Military Sealift Command fast sealift ship USNS Regulus, left, and Denebola, right, at the Wilmington port in 2003. The state completed an expansion project to allow for larger containerships. | PA3 Krys Hannum/United States Coast Guard
Military Sealift Command fast sealift ship USNS Regulus, left, and Denebola, right, at the Wilmington port in 2003. The state completed an expansion project to allow for larger containerships. | PA3 Krys Hannum/United States Coast Guard
North Carolina's House speaker said a project expanding North Carolina State Ports Authority's ability to allow larger containerships into the Port of Wilmington is completed.
House Speaker Rep. Tim Moore (R-Kings Mountain) announced the project's finish in an April 8 Facebook post.
"The NC Ports Authority is ready to welcome the largest containerships calling on the U.S. East Coast to Wilmington, completing its turning basin expansion as part of North Carolina's $200 million+ capital improvements plan for our coastal economic engines," Moore wrote in the Facebook post.
Phase II of the Turning Basin Expansion Project allows the Port of Wilmington to welcome some of the largest class of containerships, which are up to 1,200 feet in length, according to an April 7 report from ajot.com, a publication that covers transportation news.
“This is a significant milestone for North Carolina Ports. The completion of this project ushers NC Ports and the Port of Wilmington into the big ship era,” North Carolina State Ports Authority Executive Director Paul J. Cozza said in a statement on April 7. “We recognize the importance of this project to our ocean carriers and are thrilled to offer expanded capabilities to better support their business needs.”
The expansion project induced widening the Cape Fear River turning basin to 1,524 feet — up 124 feet from its previous width, the news agency reported. In Phase I, which crews finished in August 2016, the basin was widened from 1,200 feet to 1,400 feet.
The project was one of two completed to improve port access for the large ships. The ports also opened 2,600 contiguous feet of space for container berths and increase the air draft over Cape Fear River to make it easier for ships to traverse the port, according to the news agency.
The news agency reported that renovations to the terminal and gate operating systems were also recently completed, which are expected to double the port's annual throughput capacity and triple its refrigerated capacity.
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