Paul Matthews

Paul Matthews is the Chief Executive Officer of the Port of South Louisiana, America’s Leading Grain Exporter and the second largest tonnage Port in the Western Hemisphere. His tenure began in January 2022.  Matthews made history by becoming Louisiana’s first African-American port director. Prior to his time at the Port of South Louisiana, he served as Deputy Port Director at Plaquemines Port Harbor and Terminal District. He joined Plaquemines Port in 2017 after serving as the Community Affairs Manager at the Port of New Orleans. 

As CEO, Matthews has been leading the Port of South Louisiana by maintaining many of the Port’s successes and growth. Under his direction, the Port of South Louisiana has focused on leading the way in the areas of agriculture, infrastructure and the energy transition. In his first 2 years as CEO, the Port had back-back years of net increases in tonnage, a reversal of a 7 year trend of decreases. Those fiscal years also ended with back-to-back years of record-breaking revenue, the highest since the Port’s creation. His administration has secured millions in state and federal funds, renewed long-term leases with multiple industry partners and has entered into agreements that will foster the construction of facilities in the renewable energy industry, with more than $1.5 billion in capital expenditures and creating nearly 1,000 jobs.

During his career, Matthews helped execute multi-million-dollar terminal leases and facilitated the development of a private-public partnership to expand rail service while at the Plaquemines Port. He also assisted in securing millions of dollars of federal port security and dredging funds and was involved in attracting grants for critical port infrastructure projects. 

Matthews is the President of the Ports Association of Louisiana and a U.S. At-Large Director for the American Association of Port Authorities. He is a member of the Executive Board of Greater New Orleans, Inc and past Chairman of GNO Inc. NextGen Council. Matthews is appointed to the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Coastal Protection, Restoration & Conservation, Louisiana Board of International Commerce, as well as the Southern University Board of Supervisors. He served on Governor Jeff Landry’s Transition Council for Infrastructure and Development. Matthews was awarded the 40 under 40 Award by Inland Marine Expo and was highlighted in Biz New Orleans Magazine’s New and Notables. He is a member of various maritime and civic organizations, including the World Trade Center of New Orleans & Board of Directors of United Way Southeast Louisiana.

Matthews is a graduate of Ben Franklin High School in New Orleans, Tulane University, and received an MBA from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.