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Steel Helps Drive Up Tonnage at Port of Indiana

Posted on: Sunday, 19 February 2006, 15:00 CST

By Susan Erler, The Times, Munster, Ind.

Feb. 17--BURNS HARBOR -- The Port of Indiana handled more than $677 million worth of steel in 2005, amounting to roughly 15 percent of all the nation's steel trade with Europe, port officials said.

Steel shipments helped drive total 2005 tonnage to 2.2 million, up 2 percent above the five-year average for the Burns Harbor port, Ports of Indiana spokesman Jody Peacock said.

High priced U.S.-made steel is expected to continue to drive volume at the port, said Ian Hirt, general manager of steel handler Federal Marine Terminals.

"Right now, we're anticipating it will be up 10 to 15 percent" in the first half of 2006, compared to the same period a year ago, Hirt said.

"The continued high price of steel in the U.S. makes it attractive for overseas mills to sell to the U.S.," Hirt said.

Federal Marine Terminals looks for imports from Russia to be on rise, Hirt said.

Steel imports made up 16 percent of the Indiana port system's total tonnage in 2005, including shipments handled by the Mount Vernon and Jeffersonville ports.

But it also made up more than 40 percent of the total value, Peacock said.

"Steel is a huge contributor," Peacock said.

Labor-intensive steel handling also pushes up employment at the ports, Peacock said.

"Steel shipments are also very labor intensive and generate many additional handling and processing jobs at the ports."

Grain continued to make up the largest volume of cargo handled by the ports system, with a combined 2.2 million tons, up 3 percent from 2004.

Hurricane Katrina left its mark on the Indiana ports system, Peacock said. "But it's a little hard to put your finger on the exact impact."

Shippers ended up choosing to store grain at Indiana ports as a result of barge shortages created by Katrina, Peacock said.

Burns Harbor handled about 1 million additional tons of grain, he said.

Coal shipments rose by 21 percent for the year, to 2.1 million tons in 2005.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Times, Munster, Ind.

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Source: The Times

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