Corpus Christi Commissioners Approve TIGER Grant Agreement for Rail Yard Construction, Long-Term Lease with Austrian Steel Processor

Major agreements with significant implications for the long-term growth of Port Corpus Christi were approved by its governing commission on April 9.

In the first instance, the commissioners approved an agreement with the U.S. Maritime Administration outlining the terms and conditions for the use of a $10 million TIGER grant. The grant was awarded on June 21, 2012, by the U.S. Department of Transportation for Phase I construction of the Nueces River Rail Yard (NRRY). When complete, the NRRY will include an 8,000-foot unit train siding and a four ladder track interchange yard totaling 15,400 track feet, enough space for at least 335 rail cars. 

NRRY Phase I construction contract documents are nearly complete, and the project is scheduled to be advertised for bidding later this month. Total estimated cost of Phase I is $18 million. The port authority intends to recover its $8 million share of the cost by levying a surcharge fee on rail service providers. 

At the same meeting, the port commissioners unanimously approved a long-term lease agreement with voestalpine Texas Holding, LLC, a subsidiary of multinational industrial group headquartered in Linz, Austria. The company will lease approximately 475 acres of upland property and about 11 acres of submerged land for an initial term of 50 years with two 15-year options.  

On that site, it will construct the Hot Briquetted Iron (HBI) plant and a 1,060-foot long high-performance dock capable of unloading iron ore pellets and loading HBI. The voestalpine complex will anchor development at La Quinta Trade Gateway facility. 

The direct reduction plant will produce high-quality feedstock for steel production and will be fueled entirely by natural gas. The development reserves part of the waterfront and adjacent backlands for the La Quinta Trade Gateway Multipurpose Container Facility. 

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