When CSL Niagara departed Thunder Bay March 31 loaded with 28,000 tonnes of wheat headed for the United Kingdom, it signalled the beginning of what could be a busy shipping season.
The Canadian Wheat Board is projecting record movement through the St. Lawrence Seaway during April.
Shipments could also reach a new record for the crop year ending July 31, 2009.
“It still depends on sales for the last three months of the year, but we are on track for one of our biggest years through the St. Lawrence, maybe a record,” said CWB spokesperson Maureen Fitzhenry.
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Early season shipments will focus on durum, she added, so the pace of durum sales over the next three months will be a big factor in determining final numbers.
Since 1997-98, the board has shipped an average of 4.7 million tonnes per crop year through the seaway, about half wheat and half durum.
Fitzhenry said shipments are expected to be more than five million tonnes in 2008-09.
Shipments in the second half of the navigation season, which closes in late December, will depend on the volume and marketability of the 2009 crop.
The board cited a number of reasons for the optimistic outlook for the next few months:
- Lots of grain is available for movement this spring because of last year’s large crop.
- Prices are stronger in many of the markets served out of the St. Lawrence, including Latin America, Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, compared to Asian markets served out of the West Coast.
- More vessels are available for grain movement this year as a result of the economic downturn and lower shipments of iron ore, coal, coke and steel.
Fitzhenry said the board is receiving lots of inquiries from shipping companies looking for business.
“We have a lot of product to ship this spring because our demand has stayed steady, unlike some of the other commodities.”
In a normal year, the board must compete with other shippers for vessel capacity. This year shipping companies are competing to get grain contracts.
“It’s a very dynamic environment.”
Tim Heney, chief executive officer of the Thunder Bay Port Authority, said people at the port are feeling optimistic about the next few months.
“There is a lot of grain in port, a pretty big crop carryover from last year and increased ship availability,” he said.
The port authority tracks cargo volumes on the basis of navigation season, so projections for 2009 can’t be made until the new crop is harvested.
Grain volumes totalled 5.69 million tonnes in 2008, down from 6.4 million in 2007 and below the previous five year average of six million.
“Last year was a little disappointing but we’re hoping we can do better this year,” he said, adding a large crop always helps.
