Port of Virginia to complete $450M dredging project in February

The Port of Virginia will complete its $450 million dredging project next month, delivering the deepest and widest shipping channels on the East Coast, the port announced this week.

Started in 2019, the dredging project will produce channels 55 feet deep and wide enough to safely handle two-way traffic for the largest ships in the Atlantic trade, without tidal restrictions or overhead obstructions. The port completed the widening portion of the project in February 2024.

Also announced Tuesday was the opening of another berth for ultra-large container vessels in coming days. According to the port, the berth will be at the Norfolk International Terminals, and four new Suez-class cranes will go into operation this month. When the new berth opens, the port’s Hampton Roads facilities will have four ultra-large container vessel berths total.

The port said that a fifth ultra-large container vessel berth is being developed at NIT’s North Berth and is scheduled to be in operation in 2027, when a $650 million reconfiguration and optimization of that area of the terminal is completed.

“This is an important chapter in the story of the Port of Virginia and the ongoing development of America’s Most Modern Gateway,” Virginia Port Authority interim CEO and Executive Director Sarah J. McCoy said in a statement. “In order to be a 21st-century port, you must have 21st-century infrastructure. Channel depth has the same level of importance to Virginia as any of our landside assets and investments. To remain competitive, the big ships require deep water and modern terminals. The Port of Virginia is the logical choice.”

The port previously said that the widening allows two ultra-large container vessels, each capable of carrying more than 20,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs), to safely move through the channel simultaneously.

Chief Sales Officer Thomas D. Capozzi said the port’s ongoing modernization will ensure that companies using the port can grow their volumes here without concern for capacity.

The Port of Virginia is one of the state’s economic drivers, accounting for more than 565,000 jobs, more than $124.1 billion in total spending and $5.8 billion in state and local tax revenues.

Stephen Edwards, the port authority’s former CEO and executive director, left the port at the end of 2025, becoming CEO of ferrying company Hornblower Group.