Skanska has completed the redevelopment project for the Virginia Port Authority, upgrading 72 acres of Portsmouth Marine Terminal (PMT) and 1,500 feet of wharf that now serves as an offshore wind staging port. Dominion Energy uses the Portsmouth Marine Terminal staging port for its Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, one of the largest offshore wind installations in the United States.
The terminal serves as a collection and storage site for wind turbine components, which are then transferred to installation vessels. Located at the intersection of Cleveland Street and Lee Avenue in Portsmouth, Virginia, it is one of the largest facilities within the Port of Virginia complex, occupying 287 acres of land on the west bank of the Elizabeth River. The terminal has 4,500 feet of wharf, three berths and is able to handle containers, break-bulk and Ro/Ro.
The facility is served by CSX directly and Norfolk Southern via the Norfolk Portsmouth Beltline Railway. The site currently operates as a major container port. The shipping of breakbulk and bulk commodities also occurs at the site to a lesser degree.
“We are proud to support the vital role of the Virginia Port Authority and Dominion’s work to build clean energy infrastructure, in this case enough wind energy to power 660,000 homes a year,” says Brook Brookshire, senior vice president of operations, Skanska USA Civil. “This project strengthens vital port infrastructure while advancing sustainable energy production and benefiting local communities through job creation.”
The Offshore Work
Skanska’s work, which began in 2022 and was substantially completed March 2025, included:
- Constructing three heavy lift berths: the wind turbine generator delivery berth, the wind turbine generator load-out berth, and the berth for the steel tube monopiles.
- Strengthening the soils and surface in the upland areas to accommodate heavy surface loadings from cranes, self-propelled modular transporters, wind turbine generators, and monopile and transition piece components.
- Installing high mast lighting, stormwater collection systems and other ancillary structures and systems.
- Driving 1,335 150-foot-long piles (stretching 37 miles long if lined up end to end) and pouring 26,500 cubic yards of concrete.
“Skanska has been a good partner in the transformation of Portsmouth Marine Terminal into a logistics hub for the growing, regional offshore wind industry,” says Stephen A. Edwards, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority. “The project presented some challenges, but there was a lot of collaboration between the port and Skanska teams that yielded a project, an outcome, that was delivered on-time and on-budget.”
Components for 176 enormous turbines are passing through the Portsmouth Marine Terminal. Once Dominion Energy completes the CVOW project, which includes assembling and installing offshore turbines, they will generate 2.6 gigawatts of energy.
Skanska has previously completed several projects for the Virginia Port Authority, including:
- Norfolk International Terminals (NIT) North Wharf Expansion, Part 2
- Norfolk International Terminal South Renovation Phase I
Skanska uses knowledge and foresight to shape the way people live, work and connect. More than 135 years in the making, it is one of the world’s largest development and construction companies, operating in select markets throughout the Nordics, Europe and the U.S. Headquarted in New York City, Skansa has 28 offices around the country. In 2023, construction in the U.S. generated $7.1 billion in revenue, and as a developer in the U.S.,
Over the years, Skanska has invested a total value of $4.6 billion in commercial and multi-family projects. Together, with its customers and the collective expertise of 6,500 teammates in the U.S. and 27,000 globally, it creates innovative and sustainable solutions that support healthy living beyond our lifetime.
Photo Credit: The Virginia Port Authority
