b'2American Journal ofTransportation ajot.comLouisiana port developmentsGULF COAST PORTS 2025proceed amidst global commerce uncertaintiesBy Paul Scott Abbott, AJOTBillionsofdollarsofofthelargestbulkterminals newmarineterminalfacili- in the U.S. Gulf region. Since tiesarebeingdevelopedacquiredin2019byHOST, along the Lower Mississippisignificantinvestmentshave River as Louisiana ports andbeenmadetoenhanceeffi-private partnersseeminglyciencies and increase capacity.undaunted by tariff concernsProviding extensive load-and related global uncertain- ing, discharging and storage tieslook to welcome largercapabilities along 3 1/2 miles vesselsandgreateractivityof waterfront at Mile Marker tothenationsmostpromi- 55oftheMississippiRiver, nent waterway.the1,200-acresiteprimar-Coincidingwithcomple- ilyhandlesexportcoaland tionofthefederallybackedpetroleum coke while able to $250 million endeavor to bringaccommodate additional bulk the channel depth to 50 feet, thecommodities. latest infrastructure is to includeThe terminal, which has the Port of New Orleans Loui- capacitytoannuallyhandle sianaInternationalTerminal(PROCEEDcontinued onA COSCO Shipping vessel anchors at NOLA Terminal LLCs facility at Mile Marker 59 in the Louisiana Gateway andthePlaqueminesPortpage 13) Ports district.Harbor and Terminal Districts Louisiana Gateway Port.HeadinguptheMissis-sippiRiverandgenerally proceeding in a northwesterly direction, then doubling back tocoastalandinlandfacili-ties not along the Mississippi, heres the latest on vital port facilities of Louisiana:L ouisianaG atewayP ortPropitiously situated near the mouth of the Mississippi River, the Louisiana Gateway Port is moving forward with whatofficialsofthenewly rebrandedPlaqueminesPort Harbor and Terminal District are projecting to within five years become the fifth-largest U.S. port as measured by ton-nage throughput.Advancingwitha$500 million investment from A.P. Mller-Mrsk arm APM Ter-minals,astate-of-industry containerterminalisbeing developed to provide access at river depths of 50 feet or more,withneitherair-draft nor navigational restrictions, whilefurnishingbarge,rail andhighwayconnectivity andamplelandavailability inahighlyruralarea.With its jurisdiction encompassing the first 81 miles of the Mis-sissippi River, the Louisiana Gateway Port is being touted toserveglobalmarketsfor oil, gas, grain, coal, liquefied natural gas and more. Initial terminaldevelopmentisto cover 200 acres, with poten-tial for several hundred acres of expansion.Recently joining the Lou-isianaGatewayPortexecu-tiveteamledbyCharles Tillotson, in his third year as executive director, are Patrice A.Bellaschiefadministra-tive officer and Shannon Gla-pion as chief financial officer.u nitedB uLkt erminaLsAkeyprivateopera-tionwithinthePlaquemines jurisdiction, T.ParkerHosts United Bulk Terminals facility inDavant,Louisiana,isone'