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6/30/2022
The Jacksonville Port Authority's (Jaxport) board this week approved a $62 million long-term contract with Trailer Bridge Inc., which operates the port’s Blount Island Terminal.
Set to take effect at the end of 2023, the agreement calls for Trailer Bridge to continue operating the terminal until 2041. The company will also expand its leasehold at Blount Island by an additional 2 acres, bringing the total acreage to 34, Jaxport officials said in a press release.
Trailer Bridge provides twice-weekly barge service between Jacksonville, Florida, and Puerto Rico, one of three ocean carriers running between the two ports, and serves as a full-service logistics provider in domestic and international trade. Jaxport handles 90% of sea trade between Puerto Rico and the mainland United States.
"Puerto Rico has been critical to our success as we have grown into one of the nation’s top seaports for importing and exporting goods," said Jaxport Board Chair Wendy Hamilton. "As we look to the future, we will continue to build on our role as a leader in providing supply chain security to the island."
The new agreement mirrors an existing lease with the Puerto Rico Ports Authority, Jaxport officials said. The ports signed a memorandum of understanding in 2021 to affirm a commitment to grow maritime trade between them and collaborate on business development, environmental protection, operations and security initiatives.
Jaxport is served by CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway, as well as Florida East Coast Railway.
Meanwhile, Canada announced this week that the Port of Oshawa in Ontario will receive $14 million from the federal government’s National Trade Corridors Fund for an expansion project. The Hamilton-Oshawa Port Authority (HOPA) is contributing $16 million, making a total investment of $30 million.
The expansion calls for new infrastructure to be built to modernize operations in the port’s main area and position it for growth, Transport Canada officials said in a press release. Other improvements include expanding marine infrastructure, upgrading storage and container terminals and extending and paving harbor roads. The project will also increase grain exports and improve the fluidity of deliveries.
"This project represents a major opportunity to increase capacity to import and export goods in and out of Ontario through the Port of Oshawa,” said Transport Minister Omar Alghabra.
HOPA is served by CN and Canadian Pacific.