Port of Redwood City tonnage slips 5.5% in FY 2017

The port’s total cargo throughput of 1.55 million metric tons, however, was still good enough to make fiscal 2017 the sixth-best year in Redwood City’s history in terms of tonnage, according to port data.

   The amount of cargo moving across the docks at the Port of Redwood City on the San Francisco Peninsula dropped 5.5 percent in the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2017, compared to the previous 12-month period, according to newly released data.
   The total cargo throughput of 1.55 million metric tons, however, was still good enough to make FY 2017 the sixth-best year in the Northern California port’s history in terms of tonnage.
   During the year, imported aggregate fell from 481,883 metric tons in FY 16 to 337,709 metric tons for FY 17, while imported sand fell from 745,684 metric tons to 702,864 metric tons.  Additionally, bauxite shipments fell from 68,015 metric tons to 56,913 and domestic sand from 28,853 metric tons to 20,384.
   Imported sand accounted for 45.3 percent of the port’s commodities in FY ‘17, while imported aggregates accounted for 21.7 percent, exported scrap metal 18.7 percent, bauxite ore 3.7 percent, gypsum rock 9.3 percent; and domestic sand 1.3 percent, according to data.
  A total of 85 vessels — 67 ships and 18 barges – called at the Port of Redwood City during the fiscal year, compared to 97 vessels the year before.
   The news wasn’t all bad, however. Port tenant Sims Metal Managements’ exports of scrap metal to Asia were up 25 percent to 290,805 metric tons, while another tenant, Pabco Gypsum saw imports of gypsum from Mexico double to 144,137 metric tons, according to Redwood City.
   The port has said that its FY 2017-18 budget is projecting a bounce back to an estimated 1,812,000 metric tons of cargo for the next fiscal year, which began July 1.
   Located about 18 miles south of San Francisco, the Port of Redwood City is the only deepwater port in the South San Francisco Bay.