Port of Corpus Christi Okays USD 217 Mn Bond Package

The Port of Corpus Christi approved a bond resolution to issue up to USD 217 million in revenue bonds to help finance capital improvements, including the Corpus Christi Ship Channel.

The financing will allow the port to continue developing more terminals, rail, and channel improvements needed to handle the growing oil and gas volumes from the region’s large energy producing fields.

At the epicenter of the port’s 10-year capital investment program is the deepening and widening of the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. Currently at a depth of 45 feet, the Ship Channel will be dredged to 54 feet to accommodate Suezmax and larger vessels, and widened to 530 feet to allow for two-way traffic flows.

News of the bond approval comes on the back of an announcement made earlier this month when the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) included nearly USD 23 million in its FY18 Work Plan for the Corpus Christi Channel Improvement Project.

The USD 335 million project has now received over USD 138 million in Federal and Port contributed funds, with dredging operations scheduled to commence later this year.