JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – JaxPort is getting a new terminal operator.
JaxPort officials called the change transformational and said it will add thousands of jobs in the coming years.
Ceres Terminals will take over the 158-acre terminal that was operated by TraPac Jacksonville for the last 16 years.
The JaxPort board approved the new deal with a vote Monday morning.
Officials said that could mean up to 3,000 more high-paying jobs for the port that will handle ships coming from places like South America.
“Really what it’s about is making more investment into the terminal, more investment into the equipment that will create more efficiency and it will help alleviate the congestion within the supply chain that we see, you know, throughout our country,” said Eric Green, JaxPort CEO.
The deal includes a 20-year lease agreement and the company has agreed to invest $15 million into the port. JaxPort says the agreement will increase revenue by $38 million over the next nine years.
“We operate in 20 different locations in North America, but we don’t have a big presence in JaxPort. We’re big on the East Coast, we’re big in the Gulf, so this is really exciting for us to get a big footprint here in Jacksonville,” said Craig Mygatt, CEO Ceres Terminals Inc.
Jacksonville will become Ceres’ biggest terminal in North America when the company takes over on March 1.