Cargo Statistics: St. Lawrence Seaway

More than 20 million tons of cargo moved through the St. Lawrence Seaway from March 28 to August 31, an increase of 3.0 percent from a year ago, according to data reported by the U.S. St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLDC).  U.S. grain entered the plus column for the first time this season with 13.3 percent jump in cargo tonnage.

"The USDA’s forecast for near historic yields of wheat, corn, and soybeans is being proven accurate as nearly four times as much U.S. grain (162,000 million tons) moved through Seaway locks this August compared to a year ago," said Rebecca Spruill, SLSDC Director of Trade Development. "With total transits increasing monthly following a sluggish opening, the potential for the Seaway to out-do last year is on the horizon."

Grain was the story at the Port of Oswego, thanks to a record soybean crop. "We are scrambling to get warehouses ready for crop loading and our systems optimized," said Port CEO Zelko Kirincich. "We are anticipating doubling our grain shipments to Asia and Europe this year with Perdue Agribusiness as our partner. Given the infrastructure improvements made to the rail and intermodal yard, we will have an economic shipping edge out of central New York." The port is also projecting modest growth in corn shipments as a of increased ethanol production.

The Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor recorded a 25 percent jump in cargo for the shipping season through August led by a more than doubling of both grain and steel tonnage. "We’ve seen significant increases in steel shipments from Europe for the automotive and appliance industries," said Port Director Rick Heimann. "This has included coils, rods, plate, slabs and other semi-finished products for steel processors and distributors in the Midwest from ports throughout the world, including Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, and Brazil. We've also had increases in grain exports as local farmers prepare for what is projected to be another large harvest."

The Port of Monroe began exporting synthetic gypsum for the first time ever. The synthetic gypsum is produced as a byproduct of the scrubbing process at DTE Energy’s Monroe Power Plant. The two August shipments – one of 4,916 tons and the other of 5,265-ton were loaded on Pere Marquette vessels for delivery to Port Colborne (ON). According to Port Director Paul LaMarre, Monroe will be the primary distribution point for this cargo beginning in 2015, thanks in part of a half million in cargo handling equipment recently made by DRM Terminal Management. He expects the Monroe Power Plant will produce 400,000 to 600,000 tons of synthetic gypsum annually.

The Port of Muskegon received three shipments of wind farm components in August. HR Constitution and HR Maria arrived on August 11 and 29 respectively carrying tower sections exported from Indonesia for the Beebe Community wind project in Gratiot County (MI).  HHL Congo arrived on August 18 with wind turbine blades from Germany for the Beebe project and nacelles manufactured in Spain for Big Turtle Wind Farm in Huron County (MI). The West Michigan Dock and Market Corporation teamed with KK Integrated Logistics to handle the stevedoring of all three shipments.

General cargo tonnage at the Port of Cleveland was up 11 percent in August and 25 percent year-to-date from 2013 levels.

 

"This growth can be attributed to strong demand in the manufacturing sector, including the automotive industry, and higher demand for project cargo moves," said David Gutheil, the port authority’s vice president for maritime and logistics. "The Cleveland-Europe Express continues to gain momentum in the market, and we are pleased that customers who have used, and continue to use, this new service provide us with positive feedback..." 

The Port of Detroit welcomed five vessels in August carrying more than 17,000 tons of steel imported from the United Kingdom, Canada and Italy, mainly for use in the manufacture of automobiles. 

The SLDC data for the Seaway through August show declines from a year ago show declines of 29 percent and 14, respectively, for iron ore and coal, a 67 percent upsurge in general cargo overall, reflecting increases of 77 percent for iron and steel and 317 percent for steel slabs. Liquid bulk tonnage by 16 percent. Dry bulks declined by 1 percent overall despite gains by stone, salt, cement, non-ferric ores and fertilizers.

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