North Charleston Terminal expansion project includes dredging

South Carolina Ports is working on another expansion project in the Port of Charleston.

With support from the state and unanimous approval from the SC Ports Board of Directors, SC Ports plans to purchase the former WestRock paper mill site in North Charleston to further expand port capacity at the Port of Charleston.

The roughly 280-acre industrial waterfront property sits adjacent to North Charleston Terminal, offering a natural extension of the container terminal that will enable SC Ports to handle more cargo for port-dependent businesses.

The additional land will expand the terminal’s capacity to handle 5 million containers in the future, and create 5,000 feet of linear berth space for container ships and around 400 acres of terminal space for cargo.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation is playing a pivotal role in the project. As part of its expansion of Interstate 526, SCDOT plans to replace the Don Holt Bridge, which will remove height constraints for larger vessels.

Plans are also underway to achieve a 52-foot depth up to North Charleston Terminal. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Charleston District, is undertaking a feasibility study — a critical first step toward deepening this stretch of the Cooper River an additional five feet.

“Modernizing the terminal, raising the Don Holt Bridge, deepening the Cooper River and purchasing the former WestRock property are all critical components that will yield a state-of-the-art North Charleston Terminal,” SC Ports President and CEO Barbara Melvin said.

This dredging effort, combined with the new bridge height, will allow the biggest container ships calling the Port of Charleston to seamlessly access North Charleston Terminal.