Imported Steel News

U.S. Great Lakes ports and the St. Lawrence Seaway have experienced a rise in cargo shipments to feed domestic construction and manufacturing activity and global export demand, according to the latest June figures.The Great Lakes-Seaway System serves a region that includes eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces, and is seen as a marine highway that extends 2,300 miles from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, supporting more than 237,868 jobs and $35 billion in economic activity.If the region were a country…

Offshore wind caught a favorable gust with the 2020 election of Joe Biden, and the following breeze from the early 2021 reconfiguration of the U.S. Senate toward Democrats. Though widely touted as a growth engine for maritime businesses (as well as shoreside trades), the latter years of the Trump administration seemed to see delay after delay.The class society DNV has been involved in offshore wind since its outset in the early 1990s, and now has 2,000 energy experts working in its efforts supporting this power source.

A ‘work in progress,’ the North American brown water, shallow draft sectors have experienced a tumultuous year of evolution, changing market conditions, a rapidly shifting regulatory environment and new opportunities. Anything but boring; and within the pages of Maritime Reporter’ & Engineering News’ Annual Yearbook, Joseph Keefe, editor of sister-publication MarineNews, takes a deep dive into the issues driving the domestic waterfront.Workboat EmissionsMore than one year ago, Volkswagon learned the ultimate (and painful) meaning of the iconic U.S. adage of “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time – or at least pay the staggering fine.” And pay it forward, Volkswagen did.

The European Commission's move to extend its steel import restrictions threatens to force Turkish mills, already buckling under the weight of U.S. tariffs, to cut production further or in some cases close down, sources said.The Commission said on Wednesday it will extend and beef up its existing "safeguard" steel import caps until July 2021 to counter concerns that European Union markets are being flooded with steel no longer being exported to the United States.For Turkey's vast steel sector, the fourth largest contributor to the country's economy, the caps could prove particularly painful as the EU has given it additional "country-specific" quotas.Under the safeguards…

The Trump administration's plan to broadly expand drilling in U.S. offshore waters is moving slowly due to opposition from coastal states and indifference from oil companies that have turned their focus to other opportunities. The administration hopes encouraging U.S. energy development outside of shale oilfields will further its goal of "energy dominance." But existing Obama administration lease rules remain in place through 2022 unless the new rules gain approval. The Department of the Interior this year proposed opening vast new acreage in the U.S. outer continental shelf to drilling.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday he would impose tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum, in a move the administration said would protect U.S. industry, but which critics said would fail to boost jobs and risked stoking a trade war with China. Trump, speaking after a meeting with U.S. steel and aluminum makers said the duties would be formally announced next week. “We’re going to build our steel industry back and our aluminum industry back," he said. News of the tariffs drove the stocks of U.S.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday he would impose tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum, in a move the administration said would protect U.S. industry, but which critics said would fail to boost jobs and risked stoking a trade war with China. Trump, speaking after a meeting with U.S. steel and aluminum makers said the duties would be formally announced next week. “We’re going to build our steel industry back and our aluminum industry back," he said. News of the tariffs drove the stocks of U.S.

“We are about half-way through the 2016 navigation season and our overall cargo tonnage numbers are down by 11 percent,” said Betty Sutton, Administrator of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation. Sutton added, “Aluminum shipments supporting the automotive industry played a significant role in activity at the ports of Oswego, NY, Toledo, OH and Detroit, MI. We also saw wind energy parts moving through the Port of Ogdensburg, NY, headed for the new Jericho Rise Wind Farm project in upstate New York.

More containers moved through the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal at the Port of New Orleans in March and April 2016 than in any two months in the port’s history. According to figures released this week, 50,974 twenty-foot-equivalent units moved through the Terminal in April, besting the previous monthly record of 48,594 TEUs in March of 2016. The two-month total of 99,568 TEUs is up 6.1 percent, compared to same two months in 2015. Surging container volumes come on the heels of higher overall cargo volumes in 2015.

The Port of New Orleans has surpassed the half-million mark for twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEU) handled in a 12-month period for the first time, announced Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange during the 29th Annual State of the Port Address hosted today by the International Freight Forwarders and Customs House Brokers Association of New Orleans. “It’s another milestone that comes on the heels of four record years in a row,” LaGrange said. The most recent 12-month container data through September found the port handled 537,285 TEUs, a 13.6 percent increase over the same period one-year ago.

Cargo worked at the Port of New Orleans’ public docks in 2014 totaled 8.37 million tons, the highest total since 2000 and up 28 percent compared to the prior 12-month period, the port reported. Imported steel and container cargo led the growth, as imported iron and steel rose 101.6 percent in the 12-month-period to 3.54 million tons. Overall breakbulk tons totaled 3.76 million tons, up 51.7 percent and container tons topped 4.61 million tons, up 13.5 percent compared to the prior year. “It was a busy year for the port and these numbers reflect the success we’ve realized from the combined efforts of the entire port community,” said Gary LaGrange, port president and CEO. “This is great news and creates momentum for our terminal operators and customers.

Economic development wins, new services and expanded agreements have resulted in record operating revenues and strong, double-digit cargo growth in 2014, Port President and CEO Gary LaGrange said during the annual State of the Port Address hosted by the International Freight Forwarders and Customs Brokers Association of New Orleans today. “Through a lot of hard work by your Port and with the help of Louisiana Economic Development under the guidance of Secretary Stephen Moret and many of our economic development partners…

The St. Lawrence Seaway reported that year-to-date total cargo shipments for the period March 22-September 30 were 23 million metric tons. While this number is down 11% over the same period in 2012, U.S. ports continue to beat the odds with increased tonnage in several cargo categories. "At least a dozen ships from Europe unloaded steel products at the ports of Cleveland, Milwaukee, Burns Harbor and Detroit over the past month; a clear sign that the end of the navigation season…

Economic conditions and severe weather conditions have formed the perfect storm to slow some traditional trade at U.S. ports along the St. Lawrence Seaway System. The St. Lawrence Seaway reported that year-to-date total cargo shipments for the period March 22 to July 31 was 17.1 million metric tons, virtually flat over the same period in 2011. While July is usually a slow month on the System, not all the news was negative. “The Great Lakes Seaway system is an attractive market for breakbulk cargoes, and offers one of the most promising areas for growth,” said Craig H.

The St. Lawrence Seaway opened for the 2001 navigation season on Friday, March 23, 2001, the earliest start in the 43-year history of the waterway that connects the middle of North America with the Atlantic Ocean. "The outlook is good for the St. Lawrence Seaway in the 2001 navigation year," said Guy Veronneau, president of Canadian St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp. "Regardless of the softening of the North American economy, goods still need to be moved, and marine transportation remains the most cost-competitive and environmentally friendly way to do so," he added. Despite a late winter storm that hit the Seaway nexus of Montreal with heavy snow and freezing temperatures this week…

The St. Lawrence Seaway officially closed for the season on December 30, 2004, with the passage of the McKeil Marine integrated tug and barge, McCleary’s Spirit, through the St. Lambert Lock at 5:51 a.m. in the Montreal/Lake Ontario section. The Seaway opened its 46th shipping season on March 25 and remained open for 281 days in 2004. The Welland Canal section closed at 5:19 p.m. on December 31, with the transit of the Canada Steamship Lines vessel CSL Niagara. “We are pleased to report excellent traffic results, with an overall estimated 5.3% increase in tonnage this year,” said Richard Corfe, President of The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation.

According to reports, a 20-month tariff on imported steel resulted in a loss of 9.3m tons of the metal and more than 2,000 jobs at U.S. ports, according to a new report from a maritime economics consulting firm. The study by Martin Associates of Lancaster, Pa., commissioned by the American Institute for Imported Steel and the first to document the economic impact of the tariff, found that the trade restriction kept about 424,000 tons of steel and iron from going through U.S. ports in 2002 and 2003. The metals were instead shipped to other countries. The data will be used to oppose future tariff threats and to educate policymakers, said David Phelps, president of the AIIS.

The St. Lawrence Seaway opened for the 2001 navigation season on March 23, 2001, the earliest start in the 43-year history of the waterway that connects the middle of North America with the Atlantic Ocean. "The outlook is good for the St. Lawrence Seaway in the 2001 navigation year," said Guy Veronneau, president of Canadian St. Regardless of the softening of the North American economy, goods still need to be moved, and marine transportation remains the most cost-competitive and environmentally friendly way to do so," he added. Despite a late winter storm that hit the Seaway nexus of Montreal with heavy snow and freezing temperatures this week, Seaway officials complied with requests from shippers for an early start to the season, clearing some sections with icebreakers.

The St. Lawrence Seaway is officially closed to navigation until spring. The last vessel to pass through the Seaway was the chemical tanker Petrolia Desgagnes, which made its way through the St. Lambert lock near Montreal, Quebec, on Dec. 25. The seaway, which was open to navigation for 270 days starting March 31, maintained its maximum draft of 26 ft., 3 in. despite the low water levels in the Great Lakes. The Seaway's toll revenue and cargo tonnage was down this year because of reduced demand for inbound foreign steel, according to Seaway officials. Estimated combined cargo moved through the Welland Canal, between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie and the Montreal/Lake Ontario sections, totaled 47.56 million tons, down seven percent from a year ago.

The St. Lawrence Seaway is officially closed to navigation until spring. The last vessel to pass through the Seaway was the chemical tanker Petrolia Desgagnes, which made its way through the St. Lambert lock near Montreal, Quebec, on Dec. 25. The seaway, which was open to navigation for 270 days starting March 31, maintained its maximum draft of 26 ft., 3 in. despite the low water levels in the Great Lakes. The Seaway's toll revenue and cargo tonnage was down this year because of reduced demand for inbound foreign steel, according to Seaway officials. Estimated combined cargo moved through the Welland Canal, between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie and the Montreal/Lake Ontario sections, totaled 47.56 million tons, down seven percent from a year ago.