Reed, Whitehouse, McKee and RI officials celebrate Port of Davisville’s Terminal 5 Pier and Blue Economy Support Docks

North Kingstown, RI Federal, state and local leaders joined the Quonset Development Corp. for a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the Port of Davisville’s Terminal 5 Pier and Blue Economy Support Docks, the first new pier built at Quonset in almost 70 years.

The Terminal 5 Pier offers specialized berthing spaces to accommodate a variety of vessels and cargoes. The Blue Economy Support Docks and Boat Ramp accommodate smaller boats and the short-term docking needs of small businesses, emerging companies and research and development organizations.

The Port of Davisville is one of the Top 10 auto importers in North America and Rhode Island’s only public port. Davisville supports more than 1,600 jobs and generates $374 million in annual economic output.

“Thanks to the consistent support of our partners in government and the private sector, we continue to make major investments to improve, upgrade and expand the Port of Davisville,” said QDC managing director Steven King, P.E. “The new pier and support docks will serve as a gateway to Narragansett Bay for local small and growing businesses, filling a vital need for easily-accessible waterfront access.”

Part of the Port of Davisville’s infrastructure development initiative, the Terminal 5 Pier and Blue Economy Support Docks will provide a new 50-year service life to the port’s infrastructure.

The Terminal 5 project is fully funded through State Fiscal Recovery Funds, allocated to Rhode Island as part of the American Rescue Plan Act. 

“This project is the latest sign of Rhode Island’s commitment to continued economic progress,” said governor Dan McKee. “Our administration has made crucial investments in Quonset to support projects that drive Rhode Island’s economic momentum forward. I’m grateful to our congressional delegation and the QDC for their partnership in delivering critical infrastructure needed for job growth and business development.”

“I am pleased to help deliver federal funding to enhance Rhode Island’s working waterfront and improve Quonset’s port infrastructure. Years of hard work and wise investments have helped transform Quonset into a powerful engine of economic growth for the Ocean State and we’ve got to keep working to ensure the port can build on its recent success. The Trump Administration’s needless halting of the Revolution Wind project has cast a shadow of uncertainty on thousands of jobs and could raise energy prices. And the Administration’s recent termination of a separate $11.25 million federal grant for additional upgrades at Quonset is a senseless attack on this economic center for our state. We can’t allow this to continue and we’ve got to keep working and strategically investing to wisely develop this site so it benefits the people of Rhode Island now, in the future, and for generations to come,” said U.S. senator Jack Reed, a leading member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, who noted the project is fully funded through federal State Fiscal Recovery Funds that were allocated to Rhode Island under the American Rescue Plan Act.

“The Terminal 5 Pier, funded by our American Rescue Plan, is the first new pier at Quonset in nearly 70 years and a major development for Rhode Island’s economy.  Terminal 5 will expand research and business development in the Blue Economy and support more Rhode Islanders with well-paying union jobs,” said U.S. senator Sheldon Whitehouse, ranking member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. “I am committed to doing everything I can to keep Rhode Island’s Blue Economy thriving.”

“The federally-funded upgrades at the Port of Davisville will turbocharge Rhode Island’s Blue Economy, spurring innovation, supporting good jobs, and lowering energy costs,” said U.S. representative Gabe Amo. “Extending the service life of our state’s only public port increases shipping capacity, supports trade, and secures Rhode Island’s role as a renewable energy hub.”

“The Terminal 5 project marks a major investment in the future of the Port of Davisville — ensuring it remains a catalyst for jobs and economic growth. By expanding capacity, we are strengthening the state’s role in global trade while creating new opportunities for ocean tech companies that rely on water access,” said Stefan Pryor, secretary of Commerce & QDC board chair.

“Quonset’s new Terminal 5 Pier is exactly the kind of infrastructure that companies like REGENT are looking for when deciding where to locate,” said Billy Thalheimer, co-founder and CEO of REGENT Craft. “There is no better place to build maritime technology than Quonset Park. Quonset’s ability to conceive and quickly construct this type of facility is one of the reasons why REGENT has been so successful with the rapid expansion of our manufacturing and test operations here.”

“Access to high-caliber maritime infrastructure was a decisive factor in selecting a home for our AUV production line,” said James Buescher, general manager of Maritime US at Anduril Industries. “Quonset delivers on speed, scale, and execution. Rhode Island’s continued investment in the Port of Davisville — especially Terminal 5 Pier and the new Blue Economy Support Docks — provides the operational space we need to prototype, test, and scale the autonomous vehicles that we manufacture here.”

Construction of the Terminal 5 Pier and Blue Economy Support Docks was completed on-time and on-budget by a design-build team comprised of Manafort Brothers, Inc. and WSP. Inc.

Quonset is home to over 14,800 jobs at 252 companies, including nearly one of every five manufacturing jobs in the state. The Business Park generates $1.7 billion in annual household income for Rhode Island families and over $150 million in tax revenue.