Mainebiz

V O L . X X X I N O. I I I F E B R UA R Y 1 0 , 2 0 2 5 14 C O M M E R C I A L D E V E L O P M E N T F O C U S Although volume slipped to 38,314 TEUs in 2024, it is still well above pre- pandemic levels and expected to grow as the new cold storage hub complements operations. To prepare for the increase, the MPA and MaineDOT plan to use $17.8 million in federal funds to upgrade refrigerated container plug capacity at the marine terminal. Bumps and starts While Portland was home to at least two wharf-side cold storage businesses in the early 1900s, plans for a modern facility were sparked by the 2013 arrival of Eimskip USA, an Icelandic-owned shipping and logistics firm that revived container shipping at the IMT. In 2014, the MaineDOT paid $8.5 million for a neglected property west of the Casco Bay Bridge that was home to the Portland Gas Light Co. from 1852 to 1965, and launched a competitive bid- ding process to select a developer for a waterfront warehouse. While Eimksip was awarded build- ing development rights in 2015, Atlanta- based Americold beat out a rival bidder to design and build a facility with a $50 million investment pledge. e plan was for Americold to lease the site with Eimskip as the anchor ten- ant of a 68-foot-tall structure, prompting criticism from West End residents over exceeding the port development zone's 45-foot height limit that some feared would impede their harbor views. While a zoning change approved by the City Council in September 2017 cleared the way for Americold, the company abruptly retreated in June 2018, saying the expected operating cost did not meet its underwriting criteria. Plan B Moving ahead without Americold, the Maine Port Authority embarked on a $600,000 mainly federally funded cleanup to ready the site for development and worked to assemble a new consor- tium. Led by Eimskip, the group included Yarmouth-based Treadwell Franklin Infrastructure and U.K.-based Amber Infrastructure. ey submitted a revised building plan in February 2020, which was approved by the City Council eight months later. At the start of the pandemic in March, the construction cost was esti- mated at $25 million to $38 million. Fast forward to August 2022, when shovels went into the ground on a much pricier undertaking. Itasca, Ill.-based FCL Builders completed construction last month, with Amber Infrastructure as the sole owner and equity investor in » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E P H O T O / J I M N E U G E R P H O T O / J I M N E U G E R The Maine International Cold Storage Facility in Portland, as seen from the pier beneath the Casco Bay Bridge. In the background are houses and apartments in Portland's West End. Eivind Dueland of Amber Infrastructure in the loading dock area of the Maine International Cold Storage Facility in Portland.

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