For the second year, the Port of Corpus Christi’s Ship Channel Improvement Project (CIP) has been included in the President’s Budget for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Coastal Navigation Construction.
According to the port, Corpus Christi is the only Texas port included in the President’s proposed budget.
“We are pleased with the Administration’s recognition of the importance of the Corpus Christi Ship Channel Improvement Project by including it in the budget again this year,” said Sean Strawbridge, Chief Executive Officer for the Port of Corpus Christi.
“Investing in infrastructure, balancing trade, and achieving energy independence is front and center to the Administration’s agenda and clearly this project checks all those boxes,” added Strawbridge.
The proposed budget includes $53,313,000 in funding for the Port of Corpus Christi’s CIP in the USACE Civil Works budget. The CIP received $13 million in the 2019 federal budget, $23 million in the 2019 USACE Work Plan, and $59 million in the USACE 2020 Work Plan, in addition to the $132 million the Port of Corpus Christi has contributed to the CIP project.
Completion of the ship channel will allow the port to increase export volumes of U.S. oil and natural gas, bolstering domestic energy production and supporting the nation’s allies abroad.
The Port of Corpus Christi exported $10.8 billion of crude oil to U.S. trading partners in 2018, contributing to the offset of the United States trade deficit.