U.S. Sen. David Vitter, who is the lead Senate Republican negotiator for the Water Resources Reform & Development Act (WRRDA), said that he modified the Port of Iberia authorization in the final bill to allow the deepening project to move forward.
“The Port of Iberia, known as the Gulf Coast Cajun Connection, needed to be deepened to accommodate more and larger traffic ,” Vitter said. “ This is a major point of commerce for Louisiana and the rest of the country, and getting this project modification included was definitely a priority. This is arguably the most important bill we’ll pass in Congress this year.”
Port Director Roy Pontiff said: “The economic significance of this action will allow the Port to gain an additional 7% of the oil and gas fabrication business which equates to $125 million more business and save the 5,000 good energy sector jobs at the Port, while at the same time reduce the construction cost to the Federal Government while using the dredged spoil beneficially ,” he added.
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Press Release, May 19, 2014