Saronic has selected Brownsville, Texas as the future home of Port Alpha, its next-generation shipyard designed with the intention of helping restore American maritime strength and significantly expand the nation’s shipbuilding capacity.
The announcement marks a milestone in Saronic’s mission to restore US shipbuilding capacity at scale. First introduced as a vision for the future of maritime manufacturing, Port Alpha now moves from concept to reality through a planned investment of more than US 3 billion (approx. A $4.29 billion) that aims to establish one of the most advanced shipyards in the world, built for software-defined shipbuilding and autonomous maritime systems.
Construction is anticipated to begin in 2026, with Port Alpha expected to open for operations in 2028.
In one of his first actions in office, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance, followed by federal initiatives such as the SHIPS for America Act and the Maritime Action Plan that call for a generational rebuild of the American shipbuilding industry.
“America’s maritime future depends on our ability to build again,” Co-Founder and CEO of Saronic, Dino Mavrookas, stated.
“Port Alpha is our commitment to that mission. Built from the ground up to deliver ships at a speed and scale not seen since World War II, this investment is about more than constructing a shipyard. It is about rebuilding the industrial capacity, workforce, and manufacturing advantage required to ensure American maritime leadership for decades to come. The state of Texas and city of Brownsville give us the foundation to turn that vision into reality.”
Following a year-long nationwide search evaluating sites across the East, West, and Gulf Coasts, Brownsville was selected after a rigorous review of workforce availability, infrastructure readiness, land scale, logistics, and expansion potential.
Initially situated on approximately 338 hectares at the Port of Brownsville, with the opportunity to expand to nearly 1,780 hectares, Port Alpha will encompass a shipyard and manufacturing facility capable of producing vessels up to 259 metres.
Future site expansion could support the production of vessels over 366 metres. The site provides hundreds of hectares of waterfront access, deepwater channel connectivity, multimodal logistics infrastructure, and room for long-term expansion — everything required to anchor a next-generation shipbuilding hub.
“Today marks history with the announcement of the most advanced shipyard in the entire world,” Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott indicated.
“When this shipyard gets fully built out, there will be about 10,000 employees. Saronic is going to be providing about USD 750 million in annual paychecks to Texans. That’s game-changing for the population of Texas. As Governor, I’m proud that Saronic calls Texas home.”
Saronic will collaborate with the State of Texas, Cameron County, and local educational institutions — from regional technical colleges to leading State universities and institutions — to develop workforce training and apprenticeship programs designed to sustain long-term industrial growth and position South Texas as a centre of excellence for advanced maritime manufacturing.
Port Alpha builds on Saronic’s expanding shipbuilding footprint. In early 2025, the company acquired a shipyard in Franklin, Louisiana, where it is investing US 300 million (approx. A $429 billion) to add approximately 28,000 square metres of production capacity.
That facility will continue producing Saronic’s 55-metre Marauder autonomous vessel, which was designed and launched in less than one year, according to the company.