NEW ORLEANS – Today, the Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans elected William T. Bergeron chairman. Bergeron represents St. Bernard Parish and joined the Board in November of 2012 when he was appointed by Gov. Bobby Jindal. He succeeds Scott H. Cooper, whose term as chairman expired this month. Cooper will continue to serve as a commissioner. In addition, Michael W. Kearney was elected vice chairman and Robert R. Barkerding, Jr. as its secretary-treasurer.
Bergeron serves as Managing Director of Bergeron Resources, a diversified management, investment and consulting firm involved in oil and gas properties throughout Louisiana and Texas. Bergeron Resources also participates in real estate projects and maritime and transportation services in Louisiana and Mississippi.
“I am honored to be selected chairman of the Board of the Commissioners,” said Bergeron, who has a 50-year track record of success in the maritime, real estate and transportation industries. “My lifetime of entrepreneurial and management experience in the private sector, combined with my three years of service on this Board has prepared me well to contribute to the continued success of the Port and related industries. I accept this position with excitement and optimism and look forward to leading this great Louisiana economic generator to even greater heights in the future.”
Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange said Bergeron’s lifelong experience in the maritime sector will contribute greatly to the continued accomplishments of the Port.
The Board is made up of seven commissioners. They are unsalaried and serve five-year staggered terms. The Governor of Louisiana appoints members from a list of three nominees submitted by 19 local civic, labor, education and maritime groups. The Board reflects the three-parish jurisdiction, with four members from Orleans Parish, two from Jefferson Parish and one from St. Bernard Parish. Other Board members include Greg Rusovich, Laney J. Chouest and Arnold B. Baker.
The Port of New Orleans is a deep-draft multipurpose port at the center of the world’s busiest port system — Louisiana’s Lower Mississippi River. Connected to major inland markets and Canada via 14,500 miles of waterways, six class-1 railroads and the interstate highway system, the Port is considered the ideal gateway for steel, project cargo, containers, coffee, natural rubber, chemicals, forest products, manufactured goods and cruising.
Port officials say an extensive network of ocean carrier services, along with added-value services like transloading of bulk into containers, make the Port of New Orleans the superior logistics solution for many types of cargo.
To stay ahead of market demand, the Port has invested more than $100 million in capital-improvement projects since 2012 and has a Master Plan to expand the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal to an annual capacity of 1.5 million TEUs.
