Port Canaveral introduces $500M expansion plan

Port Canaveral is investing upwards of $500 million in landside and waterside improvements as part of its comprehensive Port Canaveral Advantage plan to expand capacity and capabilities across all aspects of its business operations.

“Port Canaveral has been a driving force for the Central Florida economy for over seven decades, and the continued prosperity of our Port community depends on our continued success,” said Capt. John Murray, Port Canaveral CEO.

“As we look ahead to the future, our challenge is balancing the business demands we have today while positioning ourselves for continued growth.” 

Several cruise-related projects are about to get underway at Port Canaveral, with one of the most ambitious being the expansion of Cruise Terminal 5 (CT-5).

The design project, awarded to BEA Architects of Miami, will increase the terminal’s size by 65 percent to accommodate larger vessels. 

During an estimated 16-month construction period, the cruise terminal would continue to operate without interrupting scheduled ship turns.

In addition to expanding CT-5, the Port plans to enhance Cruise Terminal 10 (CT10) to expand its capacity beginning with a feasibility study that is expected to be completed by June 2025. The project’s goals include expanding the terminal’s capacity to accommodate the world’s largest cruise ships up to 5,600 passengers and berthing up to 1,200 feet in length.

On the commercial cargo side, Port plans are developing to renovate existing pier structures on the southside of the Port to create additional multipurpose, multiuser berth space and improve vessel turn times, while renovations to two northside cargo berths – North Cargo Berths 3 and 4 – are nearing completion adding 1,800 linear feet of multipurpose bulkhead space.

Ongoing improvements include harbor deepening and berth box dredging to accommodate larger vessels, seawall and uplands facility upgrades, and the addition of a third mobile harbor crane set to arrive later this year.