State approves lease for new Port of Wilmington facility

The Council of State on Tuesday gave approval for the construction of a cold storage facility at the Port of Wilmington.

The council approved a lease that will allow the North Carolina State Ports Authority and USA Investco to enter a public-private partnership to construct the facility.

The project, which will require an initial investment of $13 million, is contingent upon state and local incentives.

Plans call for a 75,000-square-foot facility, which could later be expanded to 300,000 square feet. The facility is expected to create 110 jobs.

“North Carolina exports more than $3 billion worth of agricultural products each year,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler in a statement.

“Upgrades to the Port at Wilmington will help our farmers and agribusinesses boost that number even higher.”

State officials said the storage facility would allow North Carolina farmers to use the state's port as opposed to facilities in Norfolk, Va., Savannah, Ga. and Charleston, S.C.