The idled grain terminal at the Ports of Indiana Burns Harbor is being put back in business.

Louis Dreyfus Co., considered one of the world’s “big four” global agricultural commodities companies, will start operations at the facility beginning in 2026, Ports of Indiana announced Monday.

The company reported net sales of $50.6 billion last year.

“We’re very pleased to partner with LDC to revitalize one of the most important agricultural shipping facilities in the state,” Ports of Indiana CEO Jody Peacock said in a news release.

“Combining LDC’s extensive resources with one of the most robust grain export facilities on the Great Lakes provides critical access to global markets for regional farmers. This is one of only a few places in the Midwest where you can load 1 million bushels of corn onto an ocean vessel for export while simultaneously unloading an 85-car unit train and hundreds of semi-trucks from local farmers.”

Since 1979, when the grain terminal opened, more than 500 million bushels of corn and soybeans had been exported from it. The grain terminal had been idle since 2023.LDC, founded in France in 1851, began its U.S. operations in 1909. LDC operates what it calls the country’s largest, fully integrated soybean crushing and biodiesel plant in Claypool, Indiana.

“LDC is excited to join forces with Ports of Indiana, whose commitment to growing the midwestern economy is aligned with our own, long-standing growth journey in the state,” said Gordon Russell, LDC’s U.S. Head of Grains & Oilseeds. “Burns Harbor is well-positioned at the southern shore of Lake Michigan, with access to multiple regional grain markets.

The port will be a strategic asset for LDC to expand market access for regional farmers and serve customers in North America and abroad.”

“LDC’s extended global network and business portfolio will support export growth and expand our reach across the agribusiness spectrum,” said Burns Harbor Port Director Ryan McCoy. “This terminal is one of the leading export facilities in the Midwest, with the capacity to load up to 90,000 bushels per hour into an ocean vessel or laker and unload 30,000 bushels per hour from a unit train. LDC’s investment will sharpen its competitive edge and help our region expand its multimodal capabilities and grow global trade.”

The Portage City Council granted tax abatements earlier this month to LDC.

The abatements include $15.45 million for the real estate and $2.55 million for the equipment. The abatements phase in the taxes over 10 years.

“There is considerable risk in us restarting it,” Senior Business Development Officer Peter Ward told the council.

Restarting and improving the grain elevator, previously operated by Cargill, will require an $18 million investment, he said.

The company plans to hire 13 people at competitive wages to fill skilled positions, Ward said.

Putting the grain elevator back online will be a big boost for the farming community, which will have a new buyer for crops. “The more we can buy, the better the elevator will be doing,” Ward said.

Louis Dreyfus has a major plant in Claypool and will provide soybeans for that operation through the grain elevator at the port.

Ward said the company will buy about $70 million worth of crops annually.

“Operations at the port are certainly important to us,” Mayor Austin Bonta said.

Although the port is named Burns Harbor, it’s actually located in Portage and not the town named after the port, Bonta wanted everyone to know.

It’s the largest U.S. port with access to the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway and U.S. Inland River System, and it also provides multimodal connections to 16 railroads in the Chicago market. The grain terminal includes storage capacity for 7.2 million bushels of grain, 200 railcars and 20 barges.

Doug Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.