The Industrial Canal at The Port of Lake Charles
The Industrial Canal at The Port of Lake Charles is one of two industrial parks owned and operated by the port. To meet the growing demand for industrial development along the waterfront, The Port developed and improved 200 acres of port property at its Industrial Canal.
Location and Infrastructure Details
The Industrial Canal is 12 miles south of Lake Charles at the intersection of the Calcasieu Ship Channel and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. It is 22 miles from the Gulf of Mexico.
The Industrial Canal is three miles long and has a 1,400-foot square turning basin at its east end with a depth of 12.2 meters (40 feet). The canal is dredged to a project depth of 40 feet and has a bottom width of 400 feet. A Port-owned railroad provides rail service from Lake Charles to industries located on the canal. The Union Pacific Railroad also serves this area.
The Industrial Canal Terminal connects with both the 12-meter (40-foot) deep Ship Channel and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. At the Industrial Canal’s east end is an almost 50-acre turning basin.
The terminal is accessible from Interstate 210. Numerous motor carriers offer local pick-up and delivery service.
The main cargoes handled at the Port of Lake Charles’ Industrial Canal Terminal are rice, flour, food products, forest products, petroleum products, aluminum, barite, and rutile. The Calcasieu Ship channel links the Port of Lake Charles’s City Docks to the Gulf of Mexico. The 200-acre City Docks facility is the home for warehouse space, shore power, general cargo facilities and other features.
The Port of Lake Charles is part of the Southwest Louisiana Port Network, which also includes the
Cameron Parish Port, Harbor & Terminal District; West Calcasieu Port; Port of Vinton; and the Mermentau River Harbor & Terminal District. This collective network provides continuity, storage. proficiency and resourcefulness.
Economic Impact
An economic study commissioned by the Lake Charles Harbor and Terminal District found that the Calcasieu Ship Channel’s activity in 2020 had a $39 billion total economic value nationwide. Marine cargo activity at the ship channel supported 158,485 jobs nationwide.
