Great Lakes, Seaway ports post ?10 gains

Great Lakes, Seaway ports post Æ10 gains    The Minnesota port of Duluth-Superior anticipates a 25 percent increase in overall 2010 tonnage, based largely on a solid grain trade that's already 89 percent ahead of last year's figures.
   Through September, more than 26.5 million short tons of cargo have moved through the twin ports. A critical demand for iron ore and coal on the Lower Lakes drove sharp increases early in 2010. Through the first three quarters of this navigation season, iron ore shipments through Duluth-Superior continued to rebound and, while still lower than 2008 peak levels five-year averages, indicate a 69 percent improvement over last year.
   Grain shipments through Duluth-Superior rose 89 percent over the same time last year, and are up 15 percent over five-year averages, year-to-date. In September alone, the port experienced a 123 percent increase in outbound grain shipments. Those cargoes, mostly durum wheat and spring wheat headed to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, nearly doubled in response to shortages created by a Russian ban on grain exports this year, according to the port.
   'During a single week last month, we had 17 ships loading grain and/or at anchor waiting for a berth to open up,' said Adolph Ojard, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority, in a statement.    'This surge is a valuable reminder of the key role played by our inland port and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway in the global marketplace.'
   Cargo shipments throughout the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway port system reported similar rebounds based on strong American grain exports and iron ore and steel activity, along with an uptake in new business and trade routes, according to Marine Delivers, bi-national industry collaboration.
   The seaway reported that shipments reached 22.9 million metric tons from March 25 to Sept. 30, an increase of 18 percent over the same period in 2009. Year-to-date shipments of iron ore for 2010 is up 62 percent to 7.2 million metric tons compared to last year, while American grain shipments have increased 36 percent to 1.3 million metric tons.
   In September, these numbers were boosted by a 68 percent surge in American grain shipments to 604,000 metric tons compared to the same month in 2009. Iron ore increased 5.7 percent in September and general cargo (comprising steel slabs, coils and project cargo like wind power components) rose 17 percent compared to the same month in 2009, Marine Delivers said.
   This season, the seaway saw steel imports from Romania and South America arrive at new markets in the Great Lakes; quartz stone shipments from Canada's Maritime Provinces to Hamilton; and bulk material from Japan to the Great Lakes to be used in construction projects.
   Canada Steamship Lines recently signed a four-month deal to ship wind turbine components from the Port of Gros-Cacouna on Quebec's South Shore to Burns Harbor, Ind. The five loads, which will be completed this month, are bound for a wind farm in Bloomington, Ill. 'The shipment removes 400 trucks from the highways between Cacouna and Chicago, the equivalent of 700,000 truck-kilometers or 17 times the distance around the earth,' Marine Delivers said.
   'This is the first time we transported wind turbine components on deck as well as in the cargo holds,' said Tom Brodeur, vice president of marketing for Montreal-based Canada Steamship Lines, in a statement. 'We used every available space in the ship.
   'This new business, which benefited from the seaway's tolls incentives program, was not only a win for CSL but also for the seaway and adjoining communities,' he added.
   'This year, the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor received the largest project cargo shipment in our port's 40-year history,' said Port Director Peter Laman. 'The shipment included more than 130 wind turbines carried on 11 ships for a project in Illinois. We've devoted about 20 acres of our outdoor storage area to wind equipment and we also just handled our first export shipment of wind turbines that are being transported from Iowa to Nova Scotia.'
   The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway waterway delivers about $3.6 billion in annual cost savings compared to the next least expensive mode of commercial transportation. 'This provides a competitive advantage for the North American manufacturing, construction, energy and agri-food sectors,' Marine Delivers said.