Port of Riga cargo volumes drop 11.6% in January-February
Freight traffic passing through the Latvian port of Riga in January-February 2013 fell 11.6% compared to the same period last year to 5,471,900 tonnes, the Port Authority told PortNews.
In the reporting period coal shipments declined by 14.9% to 2.094 million tonnes. Oil product transshipments fell 15.9% to 1.350 million tonnes. Wood exports dropped 7.7 % to 330.200 tonnes, pellets volume was down 19% to 166,000 tonnes, of scrap metal slid by 2.5% to 103,200 tonnes, of construction materials slumped by 43.2% to 8,800 tonnes. The port did not handle ore cargo during the reporting period.
Container traffic grew 9.2% from a year earlier to 61,265 TEUs. The number of passengers decreased by 0.4% to 98,078 people, while cruise passengers number was up 51.2% to 5,054 people.
Latvia-based Free Port of Riga lies on both banks of the River Daugava (Western Dvina), The port encompasses 6.348 hectares, including 13,818-meter waterfront with berths max depths of 16 meters (ship draft - 12.2 m). Transit cargoes account for 80 percent of overall freight traffic moved to / from the CIS countries. In 2012, cargo throughput at the Port of Riga rose 5.8 percent year-over-year to 36.51.9 million tonnes.
