By The Associated Press

JEFFERSONVILLE — Indiana's ports authority has landed a more than $545,000 federal grant for a planned steel barge shuttle that officials say will boost steel coil shipments at the state’s Ohio River port in Jeffersonville.

The U.S. Department of Transportation grant will support the $778,000 project, which includes building an outdoor storage area and buying a forklift to handle steel coils at the port.

The project was developed with Nucor Steel to allow the barge shipment of coils from Ghent, Kentucky, to the Jeffersonville port.

The Ports of Indiana said the development will bring supply chain efficiencies for Nucor Steel and its private sector partners and also take over 2,000 trucks off the highways.

Ports of Indiana Senior Vice President Jody Peacock said the federal grant would provide critical funding for the project to “allow Nucor to better utilize our Jeffersonville port’s cargo handling facilities to serve customers and to grow future business.”

The Jeffersonville port handles Ohio River shipments of steel, agriculture and industrial cargoes, and provides more than 1,000 acres of industrial sites for multimodal businesses. It's operated by the Ports of Indiana, a statewide port authority that manages three ports on the Ohio River and Lake Michigan.