A senior investigator for the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) said February 8 that the agency is examining the cargo handling company Holt Logistics, which operates terminals on both sides of the Delaware River, for anticompetitive behavior.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, the investigator said in an email to the trucking company Tri State Intermodal that the FMC was reviewing information and documents provided by concerned truckers.
While a terminal operator mainly focuses on loading and unloading ships, Holt’s brokerage business unit allows the company to determine how containers get from terminals to railroads or warehouses. Simultaneously, Holt operates a warehouse a mile from the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where it can store container contents before they reach distributors, manufacturers or retailers.
Trucking companies argue that Holt can bundle these services together for shippers and provide rates that other businesses cannot match. They also contend that Holt has a roadmap to new potential customers for its brokerage business because it acts as the terminal operator.
Holt’s critics claim the organization has received favorable treatment from the state agency that oversees the Port of Philadelphia’s terminals, resulting in other companies losing business. The critics also warned that Holt could gain monopoly power if the state agency does not take action soon, which could lead to a potential price increase for shippers.
“What’s being done here in Philadelphia is not part of the standard operating procedures of a marine terminal operator,” said Mike Hellam, an agent recruiter for the national trucking company Evans Delivery. “They are actually maintaining control over who handles the trucking and transportation portions.”
