BEAUFORT--Jasper County has asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to refuse claims by the State Ports Authority that it has the sole right to develop a port on the Savannah River.

The county filed a response Friday against claims by the ports authority seeking to prevent the county from turning 1,863 acres on the river into a $450 million deep-water shipping terminal.

The county and the state have issued condemnation requests for the land used by Georgia to dump silt dredged from the Savannah River shipping channel.

The county's filing claimed the SPA's condemnation efforts sought to prevent competition for the busy Port of Charleston by leaving the Jasper site undeveloped.

On Friday, the authority announced that 19 private port developers and shipping lines, including Jasper County partner SSA Marine, are interested in partnering with the state on port expansion at the former Charleston Naval Base and at the Jasper site.

The state likely would need a private partner to pay for the costly port plans.

"We're very pleased with the response," Bernard S. Groseclose Jr., president and CEO of the State Ports Authority, said. "We look forward to discussing opportunities for partnerships with each of them individually."

The expression of interest provided no information on the cost or level of interest from each group, said authority spokesman Byron Miller. Details likely will be discussed in one-on-one talks with each company, he said.

Jake Coakley, regional vice president for SSA Marine, said the company has made it clear to the state that it plans to continue port development with the county, but that it also was interested in what the state was willing to offer.