NEW ORLEANS – Containerized cargo – cargo that fits into shipping containers - dominates global trade, but one annual event highlights the critically important “BreakBulk and Project Cargo” segments of the maritime industry focusing on oversized and irregular shipments.
BreakBulk25 is the flagship conference organized by the Journal of Commerce and is taking place in New Orleans in April at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside. The Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) and the New Orleans Public Belt (NOPB) serve as the host sponsor for the event which has been held in New Orleans each year since 2019.
Beth Branch, Port NOLA President & CEO and New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB) CEO, will deliver the opening remarks while Kimberly Curth, Port NOLA Press Secretary, will serve as a panelist on the Focus Session titled, “Media Strategies for the Breakbulk Sector.”
“This annual industry gathering convenes about 1,000 maritime industry professionals from across the globe with the most significant overseas presence coming from Europe,” said Curth. “Attendees include steel, non-ferrous metals and project cargo shippers, freight brokers, shipping lines, ports, terminals and inland transportation providers.”
Port NOLA is Louisiana’s largest breakbulk handling port and the state’s only international container port. “We are the only deep-water port in the U.S. connected to all 6 national railroads and with access to 14,500 miles of inland waterways,” said Curth. “Breakbulk and project cargo account for nearly 2 million tons of cargo annually.”
Curth says it’s fitting that the conference takes place just steps from the Lower Mississippi River. “This is the busiest freight corridor in the Western Hemisphere where more than 500 million tons of cargo transits up and down our remarkable waterway each year,” said Curth. “New Orleans was founded as a port city and our future is dependent on our working river.”
Port NOLA has the largest public footprint of Louisiana’s ports. “We have 24 berths, 20 million square feet of cargo-handling areas, 2 cruise terminals and 2,500 acres of industrial real estate,” said Curth.
Prominent organizations such as MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company) and DHL Global Forwarding have contributed their expertise to shape the dialogue in the past. “We hope to make new customer relationships and connect with current customers to discuss how Port NOLA and our two breakbulk and heavy-lift terminal operators, Ports America and QSL, can best serve their freight and transportation needs,” said Curth.
Resilience and Flexibility
Agility is critical when it comes to handling cargo. “Shippers realize the importance of supply chain diversification,” said Curth. “Using only one or two gateways, a small number of ocean carriers, one railroad, is too risky when supply chains are as stressed as they have been in the past few years.”
Port NOLA’s strategic location and flexible handling capabilities allowed it to manage disruptions during Covid.
“The import surge at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic led to severe congestion issues for many U.S. ports,” said Curth. “During the pandemic, we were even able to handle coffee shipments via breakbulk. Coffee is typically shipped in containers, but due to supply chain disruptions and container shortages during the pandemic, Port NOLA was able to provide a solution to the market with the ability to handle coffee in supersacks. That was the first-time coffee had been shipped breakbulk at Port NOLA in 30 years.”
Why Breakbulk and Project Cargo are important for Louisiana Industries
Breakbulk cargo refers to goods that are transported individually rather than in standard intermodal containers. Traditionally loaded in units such as bags, crates, barrels, or on pallets, breakbulk cargo includes items like machinery parts, vehicles, construction materials, and steel girders. The term “breakbulk” itself originates from the practice of “breaking” a ship’s large, undivided cargo into smaller, individually handled units during unloading, a method that has been largely supplanted by containerization for most general freight over the past decades.
In contrast, project cargo describes the transport of oversized, heavy, or complex components that are critical to large-scale infrastructure or industrial projects. Often requiring disassembly at the origin and reassembly at the destination, project cargo includes equipment for energy, mining, and construction projects – such as wind turbine components, heavy machinery, and large-scale generators. Because these shipments typically involve high value and intricate logistical planning, they demand specialized handling and coordination across multiple transport modes.
LIT
With strong support from global industry partners and government agencies, Port NOLA has advanced the Louisiana International Terminal (LIT), the state's largest public economic development project. It is currently in the federal permitting process through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and expects to receive the go ahead this year.
“In the 2024 regular session, Governor Jeff Landry and the Louisiana Legislature committed $230.5 million to Port NOLA infrastructure projects, including LIT and the St. Bernard Transportation Corridor,” said Curth. “Last year, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $300 million in federal funding to assist in building LIT, the largest federal investment in a new container terminal in the agency’s history.”
In addition, New Jersey-based Ports America, one of North America’s largest marine terminal operators, and Switzerland-based Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), through its terminal development and investment arm Terminal Investment Limited (TiL), have committed at least $800 million toward the project according to Curth.
“LIT is anticipated to bring 18,500 new direct and indirect well-paying jobs to Louisiana and produce more than $1 billion dollars in new state and local tax revenue by 2050,” said Curth. “Additionally, LIT will open substantial opportunities for manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution centers and their associated jobs for the local, state and regional economy.”
