St. Lawrence Seaway Cargo Shipments Return
Over 15 million metric tons of cargo moved through the St. Lawrence Seaway during the month of July, down just 4 percent over last year, marking a sustained comeback after the slow start to the shipping season. "The month of July was extremely busy for our ports on the Great Lakes-Seaway System as they handled high value cargoes like steel, wind components, and machinery that arrived from 13 different countries," said Rebecca Spruill, Director of Trade Development for the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.
Wind Energy Components Bound for Duluth Port
Minnesota Power and the Duluth Port said they will reach a milestone this weekend when the 15th ship bearing wind generation equipment destined for Minnesota Power’s growing renewable energy installation in North Dakota sails into the harbor beneath the Aerial Lift Bridge. The BBC cargo ship, Peter Roenna is expected to arrive in Duluth late Sunday night carrying more than two dozen renewable wind energy components after a voyage from Brande, Denmark, where the equipment is manufactured by Siemens A.G.
Seaway Cargo Shipments Up 17% First Half of Season
Cargo shipments through the St. Lawrence Seaway continue to be buoyed by demand for iron ore and steel slabs with an overall increase of 16.6% year-to-date compared to the same period last year. The St. Lawrence Seaway reported that marine vessels carried 14.8 million tonnes of cargo from March 25 to July 31 — an increase of over 2 million tonnes compared to the 12.7 million tonnes handled during the same period last year. Total shipments during the month of July were down 4.8% compared to the same period in 2009 due to lower coal and grain traffic. However, iron ore continued to perform strongly during the month with a 30% increase to 892,000 tonnes. Imports of steel slabs, in the category of break bulk, rebounded to 45,000 tonnes. Richard Corfe, President and CEO of the St.
