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Port NOLA Nets $226 Million for LIT Project

[ February 2, 2024   //   ]

The Port of New Orleans said it has been awarded a federal grant for an additional US$226.2 million towards the building of the Louisiana International Terminal, or LIT.
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the funding through the competitive grant program for Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (NFRA) discretionary grant program, part of the FAST Act to help rebuild U.S. infrastructure through funding intermodal freight and highway projects.
The DOT previously awarded Port NOLA US$73.8 million through its MEGA Grant program to support funding the US$1.8 billion container terminal, expected to be a gateway to move cargo on the Mississippi River and U.S. inland waterways.
The “landmark grant award … underscores decades of site and market analysis and reflects the recognition of our transformational project on a global scale,” said Port NOLA President and CEO Brandy Christian. “Not only is this the biggest economic development grant in Louisiana history, but also the largest federal investment in a new container terminal in USDOT history.”
The grants are in addition to private industry partner commitments, as well as the State of Louisiana and Port NOLA. LIT has also drawn support from more than a dozen ports inn six states, as well as major trade and agriculture associations, the port said.
The estimated 400-acre container terminal, which will be located on 1,200 acres in Violet, Louisiana, will be built through an US$800 million public-private partnership between Port NOLA, New Jersey-based marine terminal company Ports America and Switzerland-based Mediterranean Shipping Co., through TiL, its terminal development and investment arm.
The project is in the federal permitting and design process, and Louisiana lawmakers have already provided nearly US$30 million towards early development costs. Construction on the multi-year project expected to being in 2025, with the first ship wharf opening in 2028.
LIT is expected to provide connectivity to four Interstate systems, six Class I railroads, 14,500 miles of inland waterways and more than 30 inland hubs. The terminal is expected to generate more than US$1 billion in state and local tax revenue by 2050. The terminal will create 32,000 new jobs nationwide, 18,000 in Louisiana and 4,300 in St. Bernard Parish, as well as more than $1 billion in total new state and local tax revenue by 2050.
“This additional investment will leverage Port NOLA’s extensive connectivity to interstate systems, railroads, waterways, and hubs,” said Louisiana Rep. Troy A. Carter Sr.

Port NOLA expects LIT to be a gateway to move cargo on the Mississippi River and U.S. inland waterways.

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