Page 24 - Port of Baltimore Magazine January/February 2016

[22] The Port of Baltimore ■ January/February 2017
REPORT 2016
Roll-on/Roll-off
Despite a challenging year for roll on/roll off (ro/ro) cargo tonnage in 2016, the Port of Baltimore continued as the nation’s number one ro/ro port with 54 percent of the market share.
Baltimore has long been the leading ro/ ro port in the U.S. Its success stems from many factors,
including a geographic location as the closest East
Coast port to the Midwest, a large and diverse group of competing carriers and a unique and unrivaled quality program that brings together all the key players in the ro/ ro supply chain. The Port’s strong reputation for efficiency, quality and labor are all main factors in encouraging shippers and carriers to use Baltimore for their ro/ro cargo.
Some import newcomers exceeded 2016 projections. Manufacturer imports from France have been steady since July 2016, and volume projections have those numbers doubling for 2017. Exports of agricultural machinery from Canada rallied in late 2016 with several shipments to Australia from Baltimore. Rail cars continue to perform well in 2016 with 56 units exporting from Canada to Baltimore with a final destination of the Far East. Phase two will include 42 rail cars for export in 2017.
Outside Baltimore, however, the story is not as good. The strong U.S. dollar continued to hit major American manufacturers of agricultural, construction and mining machineries hard in 2016, causing layoffs and plant closings. As we move into 2017, export forecasts of iron ore, uranium, alumina, bauxite and copper are expected to increase by 35 percent, which will positively affect export manufacturers.
800,000 700,000
600,000 500,000
400,000 300,000 200,000 100,000
0
ROLL-ON/ROLL-OFF
2016: 700,718 Tons 2015: 760,182 Tons PERCENT CHANGE: -7.82%
2015
2016
BILL MCALLEN