PORT COMMISSION APPROVES STRATEGIC PLAN FOR MAJOR GROWTH (1/26/07)

For Immediate Release

VANCOUVER, Wash. -- Port of Vancouver USA Commissioners approved a 10-year strategic plan that forecasts steady growth in revenue, cargo tonnage, and jobs over the next decade at their regular bi-monthly business meeting on January 24, 2007.

The plan forecasts a 23 percent increase in marine cargo revenues over the next 10 years, while suggesting the potential for even stronger growth with a first look at 2006 actual revenues which exceeded last years budgeted projections by $3.8 million.

The port has set goals through 2016 for both higher marine cargo revenues and diversifying its cargo mix. “The growth is not tied to a single cargo,” explained Alastair Smith, Senior Director of Marketing and Operations. “The port saw record tonnage for breakbulk cargo in 2006 along with increases in liquid bulk, dry bulk and project cargo, primarily wind energy projects. This diverse mix positions us well for the future and helps create stability within a market that fluctuates with changes in the world economy.”

On the industrial development side, the port’s plan proposes to increase the number of jobs developed per acre of operations and to increase its inventory of industrial property from 305 to 500 acres. Current port marine and industrial operations cover about 600 acres.

Increases in both marine cargo and industrial operations will drive anticipated growth in ship calls and in trucks and rail cars serving port customers. Rail cars through the port are projected to increase from 43,000 to more than 70,000 annually creating the need for the new rail access into the port and expansion of internal tracks currently under development.

Strategic goals outlined in the plan call for:

• Increasing the volume of cargo and industrial development at the port.
• Developing and preserving port infrastructure and transportation access.
• Generating and sustaining diversified revenues.

In other business:

The Commission approved a 10-year lease agreement with Pacific Coast Shredding LLC (PCS) to expand its current 7-acre operation by another 3.862 acres. PCS has operated its scrap metal recycling facility at the Port since 1997. The expansion will help the company meet the growing demand of the steel recycling industry, especially as related to international exports.

Todd Coleman, Deputy Executive Director, reported that the Vancouver City Council had approved the rezone from open space/agricultural to light industrial of 50 acres of Port property located north of Lower River Road at Parcel 7. The site is part of 265-acres of farmland purchased by the port in 2004. The port has already designated 157 acres of the property for natural restoration as a wetland bank. The Council also approved the rezone of Parcels 4 and 5 of the port’s Columbia Gateway property, located north of the flushing channel, to open space in order to correct the City's industrial lands inventory.

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The Port of Vancouver, USA, created by Clark County taxpayers in 1912, is one of the major ports on the Pacific Coast. Its competitive strengths include available land, versatile cargo handling capabilities, vast transportation networks, a dependable labor force and an exceptional level of service to its customers and community.

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