Port of Cork recognised with prestigious award

THE Port of Cork company has been acknowledged with a prestigious award that aims to improve the economic and educational ties between Ireland and the US.

The organisation received the 2022 Ambassador’s Award courtesy of the Irish American Business Chamber and Network.

This year saw three entities recognised with the award, namely Port of Cork, ICL, and Penn Terminals, for their collaboration to launch and maintain the Cork to Chester shipping route.

The route to the East Coast, which was launched in May, 2020, is the only direct route from Ireland connecting to the US, and serves Pennsylvania and North Carolina. It provides Irish exporters with opportunities to develop business in the US.

Approximately 20,000 teu (20 ft equivalent units) of cargo was carried across the Atlantic from Cork in 2021, with Irish exports such as medicine, lab tech, agri supplies, steel, nutrients, and infant formula.

Port of Cork Company chief commercial officer Conor Mowlds, who accepted the award, voiced his pride at the win.

“We are very proud to receive this award in recognition of the positive impact our Cork-to-the-US sailing has had to enable enhanced export trade opportunities for Irish companies, large and small, with America,” he said.

“This is particularly in the context that, prior to the start of this shipping service, the last time liners regularly travelled between Cork and America, it was to enable migration.

“We hope that the opening of our new Cork container terminal in the coming months, following an €86m investment, will allow for further expansion of services and increased cargo volumes to the US.”

Irish American Business Chamber and Network president Lisa Maloney said: “The Port of Cork Company and its fellow partners were the clear frontrunners for this award, which is symbolic of the long and historically significant relationship that exists between the US and Ireland, a relationship that precedes the American Revolution.”

The award was presented to the Port of Cork company through a live video link in Philadelphia at a dinner in Cork Chamber.

The event included a number of high-profile guests, including Expenditure Minister Michael McGrath, among others.