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Facility Expansion: Jacksonville, Philadelphia, Port Fourchon

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First Rail Lines Placed at JAXPORT’s New Intermodal Facility 

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) marked a project milestone August 4 as construction workers placed the first rail lines for the new Intermodal Container Transfer Facility (ICTF) at Dames Point.

Due for completion later this year, the ICTF will allow the direct transfer of cargo containers between ships and trains, speeding up the shipment process and reducing the number of trucks on the road.

The facility will provide direct access to CSX-owned rail lines and the U.S. Interstate System, including I-95, I-10, I-295 and I-75 via I-10.  It will complement existing on-dock rail facilities at JAXPORT’s Talleyrand and Blount Island Marine Terminals and further enhance the efficiency of Blount Island and the TraPac Container Terminal at Dames Point.

Rail laying machine at work on JAXPORT’s new Intermodal Transfer Facility.
Photo/JAXPORT

Philadelphia Regional Port Authority Reports Significant Progress at Southport

The Philadelphia Regional Port Authority (PRPA) is moving forward with plans for the Southport Marine Terminal Complex, the first major expansion of the Port of Philadelphia in more than 50 years.  
 
The 194-acre complex is located at the eastern tip of the former Philadelphia Navy Yard in South Philadelphia, and, says the PRPA, "perfectly situated for maritime development with easy access to rail and major roadways."

Three waterfront sites collectively comprise the Southport complex: (1) the Southport Marine Terminal site (119 acres); (2) Southport West (75 acres); and (3) Pier 124 North Berth, a 1,132-foot finger pier. PRPA has already completed substantial pre-development work at the sites, including access improvements, in anticipation of private development.

A Request for Expressions of Interest (REI) issued last year drew responses from maritime industry, manufacturing, and energy companies (Advisory, November 25, 2014).

The next phase, a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) slated for September, will widen the process, encouraging the continued participation of past respondents while inviting additional private sector interests to present their visions for Southport. Submissions are targeted for November 2015. Requests for proposals will be sent to short-listed respondents by the end of December 2015, with an anticipated due date of June 2016.  

The RFQ process will be overseen by the PRPA Board of Directors and a team of market advisors. PRPA hopes to have Southport project under development by 2017.  


An aerial view of the three parcels comprising Southport.
Photo/Philadelphia Regional Port Authority

Port Fourchon Begins Slip D Construction

The dredging contractor for the Greater Lafourche Port Commission’s Northern Expansion Slip D Bucket Dredge project has begun excavating a new channel at Port Fourchon.

Slip D, the latest phase of the port’s Northern Expansion, will add 300 acres of developed property and create more than 10,000 linear feet of waterfront. Port Fourchon’s newest slip will be 1,000 feet wide and nearly 4,000 feet long in response to the needs of the offshore supply vessels that frequent Port Fourchon.

By comparison, Slips B and C are each 700 feet wide and 7,000 feet long.

"We look to the future when designing the footprint of any new port development project," said Port Director Chett Chiasson. "Our tenants envision bringing larger vessels into port waterways into the future, so Slip D is growing in width to accommodate longer, wider vessels and the turning radius a larger vessel may need."

Nearly 4.0 million cubic yards of material will be dredged to create 150 acres of developed property adjacent to the waterfront along Slip D as well as 65 acres of new marsh. Two miles of steel bulkhead will be constructed along the newly created Slip D waterfront, and one mile of new roadway will be constructed for land access to Slip D leases.

A fully developed Slip D will take an estimated six to eight years to construct, but the Port Commission has already received offers. A "right of first refusal" is in place on a section of the new slip’s as yet undeveloped property.

Total development cost of Slip D, including design work, dredging, road and basic infrastructure work, and bulkhead installation, is estimated at $100 million. 


Dredge at work on Slip D construction at Port Fourchon.
Photo/Port Fourchon 
 

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