Port operator GT USA Wilmington has welcomed the start of a new partnership with Chiquita Fresh North America, which will see the continued presence of the banana company at the Port of Wilmington through the next decade.

GT USA Wilmington is the U.S. arm of Gulftainer, the world’s largest, privately owned, independent ports and logistics company.

It said that the relationship has already begun bearing fruit for the company, the port and the wider state of Delaware. The new levels of performance are expected to benefit all parties with increased efficiency, flexibility to meet customer demand, and improved time to market, it explained in a press release.

“We’ve witnessed an outstanding start to our new relationship with Chiquita. We have worked in close cooperation with all parties to be able to achieve higher levels of performance," said Peter Richards, group CEO of the Gulftainer Group of Companies.

"However, we could not have achieved such significant gains in productivity through this transition period without the help of our partners, the ILA workforce and our port employees all working in unison. Their efforts during these early operations have been carried out with the utmost professionalism and we are proud to have built these strong partnerships so early in our tenure at the Port of Wilmington.”

It is expected that operations will continue to be streamlined and enhanced as GT USA recently announced that it will soon take delivery of new cargo handling equipment as part of the modernization and improvement program at the port.

The new electric and eco-friendly equipment will enhance operational capabilities at the terminal, GT said.

This equipment, along with civil works improvements forms part of the US$100 million investment in the current Port of Wilmington footprint being phased in throughout 2019, significantly strengthening operational efficiency.