Port Corpus Christi to handle 3,000 wind turbine parts by year’s end

Port Corpus Christi in the Texas Gulf continues to make investments in infrastructure, including another 25-acre laydown yard, in an effort to attract wind turbine component manufacturers to its docks.    Port Corpus Christi anticipates handling more than 3,000 wind turbine components by the end of this year, a record over 2016, according to a statement from the Texas Gulf Coast port.
   The port, which is one of the most active in handling these large, oversized parts, handled 2,603 wind turbine components in 2015 and 2,875 in 2016. 
   These components are often transported away from the port by trucks and railroads using specialized trailers and railcars to West Texas, where more than 20,000 megawatts of power in wind turbines is already installed.
   Jarl Pedersen, Port Corpus Christi’s chief commercial officer, said the port also attracts wind turbine component manufacturers due to its investments in specialized infrastructure and equipment for handling these breakbulk cargoes. 
   The Port Corpus Christi Commission on Dec. 12 approved a contract to build another 25-acre laydown yard for storing wind turbine components and other breakbulk cargo. The first phase, comprising a 10-acre laydown yard, will be available for use by the end of the first quarter 2018, with the remainder being completed in the months that follow.
   The port is also a user of wind-generated electricity. Since August, Port Corpus Christi has purchased 100-percent renewable electricity produced by wind power projects and other renewable energy projects in Texas.