The Port of Palm Beach District is an independent special taxing district, a sub-division of the state of Florida. Established under the provisions of the Laws of Florida, Acts of 1915, Chapter 7081, as amended and supplemented, the Port District is located in Palm Beach County, Florida. It covers a land area of 971 square miles or approximately 50% of the county area. Learn more on the Port of Palm Beach website.
Port Operations
The Port of Palm Beach is the fourth busiest container port of Florida’s 14 deepwater ports and is the 18th busiest container port in the United States. In financial year 2018, the port moved over 292,304 20-foot container equivalent units.
Exports
The port also handles diesel fuel, molasses, liquid asphalt, and other bulk commodities. There is also substantial tonnage involved in the movement of heavy lift and project cargos. All of this happens in a port that has only 165 acres of land.
Unlike most ports in the United States, the Port of Palm Beach is an export port, with approximately 80% of its cargo being exported, with the subsequent improvement in the balance of trade. The majority of the exported cargo goes toward supporting the island nations of the Caribbean. The Port of Palm Beach supplies 60% of everything consumed in the Bahamas and is the essential lifeline to the rest of the Caribbean.
Existing Infrastructure
The Port of Palm Beach is the fourth busiest container port in Florida, and the eighteenth busiest in the continental U.S. In addition to intermodal capacity, the port is a major modal point for the shipment of bulk sugar (domestic usages), molasses, cement, utility fuels, water, produce, and breakbulk items.
Florida East Coast Railway Company
The Florida East Coast Railway Company (FEC) services the docks and piers through the port’s industrial rail switching operations. We are the only port facility in south Florida operating a rail system with pier-side box, hopper, and intermodal cars operating 24 hours a day. Located on port property are 6 miles of trackage for intermodal transfers and handling.
International Trade & Passenger Flow
All essential federal agencies with oversight for international trade and passenger flow are located in the Maritime Office Complex (MOC). A foreign Trade Zone (FTZ # 135) has been in operations since 1987. It encompasses several port and private sector sites.
Below is a list the sites under FTZ #135.
- Palm Beach Cold Storage located on Port property
- Team International Corporation located in West Palm Beach
- Rybovich Marinas in West Palm Beach and Riviera Beach
