Port of Riga posts cargo volume of 37.1 million tons in 2016
In December 2016 a total of 3.7 million tons of cargo was handled at the port terminals and it's been the most successful month of the last year, the company said in its press release. Compared to November 2016 a monthly amount of handled cargo increased by 27.6%. The rapid growth of cargo turnover at the port might be attributed to the increasing volume of handled coal. Due to high coal price Russian coal exports via Riga port have again significantly increased. In December 1.6 million tons of coal were dispatched from Riga by sea, it was the largest single month coal throughput volume over the port's history.
In 2016 the port of Riga handled 37.1 million tons of various cargo. However, it is by about 3 million tons, or 7.5% less than in 2015, but in general the last year was the third best year in the history of the port. According to the cargo turnover the year of 2016 has been outperformed solely by the years of 2014 and 2015, when a record amount of energy cargo was transported via the port.
The decrease of coal and oil product transit flows most significantly affected the overall turnover figures in 2016, because the said cargo still accounts for more than half of the cargo handled at the port. At the same time there are positive facts - the rest of the total volume of cargo increased by 4.6%, thus gradually diversifying and balancing the different types of cargo transshipment via the port of Riga, as well as reducing dependence on Russian transit cargoes.
