U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has approved a proposal from Ports of Indiana-Burns Harbor to establish the first international sea cargo container terminal on Lake Michigan. This would create the only all-water container route for ocean vessels to serve the greater Chicago metropolitan area via the Great Lakes.
The Ports of Indiana Commission approved Resolution 24-01 to launch “The Indiana Container Initiative” in support of developing multiple international container terminals within the state of Indiana.As a statewide port authority, Ports of Indiana operates multiple facilities on the Ohio River and Lake Michigan, but the state’s ports do not currently handle container shipments.
Ports of Indiana has filled two key leadership roles at its Ohio River ports, naming Ashley Blocker and Michael Graves as Operations Managers in Mount Vernon and Jeffersonville, respectively.Blocker, a southwest Indiana native, was promoted to the new role after serving as Operations Analyst for Ports of Indiana-Mount Vernon since 2022.