By Scott Mall
FreightWaves Classics
Located in Port Allen, Louisiana, the Port of Greater Baton Rouge is among the Top 10 largest ports in the United States in terms of tonnage shipped. (It ranked seventh in 2020.) It is the northernmost port on the Mississippi River capable of handling Panamax ships.
It is both a deep water (45 feet) and a shallow draft port, providing excellent accessibility to ocean trade lanes to and from Latin America, Europe and the Far East. The port also provides access to America’s heartland via barges on the Mississippi River, the inland waterway system and the Intracoastal Waterway.
As the nation’s farthest inland deep water port, Baton Rouge is a major factor in international shipping and trade development. On an annual basis, the Port often handles nearly 80 million tons of cargo from ships flying the flags of more than 30 countries.
The port is a key component of Louisiana’s economy and maritime industry. It is located at the convergence of the Mississippi River and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, which links it to other ports from north Florida to south Texas, as well as to ports throughout the 15,000 miles of the Mississippi River inland waterway system.