The Circuit Court of New Madrid County organized the New Madrid County Port Authority in 1978 under the State's Statutes for Port Authorities. Phase I of the harbor widening project was completed in 1998, and Phase II was finished by the Memphis District of the US Army Corps of Engineers in 2000. By the end of the harbor widening efforts, the harbor was over 68 meters (225 feet) wide along its 457-meter (1500-foot) length. The harbor channel is dredged to a depth of 2.7 meters (9 feet). The New Madrid County Port has never been closed because of high water, low water, or ice.

Widening the harbor allowed the New Madrid County Port to both load/unload tenant barges at the same time as other barges enter and exit the harbor. The Corps of Engineers dredged about 135 thousand cubic yards of material that was used to stabilize the harbor slopes. Today, the New Madrid County Port is scheduled for repairs of infrastructure, roads, and docks and for the addition of a warehouse facility at the harbor.

New Madrid County Port has a general cargo dock available to the public and to harbor tenants. A rice mill is located there, and there are about 35 acres available for lease in the harbor site. New Madrid County Port is located adjacent to the 1700-hectare St. Jude Industrial Park where tax advantages, utility services, and a plentiful workforce make New Madrid County Port a great location for industry.

Moving cargo by barge is highly competitive. Where one flatbed railroad car can carry four TEUs of containerized cargo, a jumbo barge can carry as many as 72 TEUs. A 15-barge tow can carry over one thousand TEUs, about the same as 225 railroad cars. Barges are also much more fuel-efficient than trucks and trains. Moving cargo by barge extends the life of highways and is the safest way to transport goods, particularly chemicals and toxic materials.

New Madrid County Port is located in Slackwater Harbor on the Mississippi River. New Madrid County Port's general cargo dock is equipped with a Manitowoc 4000 crane. This New Madrid County Port general cargo dock is well-lit for loading/unloading at night. The New Madrid County Port is located within the 36-acre enterprise zone, and it is served by the Union Pacific Railroad.

The St. Jude Industrial Park offers facilities and services to support cargo traffic and industry in the New Madrid County Port. The park has a 500 thousand gallon water storage tank, four-million gallon fire protection storage, and a storm drainage system. Tenants have access to five miles of rail tracks within the park and a dock in Slackwater Harbor on the Mississippi River. There are 696 hectares of available space within the park. Current tenants include the New Madrid County Port Authority, Noranda Aluminum Inc., and the City of New Madrid's electric power plant. The New Madrid County Port Authority occupies 117 acres and has 30 acres available for lease.

The New Madrid County Port Authority owns, and St. Jude and New Madrid Harbor Service Inc. jointly operate the New Madrid County Port Dock primarily to receive dry bulk commodities that include coal and rice. A surface rail track at the rear of the dock connects with the Union Pacific Railroad. The New Madrid County Port Dock has berthing distance of 45.7 meters (150 feet) with alongside depth of 2.7 meters (9 feet).

The New Madrid County Port Authority owns, and Riceland Foods Inc. operates the New Madrid County Port Authority Grain Terminal Dock to ship rice. The slip is 457.2 meters (1500 feet) long and 133 meters (436 feet) wide. The dock offers 61 meters (200 feet) of berthing space with alongside depth of 3 meters (10 feet). A grain elevator with capacity for 990 thousand bushels of rice is located at the rear of the dock, and trucks deliver rice to the mill at the rear. Milled rice is then shipped by barge through the New Madrid County Port. A surface rail track connects the dock with the Union Pacific Railroad.

Cargill AgHorizons Inc. owns and operates the New Madrid County Port Elevator Dock to ship grain. The grain elevator at the rear of the dock has capacity for 935 thousand bushels stored in four concrete silos and six steel tanks. This New Madrid County Port dock has berthing distance of 109.7 meters (360 feet) with alongside depth of 4.6 meters (15 feet).

Koch Pavement Solutions owns and operates the New Madrid Dock to receive asphalt. A pipeline connects the dock to five steel storage tanks with total capacity for 140 thousand barrels. There is a ready-mix plant operated by Delta Asphalt Inc. adjacent to the site. This New Madrid County Port dock has berthing distance of 73.2 meters (240 feet) with alongside depth of 1.2 meters (4 feet).

Cargill AgHorizon owns, and River Bend Ag LLC operates the New Madrid County Port Dry-Bulk Fertilizer Dock to receive dry bulk fertilizers that include potash, phosphate, and urea. The facilities include a concrete warehouse with capacity for 18 thousand tons and two concrete domes with capacity for eight thousand tons at the rear of the dock. The New Madrid County Port Dry-Bulk Fertilizer Dock has berthing distance of 61 meters (200 feet) with alongside depth of 1.8 meters (6 feet).

The Delta Growers Association owns, and River Bend Ag LLC operates the New Madrid County Port Liquid-Bulk Fertilizer Dock to receive liquid fertilizers. The dock has berthing space of 76.2 meters (250 feet) with alongside depth of 2.4 meters (8 feet). A pipeline extends from the dock to three steel storage tanks with total capacity for 2.5 million gallons of fertilizer. An additional pipeline extends from the storage tanks to two additional tanks at the rear with capacity for two million gallons in New Madrid County Port.

The City of New Madrid owns, and St. Jude and New Madrid Harbor Service Inc. operates the New Madrid County Port Barge Dock to ship and receive dry bulk cargoes that include grain and coal and to receive machinery and heavy equipment. A permanently-moored steel barge at the lower rear of the facility is used to moor towboats. The Barge Dock in New Madrid County Port has berthing distance of 183 meters (600 feet) with alongside depth of 5.2 meters (17 feet).

St. Jude and New Madrid Harbor Service Inc. owns and operates the New Madrid County Port Fleet Moorings to moor barges for fleeting. The two berths offer 12.2 meters (40 feet) of berthing distance with alongside depth of three meters (10 feet) and 7.6 meters (25 feet) of berthing distance with alongside depth of 1.5 meters (5 feet).

The Associated Electric Cooperative Inc. owns, and Reed Mineral Company operates the New Madrid Power Plant Dock to ship slag (although it was not in use at the time of the 2004 New Madrid County Port survey). This New Madrid County dock has two berths. One has berthing distance of 992 meters (3255 feet) with alongside depth of 7 meters (23 feet). The second has berthing distance of 183 meters (600 feet) with alongside depth of 4.6 meters (15 feet).

This New Madrid County Port dock is equipped with one barge-loading shoot and a 42-inch belt conveyor from open storage at the rear of the dock. The open storage area can accommodate 800 thousand tons of coal and 25 thousand tons of slag. The berths can handle 24 loaded barges and 12 unloaded barges. Two surface rail tracks serve the power plant and connect with the Union Pacific Railroad.

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