Feds release delayed $7M for two ports
Half of the $14 million in federal funding slated to improve three Maine cargo ports will be released to the ports of Portland and Eastport immediately, while a permitting snag continues to hold up awarding funds in Searsport.
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced this week it will allow $7 million of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant to be awarded to Portland and Eastport while Searsport seeks a waiver of a Buy American requirement in order to obtain its $7 million portion, according to the Bangor Daily News. The port of Eastport will receive $2 million for a warehouse and conveyer equipment, while the International Marine Terminal in Portland will receive $5 million for capacity and infrastructure improvements. The port of Searsport needs to buy a mobile harbor crane to increase its cargo-handling equipment that is not produced domestically.
The $14 million TIGER grant was originally awarded in February but construction work was delayed pending the receipt of a U.S. DOT draft agreement, which Maine received Sept. 8. The $7 million for Eastport and Portland will allow construction work, which includes blasting and drilling, to begin before winter, according to the paper.
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