US Navy and Port of Hueneme step in to relieve shipping bottlenecks

Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC), in partnership with the Oxnard Harbor District, is providing US Navy resources onboard the Port of Hueneme to support decreasing port congestion in Los Angeles County and reducing the national supply chain shortage.

The Department of the Navy entered into a joint use agreement (JUA) in 2002 with the Oxnard Harbor District, which authorises commercial use of Wharf 3 onboard NBVC, including approximately 21 acres of contiguous land, buildings 546 and 548, and if available, up to an additional 10 acres of industrial land located outside of the Wharf 3 area.

The JUA was activated in November as a resource to help reduce the shipping congestion affecting Los Angeles County’s major ports and contributing to the national supply crisis. Vessels would arrive at the port to unload a portion of their containers before continuing on to LA County or choose to unload all their containers at the Port of Hueneme to avoid the backlog of ships farther south.

“NBVC recently welcomed a large cargo vessel,” said Daniel J. Herrera, assistant program director for port operations, NBVC. “Ports America already offloaded a large number of forty-foot containers into lot 22 onboard Port Hueneme which is merchandise expected to have a direct impact with helping to support holiday supply demands.”