Port of Longview
The more than two-decades-long Columbia River channel-deepening project is nearing completion. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects to finish dredging the deeper shipping channel from Astoria to Portland before the end of the year. … That extra three feet of depth in the shipping channel is essential for the new generation of deep-draft vessels. For some time now, larger ships were having to take on lighter loads of grain from the Port of Kalama in order to navigate the 40-foot depth in portions of the river. Kalama port officials expect to increase business by more than $130 million per year with the deeper shipping channel. The Port of Longview also will realize a significant boost in business from grain shipments, thanks to the new grain terminal and shipping berth now under construction.