Maintaining clear maritime transit corridors, eliminating hazardous shoal accumulation, and supporting critical commercial petrochemical transport along the Texas Gulf Coast, Mike Hooks LLC has been awarded a $22,146,860 firm-fixed-price contract. The civil works navigation action finances maintenance dredging along commercial waterways near Port Neches, Texas, reaching a total cumulative face value of $31,233,110 if options are exercised.
Contract Details: At A Glance
| Contractor: | Mike Hooks LLC |
| Award Date: | September 22, 2026 |
| Contract Value: | $22,146,860 ($31,233,110 Cumulative Face Value) |
| Project: | Port Neches Waterway Maintenance Dredging |
| Location: | Port Neches, Texas |
| Contract Number: | W912HY-26-C-A031 |
| Awarding District: | U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District |
District Context & Mission Impact
This essential navigation maintenance project is administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District. The Galveston District oversees deep-draft shipping channels, coastal storm risk management, and industrial waterways across the Texas coast that drive international trade and national energy security. The waterways around Port Neches—including the Sabine-Neches Waterway—serve as vital navigation channels connecting major oil refineries, chemical plants, and heavy manufacturing facilities to global supply chains. Heavy riverine siltation and tidal currents continuously deposit sediment within authorized channels. Performing maintenance dredging restores designated navigation depths, prevents commercial vessel draft restrictions, and ensures safe, uninterrupted maritime traffic through late 2027.
Contractor Spotlight & Industry Context
Headquartered in Westlake, Louisiana, Mike Hooks LLC is an established, family-owned dredging contractor specializing in hydraulic cutterhead pipeline dredging, coastal restoration, wetland creation, and riverine channel maintenance throughout the Gulf Coast region. Bids were solicited via the internet with six competitive proposals received. Executing maintenance dredging in narrow industrial waterways requires high-capacity cutterhead pipeline dredges, specialized booster pumps, placement area management, and continuous hydrographic bathymetric surveying to maintain safe operating clearance for chemical tankers and tug-barge combinations. Partnering experienced dredging contractors with USACE coastal engineers maintains resilient Gulf Coast waterborne trade networks.
