A glimpse of Ports of Indiana-Burns Harbor (Credit: Ports of Indiana)
On March 29, the Ports of Indiana introduced that it had issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) to determine potential operators of the International Ag Shipping Terminal at Ports of Indiana-Burns Harbor. The 7-million-bushel terminal has transload capabilities for ocean ships, lake vessels, river barges, unit trains and vehicles. This is the primary time the Lake Michigan terminal is accessible for a brand new operator in 44 years.
The facility has been operated by Cargill since 1979 however the firm introduced it’s altering its enterprise mannequin within the area and can relinquish the ability to the port as of June 1. Ports of Indiana initially financed the development of Cargill’s facility in 1979 and, by way of the years, the terminal has exported greater than 500 million bushels of corn and soybeans to world markets. The terminal can deal with ocean vessels transiting the Great Lakes, 1,000-foot lake vessels, year-round barge site visitors through the inland river system and unit trains from practically all Class I railroads.
“It’s the end of an era and a new beginning for one of the largest international ag terminals on the Great Lakes,” mentioned Ryan McCoy, port director for Ports of Indiana-Burns Harbor. “It’s bittersweet for me because I worked at that facility for 10 years and Cargill has been a great partner for the Ports of Indiana and the local community. However, this change also creates a unique opportunity to reimagine the facility and expand its capabilities going forward.”
The grain elevator terminal contains 7.2 million bushels of storage services and high-speed loading capacities that may load 90,000 bushels per hour into an ocean vessel and unload 30,000 bushels per hour from a unit prepare, that are business main capacities even in the present day. Ports of Indiana will assume possession of the ability and is at the moment in search of a long-term associate to assist develop shipments on the port.
The RFQ seeks {qualifications} from corporations considering working the ag terminal. Responses are due April 21. Ports of Indiana will challenge a proper Request for Proposals in May to all certified corporations.
“We’re excited about the next chapter for this terminal,” McCoy mentioned. “We have received multiple inquiries from companies interested in expanding the facility. This is a unique deep-water terminal with tremendous capabilities for shipping grain, DDGs and many bulk cargoes to and from ocean vessels at the Heartland of America. It’s not every day that this type of facility becomes available.”
The Burns Harbor port opened in 1970, is dwelling to greater than 30 corporations, and handles roughly 3 million tons of cargo per 12 months. Currently, the port is creating a $32 million services enlargement funded by two federal grants that features building of two rail yards, new bulk and common cargo terminals, a bulk warehouse, and a truck marshalling yard. The port complicated contributes $5.2 billion per 12 months to the Indiana financial system and helps greater than 30,000 jobs.
