The Maritime Administration has approved the deepwater port license application for Blue Marlin Offshore Port, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced on Thursday. The $1 billion project, developed by an affiliate of Energy Transfer, sits in West Cameron Block 509 about 99 miles off Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and is designed to load very large crude carriers at up to 80,000 barrels an hour, for exports of up to 2 million barrels a day, using existing and converted offshore platforms tied to supply hubs in Texas and southwest Louisiana. The Department of Transportation said the project would support up to 1,052 construction jobs; the application was first filed in October 2020, the final environmental impact statement was completed earlier this year, and no construction start date was announced.
MARAD approves $1 billion Blue Marlin offshore crude port
The Maritime Administration has approved the deepwater port license for Blue Marlin Offshore Port, a $1 billion crude oil export project about 99 miles off Cameron Parish, Louisiana, designed to export up to 2 million barrels a day.
Why it matters: Blue Marlin is the fourth deepwater port cleared under this administration and the second crude export project, and it would let very large crude carriers load in deep water instead of at congested coastal terminals.
Data as of Department of Transportation announcement of November 5, 2026, as reported by gCaptain and read in full in this run; the department's own press release was not in the feed pool at this update and no DOT release for the approval was found on search, so the project figures are the announcement's as carried by gCaptain. Developing item.
Sources
- MARAD Approves $1 Billion Offshore Crude Oil Export Port Off Louisiana - gCaptain - 2026-11-05