The Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has announced that the Cabinet has officially approved a total port infrastructure development plan worth 76.24 billion yen (approximately US$510 million) for fiscal year 2026. The funds will be allocated to 73 ports nationwide for the procurement of cargo handling equipment, construction of transit warehouses, and consolidation of wharf operating areas and port-adjacent industrial land.

The special port development program for fiscal year 2026, based on the Port and Harbor Improvement Promotion Act, was approved by the Cabinet on July 24. Its objective is to equip newly built berths and supporting facilities for various public works with necessary operating equipment and land space, thereby strengthening the port operational base.

The funds are divided into two main investment categories:

The first category totals 46.62 billion yen for routine port facility improvements, including:

- 34.99 billion yen for 63 ports to develop a total of 1,616,000 square meters of wharf and yard areas;

- 8.93 billion yen to procure 58 units of cargo handling machinery for 25 ports, with ports such as Tomakomai, Sendai-Shiogama, Kashima, Kawasaki, Osaka, Hiroshima, Kitakyushu, and Shibushi among those on the equipment renewal list;

- The remaining 2.69 billion yen for 20 ports to construct 83 transit cargo sheds.

The second category is coastal land development, with 29.63 billion yen allocated as follows:

- 25.64 billion yen for 13 ports including Yokohama, Osaka, Mizushima, Hiroshima, Hakata, and Kagoshima to add 432,000 square meters of port logistics and warehouse land;

- 3.99 billion yen for six port areas—Ibaraki, Himeji, Amagasaki-Nishinomiya-Ashiya, Mizushima, Kanda, and Yatsushiro—to develop 193,000 square meters of port-adjacent industrial plots.

All projects will be implemented by local port authorities, with funding raised through local government bonds. Principal and interest on the loans will be repaid using wharfage fees, land sale proceeds, and various port operating revenues. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism will assist local authorities in securing financing channels in line with the Cabinet-approved plan.

Compared with the fiscal year 2025 plan, the number of ports covered in the current year increases from 72 to 73, though the total investment scale has decreased slightly. In the previous fiscal year, Japan allocated approximately 79.6 billion yen for upgrades at 72 ports.