It is reported that coal and iron ore shipments are leading an 8% and a half percent increase in tonnage through the St Lawrence Seaway’s Montreal to Lake Ontario section this year over last.
According to figures from the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, total ship traffic is down, but tonnage remained on an upward trend for the season. Total cargo for the season through November was 27,799 metric tonne, up from 25,585 tonne last year through November, a gain of eight and half percent.
Lock transits through the section were at 2,664, down from last year’s 2,706 through November.
Coal and iron ore are still leading the gains this year, while grain tonnage is down. Coal shipments are up 83% from last year, from 1,095 metric tonne last year to 2,001 tonne this year.
Iron ore tonnage has also increased substantially, from 7,506 metric tonne last season to 9,357 tonne this season to date, a rise of 25%.
Grain shipments have slipped from 7,317 tonne last season to 7,085 tonne this shipping season; dry bulk cargo shipment are down from 5,090 tonne last year to 4,825 tonne this year; liquid bulk is down from 3,143 tonne to 2,629; and general cargo shipments have dropped from 1,672 tonne to 1,870 tonne.
Across the entire Seaway system, total cargo is down this season from 3,804 metric tonne last season through November to 3,629 through November this season.