Courtney Tower | Aug 18, 2011 4:15PM EDT
Cargo shipments through the St. Lawrence Seaway rose 21 percent in July to 4.1 million metric tons from the same period last year, as petroleum product traffic to Canada and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan surged.
Petroleum shipments jumped 141 percent to 1.5 million metric tons within the same period, with much of the cargo handled by the Port of Green Bay.
“A long-term strategy of the Port of Green Bay has been the diversification of cargo to allow us to more evenly weather changing economic conditions,” said Port of Green Bay Manager Dean Haen. “Since 2006, the port has opened two terminals moving completely new commodities through each. One facility moves forest products and heavy lift cargo, and the other is moving petroleum products.”
Throughput on the seaway rose 7.3 percent year-to 16.9 million metric tons in July year-to-date from the same period a year ago. The growth was driven by increased shipments of bulk materials used in construction, salt and petroleum products, and Canadian grain.