Freight volume handled in the Port of Liepaja, Latvia between in January and May 2016 increased by 2.3%, year-on-year, to 2,318,700 tonnes, the Port Authority told IAA PortNews.
In the reporting period grain shipments rose by 6.5% to 1,182,300 t while handling of construction materials declined by 1.8% to 206,400 t, transshipment of timber fell by 35.2% to 157,700 t, crude oil – down 0.8% to 24,100 t, oil products – up 18.6% to 111,800 t.
Container traffic shrank by 25% to 959 TEUs. Ro-Ro cargo fell by 11% to 12,716 units. Passenger traffic decreased by 22% to 12,333 people.
The number of ship calls was down 2% from the same period of 2015 to 579 units.
Port of Liepaja was founded in the 90s of last century at the former Soviet Union’s naval base. Liepaja ranks third port of Latvia by handled cargo volume. Half of the port’s cargo throughput is fueled by crude oil and bulk cargoes imported from the CIS countries, largely from Belorussia. In 2015, throughput of Liepaja port was 5.61 million tonnes.