CONTACT: Chris Fisher, Port of Beaumont (409) 835-53677,

Gene Bouillion, Port of Orange (409) 883-4363 3

U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, (936) 441-57000000000,

PRESS RELEASE

Southeast Texas Ports Receive Economic Recovery Funds

BEAUMONT, TX (February 18, 2009) – U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) today announced the ports of Orange and Beaumont will each receive $ 4 million economic recovery grants from the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Brady made the announcement on an Orange County tract that is being developed by the Port of Beaumont, before a gathering of officials from both ports.

The grants announced today support economic recovery for regions most severely affected by hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters occurring during 2008. The awards were the second supplemental appropriation approved by the Economic Development Administration, which is a bureau of the U.S. Department of Commerce. The second supplemental appropriation allocated a total of $400 million in emergency funding under the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, signed into law in September, 2008.

The ports of Orange and Beaumont submitted projects to EDA in early January. The projects approved today for the two Southeast Texas ports will help the region with economic development and provide infrastructure improvements to build stronger, more disaster-resilient economies.

The Southeast Texas Regional Planning Commission assisted the ports in the application process and coordinated communication with EDA.

The projects funded by EDA will equip the Port of Orange to handle petrochemical products under an innovative cargo transportation system; the project on the Port of Beaumont’s Orange County site will provide intermodal railroad connectivity.

The Port of Orange will use the funds to develop new cargo transportation infrastructure at its facilities on the Sabine River.

The project consists of the following components:

· Loading and staging yard to allow the transfer of intermodal containers and project cargo to barges

· Three lane heavy-duty roadway 36 feet wide to permit the movement of intermodal and project cargo within the terminal

· Construction of 430 foot long bulkhead to facilitate loading of cargo onto barges

· These improvements will position the port to participate in "Container-On-Barge" shipments of cargo originating in Southeast Texas.

· The project will promote economic development and create jobs for Orange County by providing for economical shipping of products produced in petrochemical plants in Southeast Texas and Southwest Louisiana.

Project cargo describes a type of cargo that includes construction components and equipment, modules, vessels and heavy steel structures.

Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of cargo in a steel container using multiple modes of transportation (rail, truck, barge, ship) without handling the freight itself when changing modes. The method reduces cargo handling, improves security and reduces damage and loss. Container- On-Barge is an innovative new method of freight movement that allows ports such as Orange to participate in the movement of cargoes from their manufacturing base to an intermodal port such as Houston.

Intermodal containers are traditionally transferred from their manufacturing plant to the port by trucks or railcars. Barge movement is usually more efficient and cost-effective than rail or trucks. Container-on-barge service often costs the shipper less than traditional truck or rail service, because it takes advantage of the economies of scale of moving several loaded containers in a barge propelled by a single tugboat. The system also results in reduction in air pollution, highway congestion and reduces the number of trucks involved in traditional intermodal movements.

A further advantage is provided by loading a container to its maximum engineered capacity, which would make it too heavy to transport over the nation's highways. However, the containers in Orange will be stuffed with cargo that is currently warehoused at the port, which means they will not travel across city streets or state or Interstate highways. Therefore, the containers can be loaded with up to 20% more cargo than a traditional "over-the-road" truck, which translates into a savings in transportation cost to the shipper.

The Port of Beaumont will use the funds to develop connections to the railroads that bisect its 455-acre tract in northern Orange County, across the Neches River from the port’s main terminals. Rail infrastructure will be built to provide intermodal rail connections to the Class One railroads, thereby providing economical rail transportation to all of North America.

The port is currently building a $22 million deepwater wharf on the site, the first major construction by the Port of Beaumont on its Orange County property.

Previously, the port received a $1 million EDA grant to pay for construction of a bulkhead and roadway on the tract. In 2005, the port received a $3.12 million grant to build a permanent, heavy-duty access road linking the site to Interstate 10. That project, which was obtained through the efforts of Congressman Brady with assistance from Congressman Ted Poe, is expected to be built this year.

The EDA project will link the port’s deepwater wharf and abundant cargo storage area on the tract to the railroads.

The Port of Beaumont has already begun using its Orange County facilities to store and process imported steel pipe used to build a pipeline serving the new LNG terminals in the region. The pipe facilities have generated jobs and economic benefits for Southeast Texas.

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Port of Beaumont ● 1225 Main Street ● Beaumont, Texas 77704 ● (409) 835-5367