KAPALAMA CONTAINER TERMINAL PROJECT AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND ON BUDGET AS IT ENTERS PHASE 2

The Harbors Division KCT project adds greater efficiency and will help reduce traffic

News Release from HDOT, Dec 19, 2019

HONOLULU – The Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) Harbors Division announces it is moving forward with Phase 2 of the Kapalama Container Terminal (KCT) project at Honolulu Harbor, which is the cornerstone of the Harbors Modernization Plan. The project is the largest capital improvement project in Hawaii harbors history and will deliver increased efficiency and operability to harbor users and the public.

Phase 1 began January 2018 and is on time and on budget, with an early scheduled completion date set for summer of 2020 at a cost of $163 million.

Phase 2 of the project is advertised now with the anticipated bid opening scheduled for February 2020. It has an estimated cost of $200-300 million and is anticipated to be complete in 2023.

“Positive improvements are underway at our commercial harbors that will enhance operations for the harbor users, which ultimately benefits the public as a whole,” said Deputy Director Derek Chow, Hawaii Department of Transportation Harbors Division. “This project is especially exciting because it will help address our capacity issues and meet the growing economic demands for the long term, that when complete, overseas transfers of containers to the interisland carrier will reduce traffic around the harbor’s surrounding roads.”

Deputy Director Chow further shared that any work in Hawaii’s waters must be done carefully to protect and restore sensitive marine resources. “We have partnered with the Division of Aquatic Resources’ (DAR) coral nursery, to relocate coral colonies to a transplantation site within the harbor, and to support DAR’s continued efforts with coral protection activities.”

Phase 1 includes the landside construction and adds 65.5 acres of container yard space, entry and exit gates, security fencing, parking, on-site utilities, outdoor energy efficient lighting, a weigh station, and will support new gantry cranes and container handling equipment. The new cargo yard will border the existing interisland cargo area allowing easy access between facilities and helping reduce traffic on surrounding roadways such as Nimitz Highway by taking approximately 50,000 truckloads off the roads each year. When complete, more than 115,000 cubic yards of concrete will be added, of which 65,000 cubic yards have already been installed. It will also include a new environmentally friendly drainage system to filter stormwater runoff before draining into the ocean.

Phase 2 features the waterside construction at Piers 40-43 in Honolulu Harbor which adds 1,800 linear feet of new berthing space, which is enough for two container ships to dock simultaneously and up to six gantry cranes, and an additional 18.5 acres of harden container strength operational areas next to the cargo ships. The work also includes dredging along the waterfront and in the harbor channel and widening the slips between Piers 40 and 43.

The harbor system is vital to the economic security of the state as more than 80 percent of all goods consumed by people in Hawaii are imported, and of that more than 98 percent is shipped in through the commercial harbors system.

No state general fund taxpayer money is being used on the construction. The HDOT Harbors Division is self-sufficient and generates revenue from harbor user fees and charges to pay for operating and maintenance costs, as well as to fund capital improvement projects like the KCT.

Construction photos from Phase 1 can be found by clicking here.