Port and Development, Longview
Port of Longview to review 50-year lease for Nutrien potash terminal
The port would buy land, clean up contamination and build a new Berth 4 dock, with $33.2 million listed in its budget for the project, while Nutrien builds a $500 million to $1 billion terminal.
Port of Longview commissioners get their first public look Tuesday at a 50-year deal that would bring a Nutrien potash export terminal to idle Berth 4, with the port building the dock.
The agreements, summarized in the port's Nov. 10 agenda packet, would lease about 105 acres of waterfront to West Coast Bulk Terminals Inc., a subsidiary of Canadian fertilizer company Nutrien Ltd. The company would build a terminal to move potash, a potassium fertilizer mined in Saskatchewan, from rail cars onto ocean-going ships.
For residents of the port district, the deal puts public money in on the front end. The port agreed to buy the land it does not yet own, clean up known contamination at its own cost, lead permitting and design and build a new dock. The agenda item lists $33,188,736 in financial impact and says the amount is in the port's current budget. Nutrien would build its terminal at its own cost, an investment the port puts at $500 million to $1 billion, and pay rent and shipping fees for decades.
The item is listed as advisory, with a suggested motion to accept and sign the agreements.
What Nutrien would pay
Before the lease starts, Nutrien would pay a development fee of $22,200 per acre per year for land the port owns, phased in at 25% the first year and 75% the second, with a $35,000 monthly minimum. The port's summary says 100 acres at the full rate would bring about $2.2 million a year. Rent rises with inflation by 1% to 4% a year and is reset to market value by appraisal after operations begin, then every 10 years.
Nutrien development fee per acre per year, before inflation
Bar chart of Nutrien's development fee per acre before inflation: $5,550 in year one, $16,650 in year two and $22,200 from year three on.
| Year 1 (25%) | $5,550 |
|---|---|
| Year 2 (75%) | $16,650 |
| Year 3 on (100%) | $22,200 |
The company would also pay wharfage, a per-ton fee on cargo crossing the dock. It starts at $1.65 per metric ton for the first 2 million tons a year and steps down to 60 cents a ton above 8 million tons.
Nutrien guarantees wharfage on at least 1 million tons in its first year, rising to 4 million tons by year four. At 4 million tons, that guarantee works out to at least $4.5 million a year. The guarantee starts at the first shipment or June 1, 2033, whichever comes first.
Other charges include $13.25 per loaded rail car, a share of common-area maintenance and Washington's leasehold excise tax, currently 12.84%.
Who pays for the dock
Nutrien would pay eligible dock construction costs and receive up to $40 million in credits against future wharfage. It would also prepay up to $40 million in rent for other site work, credited against future rent. That is up to $80 million in company money up front, repaid through lower fees later.
The port covers the rest of its work "using available or future revenue sources," according to the summary, which does not say whether that means debt, grants or tax dollars. The port must deliver a signed funding commitment at least 120 days before Nutrien's final investment decision, which the company expects in 2027. If the port cannot, Nutrien may withdraw without paying.
Nutrien may also walk away for any reason before or during construction by repaying the port's project costs to date. There is no cash security deposit. Instead, Nutrien Ltd. guarantees the lease up to $500 million.
The same day, commissioners are set to consider renewing a $200,000 contract with RRW Consulting for executive advising on the Berth 4 project.
Limits and exclusive rights
The terminal could handle only potash, ammonium sulphate and urea, the last two after permits and environmental review, plus other bulk fertilizers the commission approves. Traditional dock work must use union longshore labor. Nutrien would hold exclusive rights at the port to those products for 10 years, then to potash alone through year 20. It would also get the first chance to lease the Berth 2 facilities and to negotiate for potash use at the port's undeveloped Barlow Point property.
A port handout says trains would arrive every one to two days, a ship would be loaded every two to three days and the site would store about 200,000 metric tons. It estimates 650 or more construction jobs, more than 300 jobs a year statewide, $9.6 million in new county and local tax revenue and $12 million for the state including local taxes. The port calls the figures preliminary.
The port's case
Berth 4, home to Continental Grain from 1928 until 1989, has sat idle for more than 35 years. The port says it has spent more than $10 million over the last decade on demolition and site preparation. A staff report calls Nutrien's terminal "the realization of this long-standing vision" for the waterfront.
Nutrien says Longview met its criteria for skilled labor, rail connections, access to markets and a collaborative partner.
The full agreements and the ECOnorthwest economic study were not included in the agenda packet.
What happens next
The presentation is at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 10, at the port's office, 10 International Way, Longview, and airs on KLTV. Residents can comment in person or email publiccomment@portoflongview.com. A date for final approval has not been posted.
At 6 p.m. the same day, commissioners hold a public hearing on the port's 2027 budget and choose between a $780,871 property tax levy and no levy.