The US Army Corps of Engineers is again seeking bids for the opening phase of the Port of Nome Modification Project months after the initial procurement effort was canceled due to unexpectedly high bids for the work. The three-phase project is intended to enlarge the outer basin of Nome Harbor while creating
the nation’s first Arctic deep-water port.

The original opening phase on the three-phase project called for an extension of the West Causeway by approximately 3,500 linear feet—including 2,000 feet of open cell sheet pile dock face—into the deep-water basin with 22-ton armor stone. Corps officials have slimmed down the scope of work and the updated solicitation, dubbed Phase 1A, now features 1,200 ft of causeway extensions, 600 ft of new open cell sheet pile dock and 18-ton armor stone, all with removal of the existing spur breakwater. 

“The original full build out of the original West Causeway design remains our objective,” the USACE says in a statement. “However, we are pushing ahead with a new phase of the project which we are calling Phase 1A.”

A  corps spokesperson tells ENR that a future Phase 1B will provide the full build out of the West Causeway extension.

The Phase 1A project, which is out for solicitation now with an April 14 deadline, has an anticipated award date of Aug. 22. The USACE expects the project to range between $250 million and $500 million, down from the advertised $662 million for the first phase that turned out to be too low to proceed.

The number of bids and their amounts in the initial round, which was canceled on Oct. 16, 2024, were not disclosed. At the time, the agency said it was “incorrect to say that the government estimate was unrealistically low,” rather that bids came in higher than expected. With about 90% of the project funding from the federal government and the remaining 10% from the city of Nome, government procurement laws bar accepting contracts 25% over the cost estimate.

The revised solicitation reduces the rock size from 22 tons to 18 tons, part of the cost-saving measures. The USACE Alaska District says in a statement that it has a high level of confidence that the Port of Nome Modification design will be resilient to future climate conditions, even with the change, and that project design and climate change considerations have been incorporated in accordance with current guidelines.

Revised Timeline

A city of Nome spokesperson told ENR it does not have a formal statement on the rebid, but said the city is looking forward to the project award in summer 2025 with field construction starting in spring 2026.

A project partnership between the federal and local government was signed in January 2024, with the original plan to award a contract in late summer 2024 and start construction in spring 2025. The delay in 2024 has pushed the start date back about one year.

According to the new wording in the solicitation, the project is expected to take 1,370 days from the notice to proceed. The design-bid-build project is a firm-fixed price contract, and the procurement process will use a best value tradeoff selection procedure, considering the price and non-price factors.

As part of the Phase 1A project, the 1,200-long extension to the existing causeway will feature layered aggregate and rock embankment protected by 18-ton armor stone. The causeway extension will incorporate a 30-ft-wide road surface and include a 600-ft-long open cell sheet pile dock. The project still requires the removal of the 250-ft-long spur breakwater and existing 22-ton armor stone and B-rock underlayer at the nose of the causeway. It is possible that the contractor can choose to reuse rocks from the spur breakwater.

The project will enable the port, also known as Nome Harbor, to handle more vessels at any given time and increase harbor depth from 22 ft to 40 ft, sufficient to adequately accommodate a range of vessels for trade, tourism and national security.

Serving as a regional hub centrally located on Alaska’s western coast, the Port of Nome was created in 1917 on the Seward Peninsula, adjacent to Norton Sound. It is located 545 miles northwest of Anchorage and has no access to major Alaska road systems. Government officials believe that Nome, with a population of 3,500, offers foundational importance to the viability of surrounding communities. The port also offers a launching point for vessels heading into Bering Strait shipping lanes.

A 40-ft deep-water basin allows the port to accommodate every U.S. military ship smaller than an aircraft carrier. Nome Mayor John Handeland had previously said the U.S. has long needed a deep-water port to allow resupply and refueling services to the national security fleet operating in the Arctic.