Lone Star Ports, a joint venture between the Carlyle Group and the Berry Group, has inked a 50-year lease agreement with the Port of Corpus Christi Authority for approximately 200 acres on Harbor Island to develop a state-of-the-art petroleum export terminal. The facility will connect U.S. crude producers with all major international markets.
The lease agreement, approved by the Port of Corpus Christi Commission, will provide significant accretive value in the port’s annual operating revenues, and the project is expected to create more high-wage jobs and more economic prosperity for Port Aransas, Nueces County, and throughout Texas.
Lone Star Ports’ facility on Harbor Island is designed to be the deepest-draft safe harbour crude export facility in the nation when commissioned. Immediately upon completion, the facility’s two docks will have access to the improved 56’ ship channel depth, making it the United States’ first and only onshore terminal capable of fully loading Suezmax vessels and nearly full loading Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs).
Last month, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) awarded the first dredging contract for the Corpus Christi Ship Channel Improvement Project to the largest U.S. dredging company, Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company (GLDD), to deepen the channel to a depth of 56’ from the Channel entrance to Harbor Island, and a planned depth of 54’ throughout the rest of the harbour.
Sean Strawbridge, Chief Executive Officer for the Port of Corpus Christi, said: “A 50-year lease agreement with the Carlyle Group and the Berry Group joint-venture company, Lone Star Ports, is not only complementary to our existing marine terminal infrastructure but also positions the Port of Corpus Christi to be the preferred outlet for US-produced crude exports serving all major global demand centers for generations to come.”
Civil works for this facility repurposing project have been underway for the past year ahead of finalising a definitive lease agreement, including the demolition of existing dock structures from a previous decades old Exxon crude import terminal on Harbor Island. The execution of this new lease enables the parties to commence major equipment and materials procurements and other construction efforts.
“This project on Harbor Island is the next pivotal step in directing the growing crude oil production in the United States to global markets via our Port of Corpus Christi,” said Charles W. Zahn, Jr., Port of Corpus Christi Commission Chairman.
For more information visit www.portofcc.com
