THUNDER BAY – BUSINESS – The 2016 shipping season will officially close today, January 9, 2017 with the arrival of an inbound shipment via the vessel MV Frontenac. The Frontenac, which will winter at Thunder Bay Port Authority’s Keefer Terminal, is delivering a load of road salt to Mobil Ex Terminal on the Kaministiqua River.
The season is ending on the heels of a cargo rush during which the port posted one of its busiest Decembers in recent memory. Thunder Bay grain elevators were particularly busy during the late-season surge, loading out 1.3 million metric tonnes of grain. In monthly cargo records dating back to 1995, this grain volume for the month of December is unprecedented.
The port’s overall cargo total for 2016 was just under 8.9 million metric tonnes, virtually matching the 2015 season tally. This marks the third consecutive season of above-average cargo volumes, thanks to strong grain shipments as well as increases in coal and project cargo shipments.
Project cargo and general cargo volumes were very strong in 2016. Keefer Terminal handled fourteen shipments, which included electrical transformers, wind turbine components, wood pellets, mining equipment, and an OSB plant. As a result of the strong performance in project cargoes, Keefer’s cargo volumes hit a 19-year high in 2016. Thunder Bay Port Authority is projecting positive results for the Terminal again in 2017, with additional shipments of electrical transformers already confirmed for the spring.
CARGO STATISTICS· 2016
With Comparative Figures in Metric Tonnes for 2015
| Period From December 01 to January 09, 2017 | |||||||
| Month Totals | Month Totals | Year to Date Totals | Year to Date | ||||
| 2016 | 2015 | 2016 | 2015 | ||||
| COAL | 57,692 | 24,085 | 778,419 | 406,563 | |||
| GRAIN | 1,298,487 | 1,236,819 | 7,472,529 | 8,018,638 | |||
| POTASH | 81,110 | 14,628 | 331,909 | 273,790 | |||
| DRY BULK | 45,711 | 19,935 | 161,738 | 159,937 | |||
| LIQUID BULK | 5,580 | 5,450 | 62,009 | 22,995 | |||
| GENERAL CARGO – KEEFER | 4,303 | 1,808 | 31,540 | 20,574 | |||
| GENERAL CARGO-OTHER | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7,002 | |||
|
TOTALS |
1,492,883 |
1,302,725 |
8,838,144 |
8,909,499 |
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DOMEST FOREIGN
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AMERICAN 0 0 0 0
TOTALS
*Monthly statistics are edited as cargo reports are received. Cumulative totals are adjusted to reflect changes.
