The Performance of Seaport Clusters - RePub - Erasmus Universiteit ...

Chapter 7 – Analyzing the Performance of Seaport Clusters 81
7.6.3 The Lower Mississippi Port Cluster
The Lower Mississippi Port Cluster is located in the South of the U.S.A, in the state of
Louisiana and strategically located at the mouth of the Mississippi river. The vast majority of
cargo is transit cargo to inland destinations, mostly in the Mid-West of the USA. The lower
Mississippi port complex is not administered by one port authority, but by five public port
authorities each with a jurisdiction over a part of the river system. All port activities along the
river are so closely related that they form one port system, the ‘lower Mississippi port cluster’
that encompasses five port authorities. Table 15 shows the ports included in the ‘Lower
Mississippi port cluster’ and explains why other major Louisiana ports are not included.
Table 15: Ports included in the ‘Lower Mississippi port cluster’
Port Included in the Lower Mississippi Port Cluster
Port of New Orleans Included, the largest general cargo port of the port cluster.
Port of Greater Baton Rouge Included, the most upstream port of the lower Mississippi port complex.
Port of South Louisiana Included, the largest port by volume, especially strong in liquid bulk
cargo base.
St. Bernard Port, Harbor and
Terminal District
Plaquemines Parish Port,
Harbor and Terminal District
Included, the smallest port in the port cluster.
Included, the most downstream port of the port complex, with primarily
purely private terminals on private land.
Port of Lake Charles Not included, not located on the Mississippi.
Port Fourchon Not included, not located on the Mississippi, predominantly used by the
offshore industry.