Virginia Port Authority

Virginia Port Authority

The Virginia Port Authority (VPA) is an autonomous agency (political subdivision) of the Commonwealth of Virginia that owns the Port of Virginia; a group of facilities with their activity centered on the harbor of Hampton Roads, Virginia.

The principal facilities of the Port of Virginia are four marine terminals and one intermodal container transfer facility: Norfolk International Terminals, Portsmouth Marine Terminal, Newport News Marine Terminal, APM Terminals Virginia at Portsmouth, all on the harbor of Hampton Roads, and the Virginia Inland Port at Front Royal, Virginia. A site on the harbor at nearby Craney Island has been identified for future expansion.

Virginia International Terminals, Inc. (VIT), the Virginia Port Authority’s non-stock, non-profit affiliate, has operated the Port of Virginia since its creation by the state in 1981 and is headquarterd in downtown Norfolk, Virginia. The agency also employs regional managers throughout the United States and in Belgium, Brazil, Japan, Hong Kong, India, and South Korea.

In May, 2012 global port operator APM Terminals submitted a conceptual proposal under Virginia’s PPTA guidelines to give the Commonwealth of Virginia its $540 million Portsmouth container terminal and additional cash payments in exchange for running Hampton Roads’ port operations. APM Terminals has operated in the port for more than 30 years. The $540 million investment in the Portsmouth facility is one of the largest private investments ever made in Virginia. The Commonwealth of Virginia is currently considering the proposal.