Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Top Story

U.S. House passes Water Resources bill, paving way for port dredging

The U.S. House passed a $12.3 billion marine transportation bill aimed at increasing port dredging to accommodate mega ships built to pass through the expanded Panama Canal, to be completed in late 2015.

The Water Resources Reform and Development Act, which passed 412-4, would sanction 34 marine-related projects, including dredging, flood control, hurricane recovery and environmental restoration.

The bill would change the way major U.S. shipping projects are funded, allowing ports to pay the cost to deepen harbors up front, then seeking reimbursement from the government once a project is authorized by lawmakers. That could help reduce construction time by years.

"It is a jobs bill," said Bill Shuster, House Transportation and Infrastructure chairman.

The measure would expand the number of U.S. ports that can handle super freighters, such as the Triple E Class ships built by Maersk Line, to take advantage of the expanding Panama Canal. The increased container capacity would reduce shipping costs for exporters.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the Senate would act on the compromise bill this week.

For more of the Bloomberg story: bloomberg.com


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