Work is progressing well on an extensive $39 million capital improvement project to rebuild Port Canaveral’s North Cargo Berth 4 (NCB4). This ambitious project included removing the existing functionally obsolete over-the-water pier, which has been out of service for nearly 10 years and replace it with a 981-foot-long multi-purpose, multi-user wharf. North Cargo Berth 4 is located next to the Port’s newly rebuilt North Cargo Berth 3 (NCB3), an 880-foot-long multi-purpose berth, which went into service in June 2023.

The NCB 4 renovation project is particularly complex due to the work zone’s location next to NCB3, an active cargo berth with adjacent uplands. The demolition of “old” NCB4 began in April 2023 and continues with the extraction of existing concrete piles that remain, while the first phase of construction began in September 2023 and is ongoing.

North Cargo Berth 4 construction expected completion date this fall (Photo: Canaveral Port Authority)

The bulkhead piles and A-frame piles have been installed, and work has commenced on installing nearly 400 concrete piles. Additionally, the area between NCB3 and NCB4 will include a designated space to securely tie down our mobile harbor crane during severe weather events. The berth will also be equipped with plug-in receptacles to accommodate either of the Port’s two mobile harbor cranes, LMH #11 or LMH #12.

When completed, the modern bulkhead design of North Cargo Berth 4 will be able to accommodate at berth a wide range of vessels and cargo discharge operations.

Port Canaveral Senior Project Manager Veronica Narvaez-Lugo is the Port’s lead engineer for this complex berth renovation project, working with project contractor Tampa-based Orion Marine Construction. The rebuilt berth is anticipated to be substantially complete in Q4 FY’24.

North Cargo Berth 4 and North Cargo Berth 3 are critical components of the Port Canaveral Berth Rehabilitation and Modernization project in the Port’s five-year capital improvement investment plan. Modern resilient bulkhead designs and multi-purpose berth space built to 21st Century standards are essential to maintaining the Port’s competitive edge in the global marketplace to support the economic prosperity of the Central Florida region.