"We have a plan to handle expanding business in the near term while working on expansion plans for the long term," Groseclose told an assemblage of some 400 maritime and state leaders, including Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer. "We need to get the word out now that Charleston's not waiting on new capacity. We're ready for new business today."

Last year, the equivalent of 1.7 million shipping containers passed over the docks at the SPA's three Lowcountry container terminals, securing its ranking as the nation's fourth busiest container port.

But competing ports, namely Savannah, also are seeing record volumes. Charleston risks permanently losing ground to other ports unless the state puts more emphasis on recruiting port-friendly industries, Groseclose said.

Earlier this year, Georgia's port temporarily claimed Charleston's No. 4 spot, due in large part to a surge of Asian imports through Savannah's hub of retail distribution centers.

"Georgia has been very aggressive in this regard, and the results of their efforts are very noticeable," Groseclose said.

Noting that international trade through U.S. ports is expected to double over the next 15 years, Groseclose said the SPA's efforts over the past year to improve its existing facilities should buy the agency time while it works toward building the proposed 250-acre terminal at the former Charleston Navy Base.

In February, the SPA applied for environmental permits needed to build the $500 million terminal. Federal and state regulators responded by ordering a full-scale environmental review of the project, which would require the SPA to fund a time-consuming study looking at everything from the terminal's potential effects on traffic congestion to air quality and sea life.

SPA officials say they have not yet hired a firm to perform the study because they are looking at ways to reduce its estimated cost of $2.5 million. The board could award a contract Tuesday at its monthly meeting.

Until it can build the new facility, the SPA is focusing on smaller improvements such as modifying its mobile container-stacking cranes so they can stack containers higher and free up storage space. A new berth space was recently created at Columbus Street Terminal in downtown Charleston by demolishing warehouses. The project was topped off with last month's arrival of two new container cranes, which at a cost of $6 million each, will be able to service the world's largest container ships.

In his seventh such address, sponsored by the Propeller Club, the SPA's top executive didn't address other events that played a major role in operations this year.

Last year at this time, Gov. Mark Sanford had just been elected to office, and there was speculation within the Charleston maritime community that his penny-pinching philosophy might lead to an overhaul of the high-profile agency.

One year later, there are signs that has happened, including Sanford replacing four of the SPA board's nine members with his own political appointees and calling for the state agency to scuttle its underperforming Port Royal terminal in Beaufort County.

Sanford's attempts to rein in SPA spending through his board appointees resulted earlier this year in the agency trimming its annual budget by about $2 million. The savings stemmed from the SPA discontinuing contracts with outside consulting and lobbying firms and scaling back its state and foreign advertising.

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