NEW ORLEANS — The Port of New Orleans has issued a Request for Proposals for program management/program controls services for the development of its hoped-for Louisiana International Terminal (LIT) container facility in St. Bernard Parish.
Responses to the RFP are due on July 13. This is the second RFP that has been issued related to LIT. The Port said a contract for assistance with preliminary design and permit support services is expected to be awarded at a July Board of Port Commissioners meeting.
“This RFP represents tangible progress toward maintaining our gateway’s continued competitive advantage and building on Port NOLA’s 50-year history as Louisiana’s only international container port,” said Brandy D. Christian, president and CEO of the Port of New Orleans, in a release. “A second terminal ensures we will be able to meet current and future container volume demand and continue to serve Louisiana as an economic driver, creating new jobs and unmatched opportunities for private sector businesses.”
The Port said the LIT terminal would be capable of handling 2 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) annually and serving the industry’s largest vessels. A due diligence, permitting, and environmental review process is expected to last until 2024. Construction on the $1.5 billion project would begin in 2025. It could open as soon as 2027.
More details from the Port: The approximately 350-acre container terminal with a 3,500-linear-foot wharf would be situated within more than 1,000 acres of developable green-field property. The site, located within the federal government’s $14 billion flood protection system, also features naturally deep-draft riverfront acreage, a 50-foot Mississippi River Channel, documented ability to navigate ships with a capacity up to 23,000 TEUs, access to six Class I railroads through New Orleans Public Belt Railroad and interstate highways.
