Port charts bold future at annual State of the Port

The Port of Brownsville welcomed business leaders, elected officials, industry partners and community stakeholders to its annual State of the Port Address on Thursday, June 11, at the Rancho Viejo Conference Center.

During the event, the Brownsville Navigation District (BND) Board of Commissioners and Port Director and CEO William Dietrich celebrated the port’s 90th anniversary and outlined its continued growth, infrastructure investments and expanding economic impact across the Rio Grande Valley and South Texas.

"We currently have projects in our pipeline representing more than $30 billion in potential investment at this port, in energy, advanced manufacturing, aerospace, defense and critical supply chains," BND Vice Chairman Ernesto Gutierrez said. "These are industries reshaping the American economy, and they are choosing to do it here, on our waterfront, through the Brownsville Ship Channel. As our port grows, our region grows. The momentum is real, the investment is real, and the transformation of the Rio Grande Valley economy is well underway."

The event concluded with the recognition of the Port of Brownsville Scholarship Program’s 2026 scholarship recipients. The annual program supports local students pursuing higher education and reflects the port’s ongoing commitment to workforce development and educational advancement within the communities it serves.

Among the major accomplishments and milestones highlighted during the 2026 State of the Port Address were:

INFRASTRUCTURE

Ship Channel Deepening Complete
The Brazos Island Harbor Channel Improvement Project is complete. The more than $500 million, two-phase effort, made possible through a landmark public-private partnership between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Port of Brownsville and NextDecade deepened 17 miles of ship channel to 52 feet, one of the first partnerships of its kind in American port infrastructure.

Cargo Dock 3 Reconstruction Underway
An approximately $40 million reconstruction of Cargo Dock 3 is underway, representing a major investment in one of the port’s most critical cargo handling facilities. The project is made possible a Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Maritime Infrastructure Program grant.

Securing Water and Power for Industrial Growth
The Port of Brownsville is working with the Brownsville Irrigation District to secure 2,000 acre-feet of water for industrial use and collaborating with the Brownsville Public Utilities Board on long-term solutions to meet future demand. Additionally, the port is in negotiations with Synergia on a proposed 1.5-gigawatt natural gas power generation facility on approximately 350 acres of port property to strengthen power reliability for industrial operations and support the region’s growing energy needs.

OPERATIONS

Record Cargo Volumes Sustained, Doubled Since 2021
In Fiscal Year 2025, the Port of Brownsville moved 28 million tons of cargo matching the record set the previous year and representing a more than 101 percent increase since 2021, when the port handled 13.9 million tons. That five-year growth was driven by 17.4 million tons of liquid bulk cargo, 12 million tons of break bulk cargo and nearly 858,000 tons of dry bulk cargo.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

America First Refining: First New Gulf Coast Refinery in 50 Years
America First Refining, set to be built at the Port of Brownsville, will be the first new oil refinery on the U.S. Gulf Coast in nearly half a century, projected to process up to 60 million barrels of domestic crude oil annually and produce gasoline, diesel and jet fuel for domestic and international markets. The company estimates the project will create thousands of construction jobs and hundreds of permanent positions.

Rio Grande LNG: $36 Billion Investment, Exports Beginning 2027
Rio Grande LNG is well underway on 984 leased acres, a $36 billion capital investment with five of its eight trains under construction and exports on track to begin in 2027. Notably, 73 percent of the more than 5,000 skilled workers currently on site are Rio Grande Valley residents.

$14.5 Billion in Defense-Related Investment on the Horizon
Several defense-related projects currently in development at the port represent a combined capital investment of approximately $14.5 billion and the potential to create more than 20,000 jobs for the region.

Forza Steel: Nearshoring in Action
Forza Steel has invested more than $100 million in a 650,000-square-foot facility along SH 48, bringing more than 100 jobs to the port. Using U.S.-sourced material, Forza Steel represents exactly the kind of nearshoring success story the Port of Brownsville was built to bring good-paying manufacturing jobs in the Rio Grande Valley.

Karpowership: $3 Billion Investment, Global Energy Leader Anchors at the Port
Karpowership, the world’s leading operator of floating power plants, has acquired the AmFELS shipyard at the Port of Brownsville, bringing a $3 billion capital investment and a new dimension of energy infrastructure capability to the region.

SpaceX: A Catalyst for Aerospace and High-Tech Investment
SpaceX continues to be a powerful economic catalyst at the Port of Brownsville, placing the region on the global map for aerospace, advanced manufacturing and high-technology investment.