DATE: December 13, 2017
MEDIA CONTACT: Ellen Kennedy
Business Development Division/Communications
PHONE: 954-468-3508
EMAIL: ekennedy@broward.org
BROWARD COUNTY, FL - Produce importer Sol Shipping Services is growing its business at Broward County's Port Everglades with approval of a five-year lease on a 6.54-acre marine terminal and a guarantee to move to a 7-acre site in June 2018.
Sol's operations, primarily shipping melons from Central America to South Florida, are estimated to support 246 direct, induced and indirect jobs in the Broward County area, with a total annual wage and salary income impact of more than $16.3 million. In addition to the value of the cargo, local businesses will receive more than $22.5 million in sales revenue from providing services for the ocean cargo activity. Sol's cargo activity, guaranteeing at least 16,000 container moves annually, is also expected to generate nearly $1.7 million in state and local tax revenue.
Sol has been moving cargo through Port Everglades since 1993. In 2012, the Broward County Board of County Commissioners approved a 5.34-acre, five-year lease for Sol to operate its own marine terminal. The County Commission approved the new agreement on Tuesday, December 12, which projects Sol will generate $1.6 million in lease revenue and $4.3 million in maritime-related revenue for the Port during the lease term.
"We are delighted to renew our partnership with Port Everglades. The port is very important to us and has been very supportive to us over the past years as our business constantly grew. We look forward to many more years of working together," said Enda Walsh, President of Fyffes North America and Director of Sol.
Port Everglades handles more than one million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units, the industry standard measurement for container volumes) annually and serves as a gateway to Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. Located within the cities of Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, and Dania Beach, Florida, Port Everglades is in the heart of one of the world's largest consumer regions, including a constant flow of approximately 110 million visitors statewide and 6 million residents within an 80-mile radius. Port Everglades has direct access to the interstate highway system and the Florida East Coast Railway's 43-acre intermodal container transfer facility, and is closer to the Atlantic Shipping Lanes than any other Southeastern U.S. port. Ongoing capital improvements and expansion ensure that Port Everglades continues to handle future growth in container traffic. A world-class cargo handling facility, Port Everglades serves as an ideal point of entry and departure for products shipped around the world. More information about Port Everglades is available at porteverglades.net or by calling toll-free in the United States 1-800-421-0188 or emailing PortEvergladesCargo@broward.org.
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