STATE OF THE PORTS: SC Ports reports $786M investment, 1,200 jobs

Three weeks into the job, Micah Mallace, CEO and president of SC Ports, gave his first State of the Port address highlighting growth in almost all categories for the ports.  

Between June 2024 and June 2025, port customers invested $786 million and 1,200 jobs in South Carolina. According to the annual report, those large companies included Isuzu, ZF Chassis, Le Creuset and Maxwood Furniture. 

Overall, businesses in South Carolina invested $8.19 billion into the state over the past year, according to the report.  

“We are exceptionally fortunate to be in a position where our port’s terminals run exceedingly well and our infrastructure offers ample capacity for the foreseeable future,” Mallace said. “With these pieces in place, we enjoy the latitude to focus on growth in the immediate term.”  

According to the report, of the 29 weekly services through the Port of Charleston, Asia and North Europe were SC Ports’ largest markets. Charleston saw a 9% growth in trade with China post-COVID, compared to the United States’ 5% growth.  

The Port of Charleston has the deepest harbor in the United States. According to a news release, SC Ports plans to pave a way to 10 million TEU moves by 2050, compared to its 2.6 TEUs in this past year.  

“There will be challenges, but they are surmountable,” Mallace said. “SC Ports was the fastest growing U.S. container port for nearly a decade. We have done this before, and we can achieve it again. Generating growth necessitates a momentum change, and momentum change requires bold initiatives. This is a region where one can engineer above-market growth, and that is exactly what we intend to do.”  

Over the past fiscal year, inland Port Greer had over 200,000 rail lifts, nearly 11 times more than a decade ago, according to the report. Additionally, SC Ports completed $55 million of expansions with increased capacity of 50%. 

Mallace said the ports plan to us the real estate already owned by SC Ports to grow projects for businesses and partners, and focus on revenue-generating infrastructure.  

The next two months of 2025 are expected to be slower than usual, Mallace said. The port is still feeling setbacks from the COVID-19 pandemic as a “three-year freight recession.” 

“Economic opportunity is created through the business that the community in this room does together,” Mallace said. “The port is intended to be a force of good. The team at the port seeks to serve the many stakeholders, and their families, who depend on us to deliver growth.”