Maryland Port Administration New Hire to Lead Commercial Development

[By: Maryland Port Administratio]

Matthew (Matt) Wypyski, a 33-year maritime industry official, began as deputy executive director for commercial development at the Maryland Port Administration (MPA) earlier this month. In this position, Mr. Wypyski oversees and manages all revenue activities associated with the MPA including the departments of trade development and also maritime commercial management and strategic initiatives. Mr. Wypyski’s long career in the international maritime industry includes senior executive roles at other major U.S. ports, marine terminal and stevedoring companies, and with ocean carriers.    

“We are very fortunate to be able to add an individual of Matt’s background and experience at the Port of Baltimore,” said MPA Executive Director Jonathan Daniels.  “Baltimore is one of the nation’s largest and most cargo-diverse ports. Matt is extremely well-respected in our industry and he will be playing a significant role in helping us grow our cargo and cruise businesses as well as overseeing strategic initiatives such as the Howard Street Tunnel Project which will provide our port with the ability to handle double-stacked container trains which will increase volumes and generate thousands of jobs.”  

Mr. Wypyski becomes the MPA’s third deputy executive director joining Deputy Executive Director of Operations and Logistics Brian Miller and Deputy Executive Director of Administration and Environment Robert Munroe.  He arrives at the MPA after serving as chief operating officer at the Port of New Orleans since 2023, overseeing all operational needs.  He assisted in optimizing business development opportunities, serving tenants, maintaining customer relations, and the effective development of new facilities.

“I’m excited to be working alongside a very strong leadership group at the Maryland Port Administration and working at the Port of Baltimore, which has such a long and successful history and strong current business portfolio,” said Wypyski.  “Baltimore is very well-regarded as a leading U.S. port for both cargo and cruise activity and I’m looking forward to helping our team contribute to the port’s future growth and success.” 

Prior to joining the Port of New Orleans, Mr. Wypyski was deputy executive director and chief operating officer for 13 years at the Mississippi State Port Authority in Gulfport.  During his tenure, he assisted in managing the Port’s $600 million U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-funded expansion and improvement project, negotiated lease agreements, and managed a proposed dredging project for the federal navigation channel and turning basin.                                                        

Before heading to Mississippi, Mr. Wypyski was executive vice president of Mediterranean Shipping Company’s (MSC) New Orleans and Houston terminal operations.  Under his leadership, those terminals handled a combined annual throughput that exceeded 700,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit containers.  

Mr. Wypyski received his Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern Mississippi and a Bachelor of Science in Business Management/Marine Transportation/Nautical Science from the New York State Merchant Marine Academy.  

The CSX-owned Howard Street Tunnel Project is underway and will allow for the Port of Baltimore to accommodate double-stacked container rail cars, clearing a longtime hurdle for the Port and giving the East Coast seamless double-stack capacity from Maine to Florida.  The project involves clearance improvements in the 128-year-old tunnel and at 21 other locations between Baltimore and Philadelphia.  With the tunnel expansion project, Baltimore will be able to send double-stacked containers by rail into the Ohio Valley and onto Chicago. The Howard Street Tunnel project benefits from public-private investment from the federal government, Maryland, CSX, and others, and is expected to increase the Port’s business by about 160,000 containers annually.  The project will generate about 6,550 construction jobs and an additional 7,300 jobs from the increased business.

The Port of Baltimore generates about 20,300 direct jobs, with more than 273,000 jobs overall linked to Port activities. The Port ranked first in 2023 among the nation’s ports for volume of autos and light trucks, roll on/roll off heavy farm and construction machinery, imported sugar, and imported gypsum. It ranked ninth among major U.S. ports for foreign cargo handled and ninth for total foreign cargo value.