of the company's operations, expects Charleston's port expansion to attract some companies away from a Savannah port of call, thus making his trucking prices far more competitive with Inland Port Greer factored into the equation.

"If I were to send a driver from Greer to Charleston and back, that's his day," Locke said. "He can do one load. Now those containers can come in from the inland port from Charleston where they can't from Savannah, and that same driver can get 10 containers in a day."

That difference could alter consumer freight costs from for example $1,000 a container to $100, he said.

Today, after the S.C. Port Authority announced the expansion of Inland Port Greer, TA Logistics and Swafford Transport's predictions could be one step closer to fruition with the promise of additional container volume and extended rail infrastructure.

"The Leatherman Terminal provides more big-ship capabilities, cargo capacity and efficient operations for S.C. Ports," Liz Crumley, manager of corporate communications for the S.C. Ports Authority told GSA Business Report in an email. "The additional capacity means more cargo can flow in and out of port terminals and inland ports. The efficient operations provide reliability and speed-to-market for customers needing to move imports and exports, as goods swiftly travel between Inland Port Greer and the Port of Charleston via overnight rail."

With a $25 million grant from the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development Fund, Greer's inland port will expand with additional rail processing and storage tracks within the terminal that will expand the container yard to the east and west, according to today's announcement.

The existing chassis yard will widen in response to the record rail moves reported this March, and new facilities for heavy lift...