Port of Brownsville emerges as a $22.7 billion economic engine for Texas

A recent analysis by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts found that the Port of Brownsville contributed $22.7 billion to the state’s economy, up 116% compared to 2003. 

Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock met with Port of Brownsville leaders on Wednesday for a tour and discussion about future investment to keep the port growing.

“South Texas is primed for the future that’s coming for the port with the deepening of the port, the dredging, and additional opportunities such as the LNG facility,” Hancock said. “We look forward to continuing the conversation. It’s a major economic engine not just for the region but the state.” 

The Port of Brownsville is undergoing a 17-mile dredging project to enable massive vessels, such as LNG tankers, to visit customers and has reconstructed one of its cargo docks, funded in part by a state grant. 

The Port of Brownsville supported 101,000 jobs last year and contributed $11.9 billion to the state’s gross domestic product, according to the comptroller’s analysis, which included Brownsville for the first time. 

There are 23 seaports along the Texas coast, and Brownsville is the only deepwater port along the Texas-Mexico border. 

The Port of Brownsville accounted for 5.3% of Texas trade by sea in 2024. Mexico was the top trading partner — nearly 93% of all exports from Brownsville went to Mexico in 2024. 

Data for 2025 was not immediately available, but port leaders projected that it would outpace 2024. 

“The channel deepening is one of the things that we have here at the Port of Brownsville that’s going to be able to expand up the current businesses that we have,” William Dietrich, CEO of the Port of Brownsville, said. “We can bring in a ship that has 50,000 metric tons of material. Now being able to go up to 75,000 metric tons is the value to our customer, and it also attracts other businesses…that we have a deep port channel with connectivity to the rest of the world.”