The long-stalled Delaware Container Terminal project in Edgemoor, three miles northeast from the Port of Wilmington, is now "shovel ready."
That's according to a release from the Delaware Senate Majority Caucus.
Gov. Matt Meyer's office says the US Army Corps of Engineers issued permits to the Diamond State Port Corporation, "allowing the DSPC and Enstructure’s public-private partnership to begin the construction."
The $635 million public-private partnership struggled to get off the ground over the last 10 years, most recently because of revoked federal permits for dredging needed for the project.
With those permits now issued, Gov.Meyer’s office says construction will commence on Phase one of the project, involving a wharf to offload cargo and dredging to clear underwater debris in the area. That’s expected to be completed by 2028.
Meyer said the project will create thousands of good-paying union jobs and “re-establish Wilmington as a leading global port.”
Port of Wilmington Expansion taskforce co-chairs State Senator Darius Brown (D-Wilmington) and State Rep. Franklin Cooke (D-Wilmington) said Wednesday their legislative group has worked for the last several months with the port’s operator, Enstructure, and local labor leaders on the plans.
The Edgemoor expansion is projected to quadruple Delaware's capacity for container cargo and enable service to new and larger ships– making it one of the mid-Atlantic's largest container terminals.
