Shipping and Logistics
Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Shipments Resilient in 2020
Written by Sandy Williams
January 19, 2021
Tonnage on the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system dropped just 1.7 percent during one of the most challenging years in recent history. Shipments on the water system, including commodities such as grain, iron ore and coal, totaled 37.7 million metric tons in 2020.
“The Seaway’s 62nd navigation season was one of the most remarkable in history,” said Craig H. Middlebrook, deputy administrator of the U.S. Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation. “Despite all the challenges throughout the year, it was one of the safest and smoothest seasons on record. The final tonnage results continue to demonstrate the resilience of the binational waterway and its ability to remain competitive in the global marketplace.”
Iron ore shipments fell 22.9 percent in 2020 to 41.2 million tons as steel production was curtailed by automotive shutdowns early in the year. Compared to the five-year average, iron ore loadings dropped 21 percent. Steel slab shipments shot up by 181.7 percent to 503,000 MT.
Wind cargo shipments were robust during the year with the Ports of Duluth-Superior and Indian-Burns Harbor reporting an uptick in cargo. The Port of Duluth broke its 2019 record with an increase of 219,000 freight tons of wind cargo in 2020. Burns Harbor reported 45 shipments, from overseas as well as domestic origins.
“Looking beyond the numbers, this port’s emergence as a wind cargo hub is an important win for cargo diversity and also for the expansion of renewable energy nationwide,” said Deb DeLuca, Executive Director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority. “It’s been a difficult year under the cloud of a global pandemic, but this freight tonnage record is a much-appreciated highlight, made even better by the fact that Duluth Cargo Connect set records in consecutive seasons.”
The Great Lakes shipping season officially closed on Saturday, Jan. 15, as the last freighter, the Walter J. McCarthy Jr., cleared the Soo Locks at 4:06 a.m. The 1,000-foot freighter, loaded with 70,107 tons of taconite, was headed to Gary, Ind., in its final run before winter layup. Shipping essentially halts for 10 weeks while the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers performs maintenance on lake infrastructure and ships are overhauled for the next season.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Shipping and Logistics
Wittbecker: Challenges ahead for container freight in 2025
In 2024, volatility with a capital “V” has been the rule. That will remain high heading into 2025.
Reibus: November flatbed rates cool after October bump
Following the short-lived East Coast port labor strike in October, we now turn toward the Jan. 15 deadline to reach a long-term agreement.
Reibus: Flatbed, dry van rates ticked up post-hurricanes
After closing the third quarter -3.84% on a y/y basis, our first look at fourth-quarter flatbed spot rates puts us virtually flat y/y, coming in at -0.68%.
Leibowitz: Thorny issues remain as ILA-USMX talks kicked into 2025
On Thursday, the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the US Maritime Alliance (USMX), representing carriers and port operators on the East and Gulf Coasts, announced a three-and-a-half-month extension of the recently expired collective bargaining agreement. The extension kicks the can down the road until Jan. 15, 2025, after the 2024 election and the certification of the results on Jan. 6.
Ports strike over as longshoremen reach tentative pact with employers
The International Longshoreman's Association (ILA) union and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) reached a tentative agreement on wages on Thursday evening. The move ends a strike at East Coast and Gulf Coast ports that began on Tuesday and that had threatened significant supply-chain disruptions.