Senators Jim Webb and Mark Warner on Friday announced they have secured funding for the expansion of Craney Island in Hampton Roads.

About $27.4 million has been set aside in the Fiscal Year 2012 Energy and Water Appropriations bill. The Craney Island expansion will allow the Virginia Port Authority to nearly double its marine terminal capacity.

“The Craney Island Project will generate more than 1,100 jobs immediately and 54,000 sustainable jobs after construction,” Webb said. The expansion would mean the ports can “meet the anticipated increased in shipped goods to and from international ports,” he added.

The Port of Virginia is a gateway for international commerce and its one of 13 U.S. ports that support the mobilization and readiness of the military. Businesses from all 48 contiguous states move cargo through Virginia, according to a press release from the senators’ offices.

“The expansion project at the Port of Virginia is a critical infrastructure project that will help support Virginia’s economic competitiveness for decades,” Warner said.

“I am pleased that Senator Webb and I were able to partner together to win this funding for such an important infrastructure project for the commonwealth,” he said.

The project is set to open in 2010. According to the press release, the Panama Canal expansion expected to be complete in 2014 will provide an increase in international trade for the Virginia ports. The Heartland Rail Corridor, which connects the Hampton Roads ports to the Midwest, opened last year and also has brought an increase in volume at the ports.

“We appreciate the efforts of Senators Webb and Warner to secure crucial funding for the development of the Port of Virginia,” said Jeff Keever, senior deputy director of the Virginia Port Authority. “Their support for Craney Island over the years has paved the way for strategic infrastructure improvements and job creation.”