Wes Moore has joined Tradepoint Atlantic and Terminal Investment Limited to break ground on the Sparrows Point Container Terminal, a major new expansion project at the Port of Baltimore.
The 168-acre facility at Coke Point will add an on-dock rail terminal and significantly expand container-handling capacity at the port.
Once complete, it is expected to increase Baltimore’s container throughput capacity by 70 per cent and position the port as a larger East Coast gateway.
The project is being delivered through approximately $1.2 billion in private financing from Terminal Investment Limited (TiL) and Tradepoint Atlantic, marking one of the largest privately funded container terminal developments in the United States.
Wes Moore, Governor of Maryland, said: “Progress doesn’t just happen, progress is made to happen. From our response to the Key Bridge collapse two years ago to the recovery that continues to this day, Team Maryland and our federal partners are showing what it looks like to deliver progress through partnership. Today at Sparrows Point, we mark the next chapter in the Port of Baltimore’s success story — for our workers, for our state, and for our nation.”
Backed by $88 million in state support across multiple funding streams, the development is anchored in the long-term redevelopment of the former Bethlehem Steel site. Full operations are targeted for 2030.
On completion, the terminal is expected to handle around 1 million containers annually and generate approximately $1.5 billion in economic activity for Maryland.
It will also support 1,100 permanent International Longshoremen’s Association jobs, alongside an estimated 7,000 indirect roles linked to terminal operations.
State funding includes conditional loans via the Department of Commerce’s Sunny Day Fund and Advantage Maryland programme, alongside budget allocations for fiscal years 2025 and 2026.
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The project is also supported by a $40 million federal grant through the U.S. Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program.
The terminal will be equipped with seven ship-to-shore cranes and designed to handle two ultra-large container vessels simultaneously, strengthening berth productivity and vessel turnaround capability.
Chris Van Hollen, U.S. Senator, stated: “Tradepoint Atlantic and the greater Port of Baltimore are key drivers of economic strength and opportunity in Maryland, and today’s groundbreaking is an important step forward in expanding that impact.”
The project forms part of a wider repositioning of Sparrows Point as a logistics and container hub, converting the former industrial steel site into a major port asset.
