Mitsubishi plans CA terminal expansion, USA

Mitsubishi Cement is seeking to expand the footprint of its import terminal at the Port of Long Beach, California, for the more efficient handling of operations.

Port officials this week released a draft report reviewing the potential environmental impacts of a project being proposed by Mitsubishi Cement. A hearing for the draft EIR is set to place take on 22 October 2014.

Mitsubishi Cement wants to reconfigure a cement import facility, adding storage for 40,000t of products, new ship unloading equipment and a new air pollution control system. It also would feature up to two additional truck loading lanes that would be built underneath the silos.

Each new 10,000t silo would be measure around 18m in diameter by 49m high, and be capable of being loaded directly from a ship, according to the report.

If approved, construction can begin as early as 2016, said Lou Baglietto, J., spokesman for the project.

Baglietto said that while the company is expanding its footprint, it is not expanding its throughput. The project allows Mitsubishi to handle operations there more efficiently, he said. However, the move will  position Mitsubishi for expected rises in cement demand as more residential and public works project come online. “The economy is cyclical and I think there will be a demand for that,” he said. “We want to be ready for that.”