Port of Riga throughput grows 14.9 percent
Cargo traffic at Latvia’s Port of Riga in January-April 2012 rose 14.9% compared to the same period of last year, to 12,519,000 tons, the Port Authority said.
The four-month gain was pushed primarily by a 20-percent jump in coal volume, to 5.04 million tons and shipments of petroleum products, which increased by 11.5% from a year earlier, to 3.18 million tons. Handling of wood cargo fell 13% to 744,300 tons, of chemicals - by 15.3% (378,000 mt). The port saw a 69.7-percent slump in ore volume (93,900mt). Shipments of wood pellets grew 17.2% to 376,600 tons. The four-month volume of building materials fell 25% to 41,300 tons. Handling of scrap metals increased by 7.2% to 210,200 tons.
Container traffic rose 28.9% to 117,880 TEUs.
Passenger traffic increased by 4.6% to 208,189 people, including those carried by cruise lines – 4,791 (+13.7% y-o-y).
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 2011, cargo throughput at the Port of Riga rose 11.8 percent year-over-year to 34.07 million tons.