# Lake Charles (US LCH)

**UN/LOCODE:** US LCH  
**Country:** United States  
**Water Body:** Gulf of Mexico; North Atlantic Ocean  
**Harbor Size:** Small  
**Harbor Type:** River (Natural)  
**GPS:** 30.2167, -93.2500

Around 65 million tons of cargo moved through the Calcasieu Ship Channel in 2024, more than half of it international – a figure that defines Lake Charles (US LCH) as one of the United States' top-ten ports by tonnage and an energy hub first and foremost. Set in south-west Louisiana about 55 km inland from the Gulf of Mexico, the port owes much of its recent growth to LNG: Cameron LNG and Venture Global's Calcasieu Pass both sit on the channel, part of the world's busiest LNG-export region. The port's public terminals handle dry and breakbulk commodities such as petroleum coke, cement, grain, lumber, limestone, rutile, barite and chemicals, while private docks serve major refining and petrochemical operators. Inland connections run via Interstate 10, the BNSF and Union Pacific railroads and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway for barge traffic. U.S. Customs and Border Protection clears cargo, supported by a Foreign-Trade Zone for duty-deferred imports. What Lake Charles does not offer is scheduled container service; for boxes, shippers should look to Houston, New Orleans or Gulfport.

## Transit Times & Routes

- [Los Angeles → Shanghai](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-shanghai)
- [Los Angeles → Shenzhen](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-shenzhen)
- [Los Angeles → Guangzhou](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-guangzhou)
- [Los Angeles → Hong Kong](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-hong-kong)
- [Los Angeles → Tokyo](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-tokyo)
- [Los Angeles → Busan](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/transit-time/los-angeles-busan)

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*Freight Academy — Seaport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/seaports/lake-charles-port-us-lch](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/seaports/lake-charles-port-us-lch)*

*Markdown mirror: [https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/seaports/en/lake-charles-port-us-lch](https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/seaports/en/lake-charles-port-us-lch)*

*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/seaports/lake-charles-port-us-lch/llm-summary?lang=en*