Icelandic shipping co. moving to Portland
An Icelandic shipping company, Eimskip, has signed a contract with the Maine Port Authority to begin shipping out of the International Marine Terminal in Portland at the end of March, according to the Portland Press Herald.
The company plans to make Portland a hub for its North American operations, making the move from a container operation in Norfolk, Va., to shorten travel times between North American and Europe, the paper reported.
According to a press release from the office of Gov. Paul LePage, the new shipping tenant will work with Pan Am Railways to provide shipping service to Eastern Canada and Europe. The cargo service will call on Portland every 14 days for shipments to those markets.
The announcement comes after the city has been without contracted cargo service for over a year.
Eimskip, which was founded in 1914, has 1,300 employees in 18 countries and operates 16 vessels in the North Atlantic.
Update: Gov. LePage and company officials did not reveal how many jobs Eimskip would bring to Portland or present any estimate of the direct economic benefit to the state.
Officials did say, however, that the move from Eimskip would reduce transportation costs for exports, which was cited in a 2012 report by the Maine International Trade Center as the top barrier for Maine companies shipping outside of the state.
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