The Port of Wilmington is celebrating its 90th anniversary.
The Board of Harbor Commissioners of the City of Wilmington opened the Port of Wilmington on May 2, 1923.
Over the years, the port has grown from a 100 acre facility with three berths, 25 feet depth of water at its berths and two storage sheds, to 308 acres, 10 deep-water berths, and 1 million square feet of temperature controlled and dry warehouse space
Over the years, Imports have surpassed export cargo as manufacturing activity along the Delaware River declined. The port now leads the nation in perishable cargo imports and is the top banana port for North America.
On the export side, the port loads more live cattle for Middle Eastern and European markets than any other East Coast port. At 5 million tons handled annually, it is the top cargo terminal on the Delaware River.
Companies using the port in include steel products for Evraz Claymont Steel and Helmark Steel; petroleum coke exports produced by The Delaware City Refining Company; Wawa gasoline for its convenience stores; orange juice concentrates for Citrosuco North America; organic corn for Perdue; road salt for local municipalities, and fresh fruit for local and regional retail markets. Automobiles, apple and pear juice concentrates, specialty ores and chemicals, forest products and project cargo round out the port’s portfolio. Chiquita is perhaps the best known produce operation at the port. The port is now responsible for over 4,300 family sustaining regional jobs, $363 million in business revenue, $340 million in annual personal income, and $34 million in annual regional tax revenue.
The State of Delaware purchased the Port from the City of Wilmington in 1995, and established the Diamond State Port Corp. (DSPC), a state entity, to manage the port. Since 1995, the state has invested over $187 million in port development and expansion, and it is estimated by independent economists that port activities have produced more than $403 million in local and regional tax revenue.
The Port of Wilmington was in the news earlier this year when negotiations to lease the port to oil shipper Kinder Morgan collapsed amid concerns from legislators and a union local. The state is looking for a way to invest in the port to make it more competitive without putting the debt burden on taxpayers.
Critics of the lease say the port is a good investment by the state.
