THUNDER BAY – The Port of Thunder Bay is anticipating a rebound in grain shipments with the arrival of the 2022 harvest.
Along with record potash volumes, the port authority expressed optimism the shipping season will finish strong as it reported results for August on Wednesday.
A poor 2021 grain harvest in Western Canada, driven by drought and extreme heat, had kept the port’s year-to-date shipping volumes well below last year through the summer.
The amount of Western Canadian potash shipped from Thunder Bay facilities this year has already surpassed the 30-year annual high, with more to come.
Over 200,000 metric tons of the commodity was handled locally in August, compared to just over 60,000 during the same span last year.
The boom comes as markets including look to Canada to make up supply gaps due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine – both countries are major suppliers.
Thunder Bay is the only export port on the St. Lawrence seaway for potash.
The strength in potash “kind of carried us through the year” until news of a stronger grain harvest, Heney said.
Ovarall cargo volumes fell about six per cent below the five-year average in 2021, largely due to the poor grain harvest.
Total cargo volumes are even lower to the end of August – 3.97 million tons compared to 4.72 million in 2021. A total of 190 vessels had visited the port, versus 221 last year.
However, Heney expressed optimism those figures will improve with news of better grain production.
“We’ve had a fairly slow… season because of the poor harvest in the prairies last year,” said Heney. “But things are looking up this year, and now all of the predictions are [for] a fairly strong harvest.”
According to Agriculture Canada, crop production is expected to exceed the 2021 volume by at least 30 per cent, the port authority said.
Around 2.7 million tons of grain travelled through the port as of the end of August this year, down from around 4 million tons at that point in 2021.
By the time the last ship leaves Thunder Bay’s port, typically in early January, overall numbers should be closer to where they were last year, Heney suggested.
“It’s going to be more of a normal year-end,” he said. “Last year, we had a very poor harvest, down about 30 per cent, [which was around] a 20-year low. That’s not the situation this year.”
The port also reported Keefer Terminal was active over the summer with import cargoes of steel products and windmill components. It also projected a “strong slate” of cargo vessels through the fall.
More than 900 people work in port-related jobs in Thunder Bay, with port activity carrying an estimated economic impact of around $370 million.
