THUNDER BAY – This season has been a mixed bag of results for the Port of Thunder Bay, with far lower grain shipments and a 17 year high for potash shipments along with thinner ice this winter made shipments to and from the terminal catch up with the five-year average.
“As we move into January, we are looking very strong, sort of on the normal part of the scale. So it’s definitely a high note to end the season,” said Chris Heikkinen, director of business development.
The port’s cargo totals of roughly 8.5 million tonnes of cargo for the year is about six per cent off of the five-year average, which is higher than what might have been expected this year with the low amounts of grain passing through the port due to the drought in the prairies this summer.
“Most other cargoes actually experienced growth, so there was a lot of success that poured into 2021. We had a really strong potash shipping program, and potash shipments to Europe were looking really strong. We actually hit a 17 year high for that cargo,” said Heikkinen.
“And Keefer terminal also experienced an exceptional season, hitting a 25 year high for marine cargo, including shipments of phosphate fertilizer, steel rail, steel pipe, and other various project cargoes.”
The warmer water lake superior is seeing this winter has also helped the port catch up to its five-year average; tugboats have successfully guided ships into the terminals without the need for icebreakers yet.
Next year, the terminal expects lower grain shipments in the spring as there is not much to be carried over from this year and the port is also going to see several shipments of wind turbine cargoes, steel pipe, steel rail, and other cargoes.
