PORT NEWS AND NOTES: Port Secures Connect Oregon Grant for Seismic Upgrades at Port Westward

March 21, 2025
Sean Clark, Executive Director

The Port of Columbia County recently received a $2.7 million award from the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Connect Oregon program to modernize the Port Westward Beaver Dock. This funding will kick off the first phase of dock upgrades to meet the state’s new seismic standards, ensuring Port Westward stays safe and operational during a major earthquake.

Located just outside Clatskanie, Port Westward is one of only five deepwater ports in Oregon and the deepest liquid bulk terminal in the state. Built by the U.S. Army during World War II as an ammunition shipping point, Beaver Dock was purchased by the Port in 1966 for economic development. It has since been used to ship various commodities to both domestic and international markets.

Today, it's a key energy hub, with Columbia Pacific Bio-Refinery shipping over 3 million barrels of renewable diesel per year from the marine terminal. Additionally, NXTClean Fuels is preparing to build a 50,000-barrel-per-day renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel refinery at the site, with plans to ship and receive products via the dock. Portland General Electric also operates three power plants at the site that are dependent on the dock infrastructure.

The push for seismic upgrades follows Oregon’s Senate Bill 1567, passed in 2022, which mandates improved seismic resilience for fuel storage and distribution facilities vulnerable to a Cascadia Subduction Zone magnitude 9.0 earthquake. While the Port doesn't own fuel storage tanks, the law extends to related infrastructure, such as piers and mooring structures, making Port Westward’s Beaver Dock the only public entity affected by the new seismic regulations.

The modernization project will involve extending a new seismically resilient pipeline bridge to prepare for the relocation of the product lines away from the water-facing side of the dock. This first phase will cover design, engineering, permitting, and construction of a new pipeline bridge. The Port will contribute $1.2 million from its Beaver Dock Capital Reserve Fund, bringing the total available funding for phase one to $3.9 million.

Port Westward supports more than 100 jobs and is home to two of Columbia County’s highest taxpayers. Once the NXTClean Fuels refinery is operational, it’s expected to create an additional 240 jobs and will be the highest taxpayer in the county.

Beyond the economic impact, after all seismic upgrades are complete, Port Westward will be one of the few, if only, seismically resilient marine fuel terminals on the Columbia River. By modernizing the dock, the Port is not only securing business continuity but also contributing to the state’s long-term disaster preparedness and recovery efforts in the aftermath of a Cascadia event.