[5] Situated at the North-Western end of Carlisle Bay, the harbour handles all of the country's international bulk ship-based trade and commerce.

The project followed a rigorous environmental monitoring programme by the Barbados Port Inc. along with key regulatory agencies, namely the Town Planning Department, the Coastal Zone Management Unit, the Environmental Engineering Division and the University of the West Indies' Natural Resources Management Programme to ensure that the oceanographic and sediment processes, the water quality, and the marine communities were not compromised in any way.

[12] In December 2008, Minister of International Transport George Hutson announced that due to congestion between cargo and passenger ships at the Deep Water Harbour, the country needed to look at expansion at the facility following the last upgrade undertaken in 2002.

[15] Due to increased activity at the port, officials say it is poised to become a "super-hub of the southern Caribbean", rivalling Puerto Rico.

[26] The first phase of the new terminal is expected to cost in the region of BDS$300 million, and dredge work is planned by the administration to begin in November 2012.

[36][37] Top-Rated Southern Caribbean Destinations 2016 & 2017[38] Top trading partners:[40] Imports: consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components Exports: manufactures, sugar and molasses, cotton, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, light manufacturing, electrical components The berths and terminals of Bridgetown are laid out as follows:[3] The Deep-Water Harbour now acts as a home port for many of the British-based Cruise ship lines operating in the Caribbean region.