Avondale Yard to Be Repurposed as a Multimodal Hub

BY Eric Haun October 4, 2018

USS Somerset (LPD 25) is launched from the Avondale Shipyard in 2012. The vessel later became final Navy ship to depart from the shipyard, in February 2014. (U.S. Navy photo courtesy of Huntington Ingalls Industries)

The former Avondale Shipyard facility in Louisiana will be redeveloped into a logistics and intermodal hub under a joint venture group that took ownership of the shuttered shipyard today.

The Avondale site, located just upriver from New Orleans, built and repaired commercial and military vessels for more than 75 years, most recently as part of Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division, until the facility ceased operations in December 2014.

New development plans announced today will see the 254-acre site repurposed as a multimodal, manufacturing and logistics hub under the ownership of Avondale Marine, a joint venture between terminal operator T. Parker Host and real estate firm Hilco Redevelopment Partners.

“For generations, Avondale Shipyards has been a source of pride for the community that generated jobs and economic development. Our team will unleash its potential by transforming the shipyard into a global logistics hub for intermodal commerce.” Adam Anderson, president and CEO of T.P. Host and principal of Avondale Marine. “As we usher in a new era for this facility, we will benefit from the strength and skill of the workforce in Jefferson Parish and Louisiana.”

Virginia-based T.P. Host is one of the nation’s largest terminal operators, specializing in agency, terminal operations and marine assets. The other joint venture partner involved in the project, Chicago-based Hilco Redevelopment Partners, remediates and redevelops large-scale industrial facilities across North America.

“We’re thrilled to leverage our extensive experience in redeveloping and transforming facilities that are at the end of their current useful life into modern productive businesses for the future,” said Roberto Perez, CEO of Hilco Redevelopment Partners. “We look forward to supporting our managing partners at T.P. Host in the Avondale Marine project as we build this important logistics hub in New Orleans.”

In the coming months, Avondale Marine will begin its site planning process in partnership with stakeholders.

HII said Avondale’s UNO Maritime Center of Excellence will remain open and continue engineering and design work in support of Ingalls’ shipbuilding programs. Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias, said, “Ingalls will continue to maintain a presence in Louisiana, not only at the UNO Center, but also through the many Louisiana residents who commute to Pascagoula each day to help us build the ships we produce for our nation’s defense.”