Economic development officials in Western Tidewater are predicting a tide of new business activity and jobs as they move to capitalize on major upgrades to Hampton Roads port facilities and associated infrastructure.

The flurry of excitement is rooted in the installation of new locks in the Panama Canal, which will increase traffic and accommodate East Coast-bound container ships carrying well in excess of double the cargo volume of previous vessels.

To reap the benefits of the canal project, scheduled for completion in 2014, the Port of Virginia is planning a $250-million upgrade of Portsmouth’s APM Terminals Virginia, along with a new port facility at Craney Island.

East Coast retailers and other businesses will be able to import more goods from Asia for much less money, and in turn are planning new distribution and warehouse facilities.

Addressing a public forum at Windsor High School Wednesday hosted by Delegate Rick Morris, Virginia Port Authority Economic Development Manager Stephanie Allman spoke of major port-associated opportunities for Hampton Roads and beyond.

“We consider the port will be an economic driver all across the state, and especially in Hampton Roads,” she said.

Port throughput is measured in TEUs, or 20-foot equivalent units; a typical tractor-trailer hauls two TEUs.

The Port of Virginia has six separate facilities, four of them in Hampton Roads. Total throughput in 2011 was 1.92 million TEUs, a 1.2-percent increase over 2010. January to May saw a 4.3-percent TEU increase over the same period in 2011.

“The future of the port is now,” Allman said.

The second phase of APM Terminals Virginia would be developed over 291 acres when the extra capacity is required.

Plans include a 4,000-foot pier and 12 cranes, which would deliver 2.2 million TEUs.

Scheduled for 2025, the $1.2 billion first phase of Craney Island Marine Terminal would cover 220 acres, with a 3,000-foot pier, six cranes, and a depth of 52 feet.

Improving road, rail and warehousing infrastructure is crucial to fulfilling the potential of increased port capacity.

Norfolk Southern and CSX have been upgrading rail, and the state plans to build a new Route 460 toll road from Suffolk to Petersburg, in part to handle heavy vehicles more safely, creating new opportunities for localities including Suffolk, Smithfield, Windsor, and Isle of Wight, Southampton and Sussex counties.

Greg Byrd, from Suffolk’s economic development department, described how companies eyeing port upgrades had, prior to the Great Recession, either built large distribution facilities in the city or had development plans approved and held off on construction.

While those who put approved projects on hold “were thankful that they did,” the local economy started turning the corner in 2009, Byrd said.

“They are building distribution space in a major way that they haven’t in previous years,” he said, adding companies have more plans for the city in waiting.

“It isn’t just a matter of hoping or wishing — the time is upon us, people, the recovery.”

According to its economic development director, Isle of Wight County officials were visionary when, a decade ago, they saw the potential of the port and started investing taxpayers’ money into buying land for companies to build distribution and warehousing facilities.

“They really saw the light 10 years ago,” Lisa Perry said.

Maersk subsidiary APM Terminals’ unsolicited bid for its state-owned Portsmouth container terminal, announced last month, was “a huge seal of approval for all of us,” she said.

While officials from Southampton, Franklin and Sussex also spoke in glowing terms of the coming development, some in the forum spoke of its cost.

Southampton County Board of Supervisors member Ronnie West questioned Virginia Department of Transportation officials over local roads set to be cut off by the interstate-style new 460, an example of how not everyone is entirely comfortable with the port-fueled development wave that looms.