Cargo at Port of Toledo is Up 3-Fold

By Christopher D. Kirkpatrick, The Blade, Toledo, Ohio

Jun. 24–’Aggressive efforts usually show tangible results’

Port of Toledo officials have been unloading some of their financial worries this season because of a marked increase in cargo business and ships.

General cargo loaded and unloaded at the Port of Toledo has increased three-fold through May compared to the same period last year.

The increase is due in part to a deal in Brazil to accept bulk sugar and one struck in Quebec for the Port of Toledo to become a distribution center for aluminum used in automobiles.

“If we were in a depressed economy, no matter how aggressive we were, we wouldn’t see results. But in a stable economy or a healthy economy, aggressive efforts usually show tangible results,” port authority President Jim Hartung said. “We do a lot of calling to businesses and past customers of the Great Lakes.”

A major coup came this year when Seaport Director Warren McCrimmon, through contacts, was able to persuade an aluminum manufacturer in Sett Isles, Que., to use the

Port of Toledo, rather than rail and truck, to ship the metal to this area. It turned out to be cheaper.

“We got one of the companies to do an experiment to see if they could do it faster and cheaper by barge,” he said.

Another marketing opportunity arose in Brazil. Midwest Terminals, which has run the unloading and loading operation at the port, also known as stevedoring, since October, 2004, traveled to South America to win the contract.

In addition, steel shipping has rebounded on the Great Lakes because of the repeal by President Bush of tariffs on foreign steel he instituted during his first term.

“High times for some people [in shipping] was when steel was king [in the 1970s and in the 1990s]. The Port of Toledo made a strategic decision to diversify, and one of the lows came recently, and we were not hurt as badly as others were,” Mr. McCrimmon said. “Now, steel has come back a bit, and we’ve done better than expected. We are very bullish.”

Part of the sea change has been due to Midwest Terminals’ decision in 2004 to buy Toledo World Industries, or TWI, the former stevedoring company that had the port authority lease to run operations.

Over the years, TWI became less aggressive in marketing because its parent company was sold and stevedoring was no longer a core part of the business. The port authority leases terminals to operators, and they pay a base rent plus a fee per ton back to the port authority.

“We get a piece of the action,” Mr. Hartung said.

Contact Christopher D. Kirkpatrick at: ckirkpatrick@theblade.com or 419-724-6077.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Blade, Toledo, Ohio

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