Crowley Talleyrand Terminal in Jacksonville Gets $3 Million Site-Clearing Permit as Diesel Reefer Racks Give Way to 160 Electric Plugs

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The City of Jacksonville issued a $3 million site-clearing permit on Oct. 27, 2026, for a Crowley Logistics Inc. project at JAXPORT's Talleyrand Marine Terminal. The project would replace diesel generator-powered refrigerated container racks with electrically powered ones at 3001 Talleyrand Ave., near the Downtown riverfront. The permit figures come from the Jax Daily Record's Oct. 28 reporting on city permitting data.

Crowley spokesperson David DeCamp said the permit is tied to the company's move away from diesel at the terminal. The permitting record lists an estimated total cost of $11.6 million for the project. A larger construction permit is still under review, so the site-clearing permit is only the first piece to appear in the city's records.

What the city has approved so far

The permit issued Oct. 27 covers site-clearing work, and the contractor listed for that $3 million job is Ragnar Benson LLC. The same contractor is listed on a separate construction permit with an estimated cost of $8.23 million. That construction permit has not been approved and is still under review, according to the Daily Record's account of the city data.

A third permit is also under review. It carries an estimated cost of $400,000 and lists Elite Electric Co. LLC of Callahan, which would install a refrigerated container at the site. The Daily Record reported that Crowley says the engineer of record is AECOM Technical Services Inc. of Savannah, Georgia.

The Jax Times has not viewed the city permit record or the permit numbers themselves. The figures here come from the Daily Record's reporting of city data. Readers who need the exact permit language should check the city record directly. Permit amounts are estimates, and an estimate in a permit is not the same as a final project cost. Any change to the figures would have to come from the city or from the companies involved.

What is planned at the terminal

Crowley plans to replace diesel generator-powered refrigerated container racks with electrically powered racks on a 50.8-acre waterfront property. Refrigerated containers are often called reefers, and the plugs that power them are called reefer plugs. The planned work includes five four-high reefer racks that would support 160 reefer plugs, along with 20 new maintenance reefer plugs.

The plans also call for an electrical substation and a maintenance area. Underground utilities, demolition, grading and pavement are part of the scope as well. Taken together, the list shows a project that goes beyond swapping out equipment and includes new electrical and site infrastructure.

The terminal is expected to stay operational through all three construction phases. That matters because the Talleyrand terminal is a working port facility rather than an empty lot. The reporting does not give start dates, finish dates or a schedule for the phases, so no timeline is stated here.

Crowley leases the site from JAXPORT

Crowley leases the property from the Jacksonville Port Authority, known as JAXPORT. That means the work is happening on port authority land that Crowley operates. The Talleyrand Marine Terminal sits near the Downtown riverfront.

DeCamp responded to questions by email on Oct. 27. "The permit is related to our actions to increase capacity and transitioning from the use of diesel on the terminal, in this case for equipment for the refrigerated containers that transport perishables in our network," he said. He said the project is part of the JAXPORT Express program, funded by a federal grant that Crowley is matching.

The JAXPORT Express program

JAXPORT Express is a $47 million public-private partnership of JAXPORT, SSA Jacksonville and Crowley. It covers the Blount Island and Talleyrand terminals. It is funded in part by a $23.5 million federal Port Infrastructure Development Program grant from the U.S. Maritime Administration, which JAXPORT announced on Oct. 31, 2022.

JAXPORT's Express page lists equipment for the program. That list includes 28 Tier 4 diesel top picks, 7 Tier 4 diesel yard tractors, 10 battery-electric yard tractors and a 160-plug electric reefer system. The program covers two terminals, so the other items should not be read as the Talleyrand inventory alone.

In the 2022 release, JAXPORT CEO Eric Green said: "This investment marks a milestone in our initiatives to build the port of the future." That statement was made about the broader investment announced in 2022, not about the permit issued this month. It does show how the port framed the program when the federal money was announced.

Two different dollar figures

The Talleyrand piece of the program was announced in 2022 as a $14.6 million Crowley project. That announcement described nearly two dozen zero-emission cargo-handling units, such as specialty yard tractors and forklifts, plus charging stations. It also included 160 refrigerated cargo charging stations, which are the reefer plugs.

The $11.6 million figure comes from the city's permitting data in 2026. The two amounts were reported at different times and from different sources. The Jax Times is not claiming they describe the same scope of work, and readers should keep the dates attached to each number.

Both descriptions share the number 160 for reefer plugs. The number matches, but the reporting does not explain how the 2022 plan and the 2026 permits line up. Questions about scope and cost would have to be answered by Crowley or JAXPORT.

What to know

• Where: 3001 Talleyrand Ave., on JAXPORT's Talleyrand Marine Terminal, near the Downtown riverfront.
• Approved: A $3 million site-clearing permit, issued Oct. 27, 2026, with Ragnar Benson LLC as contractor.
• Still under review: An estimated $8.23 million construction permit and a separate estimated $400,000 permit for Elite Electric Co. LLC of Callahan.
• Planned work: Five four-high reefer racks supporting 160 reefer plugs, 20 new maintenance reefer plugs, an electrical substation and a maintenance area.
• Operations: The terminal is expected to stay operational through all three construction phases.
• Not reported: Construction start and finish dates, and any permit numbers.

The Daily Record's Oct. 28 article is the source for the permit details and the DeCamp statement. JAXPORT's 2022 release and its Express page are the source for the program background. Anyone planning around port activity should watch for updates from Crowley and JAXPORT, since the larger construction permit has not yet been approved.