Written by
Nick Blenkey
DeLong’s Agriculture Maritime Export Facility is ready to deal with a further 120,000 tonnes of U.S. soybean exports. [Photo: The DeLong Company]
Because the current non permanent shutdown of the St. Lawrence Seaway by strike motion underscored, the Nice Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway system is an important maritime commerce artery whose easy operation is simply too typically taken without any consideration. Trying forward, with low water ranges on the Mississippi River a rising annual concern, its significance to U.S. agricultural exports, together with soybean exports, is prone to develop.
The Soy Transportation Coalition notes that among the many just lately introduced 2023 MARAD Port Infrastructure Improvement Grants was a $9,276,352 award to the DeLong Firm’s Agriculture Maritime Export Facility’s Part II venture in Port Milwaukee, Wis.
Part I of the ability was opened on July 18, 2023, and primarily has been used to export DDGs (distiller’s dried grains) to worldwide markets by way of the Nice Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway system. Part II of the venture will contain the development of two grain storage silos, electrical service upgrades, and extra dealing with gear. As soon as Part II is accomplished, DeLong estimates will probably be exporting a further 120,000 tonnes of soybeans from the ability. As well as, soybean meal exports are a possible space of progress sooner or later.
The Soy Transportation Coalition accredited $200,000 to assist underwrite engineering, allowing, venture administration, and development help bills related to Part II of the venture.
The coalition says it had three motivations to supply funding for the venture:
- To supply significant funding to a venture that can improve U.S. soybean and soy product exports within the close to future;
- To spend money on the Nice Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway – a provide chain possibility that may and ought to be a extra vital conduit to the worldwide market;
- For the DeLong Firm and Port Milwaukee to have the ability to spotlight the funding dedication from a farmer group, which might improve the viability and competitiveness of their grant software.
Soybean farmers have a protracted historical past of seeing their funding leveraged – thereby serving to speed up venture completion and growing its scale and scope. The funding by soybean farmers for DeLong’s Agriculture Maritime Export Facility is one other tangible instance of this.
Throughout this time during which U.S. agriculture has quite a few provide chain challenges (low water on the Mississippi River, drought situations on the Panama Canal, for instance), the coalition says it’s crucial to produce other provide chain choices be accessible for farmers. Whereas the Nice Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway accommodates a modest share of U.S. soybean exports in comparison with different areas of the nation, it has the potential to play a extra vital position in connecting soybean farmers with the remainder of the world. The funding within the Port Milwaukee Agriculture Maritime Export Facility will definitely facilitate this.
