The State Ports Authority expects as many as 11 formal proposals to arrive within the next month from private-sector groups interested in helping it finance and develop a $600 million container terminal in North Charleston, marking a sea change in the agency's expansion strategy.

Responses to the SPA's nine-page long-term cargo commitment request, which was sent out last month to a mix of steamship lines and terminal operators, are due back by the close of business Dec. 8.

The ports authority said the process could lead to multiple deals at the 280-acre terminal it is planning for the southern end of the former Navy base. Some of the key considerations will be the contract terms, including the length and financial structure, as well as some guarantees about port usage and container volume.

"What we're looking for is security in terms of the growth of the business," said Bernard Groseclose, auhority CEO.

The SPA did not say when it will make a decision, but it plans to study each response and initiate follow-up talks, if needed, by early February. The agency said it would submit its recommendations to its board of directors "as

appropriate."

This is new territory for the SPA, which never before has had to seek this level of private-sector involvement to help finance a major expansion. Any agreements will require an unusually long-term commitment from both sides, Groseclose said.

"Our contracts traditionally are three to five years, with some options," he said. "In this, we're looking at a 25- to 30-year deal."

Groseclose said one reason for the shift in thinking is the cost of developing the Navy base site relative to the SPA's annual revenues, which totaled $140 million in its most recent fiscal year. "Obviously that's a big nut to crack," he said.

Also, he said, the concept of expanding container ports in "demand-driven fashion," as the SPA did with its Wando Welch Terminal in Mount Pleasant, is outdated.

"It's been tough to do in recent years because the demand curve has been growing at such a rapid speed," Groseclose said. "At the same time, port expansion nationwide has been difficult to do. There's a lot of lead time required."

All the while, as the steamship industry consolidates, the big players are worrying about the limited amount of new dock space that will be available years from now to handle their ships and freight.

"Many of them are now concerned with growth," Groseclose said. "They're seeing as to how they're going to secure their futures. ... They're starting to see port capacity is somewhat limited."

Those concerns help explain why six major steamship lines and a consortium of four others are all looking to cut a deal at the SPA's new terminal.

The SPA's board passed a resolution in August stating it would not turn over complete control of the new terminal to a private firm. An agreement would require, at a minimum, the state to own and operate all cargo-lifting equipment such as container cranes.

"I hope we will get significant responses," Groseclose said.

The SPA hopes to obtain the permits for the new terminal next summer and start construction by 2007. The first phase is expected to be completed in 2012.

Interested parties

The State Ports Authority is requesting formal proposals from 11 groups that have expressed interest in helping it develop a new container terminal in North Charleston:

--APL: Major steamship operator owned by Singapore-based Neptune Orient Lines

--AP Moller Terminals/Maersk Inc.: Copenhagen, Denmark-based shipping giant with interests in oil and gas production, shipbuilding and supermarkets

--CMA-CGM America: French container shipping line ranked the world's fifth largest

--Ceres Terminals Inc.: International terminal operator based in Weehawken, N.J. Owned by Nippon Yusen Kaisha of Tokyo

--CKYH: A collaboration among four foreign-owned steamship lines: Cosco North America, K-Line America, Yang Ming America and Hanjin Shipping

--Evergreen America: Major steamship line owned by Taiwan's Evergreen Marine Corp.

--Marine Terminals Corp.: Oakland, Calif.-based terminal operator

--Mitsui O.S.K. Line: Japanese shipping and logistics company operating 350 vessels worldwide

--OOCL (USA): The U.S. unit of Hong Kong shipper Orient Overseas Container Line

--P&O Ports North America: Port operator headquartered in Iselin, N.J. A unit of U.K.-based Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co.

--SSA Marine: Privately owned port operator owned by Carrix Inc. of Seattle

Contact John McDermott at 937-5572 or jmcdermott@postandcourier.com.