Shipping Tonnage up 20% at Port of Thunder Bay
THUNDER BAY – If you look out across Thunder Bay, or if you are following Ships in Port, you can already tell it has been a good start to the shipping season for the Port of Thunder Bay. There have been a lot more ocean vessels in the port as well.
Cargo volumes in the Port of Thunder Bay were very strong in May, bolstered by significant grain shipments and decade-high potash volumes.
Outbound potash shipments tallied 134,000 metric tonnes in May, the highest monthly volume for the port since April 2007. The Port of Thunder Bay is the only potash loading point on the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Seaway System. The majority of potash shipments in May were direct-export to international ports in Brazil and Europe.
Grain shipments topped 920,000 metric tonnes in May; 100,000 metric tonnes more than average for the month. For the second consecutive year, record levels of canola are augmenting the strong grain volumes in the Port.
Total cargo volumes for the Port are now 20% higher than average, year-to-date. Thunder Bay Port Authority anticipates a steady summer for port facilities, including its own Keefer Terminal. Several shipments of inbound project cargo are expected at Keefer in the coming days.