By Leo Ryan, AJOT

The St. Lawrence Seaway, a key inland waterway system which allows ocean carriers to penetrate deep into the industrial hinterland of North America to the tip of the Great Lakes, is steadily bouncing back from the recession. Foreign-flag and Canadian shipping lines account for virtually all the traffic. US-flag carriers, for their part, confine themselves (see separate report) to the inter-Lakes trade.

Optimism was in the air when the St. Lawrence Seaway launched its 2011 commercial navigation season at the Montreal-Lake Ontario and Welland Canal sections. Contributing to the upbeat outlook was the brisk global demand for key commodities like iron ore and grain, the post-recession recovery in the Canadian and U.S. economies, plus the recent announcements (the last quarter of 2010) for new vessels on the heels of Ottawa’s October elimination of a 25% duty on foreign-built ships. All told, the newbuilding orders to modernize the 55-unit Canadian fleet – where average age per ship is about 35 years - have exceeded one billion dollars.

Following the fleet renewal announcements came the news in February of a major restructuring of Canada’s inland shipping sector: Algoma Central Corporation announced the purchase of the Upper Lakes Group interests in the Seaway Marine Transport (SMT) operating partnership. In the process, Algoma acquired 11 vessels, expanding its total fleet to some three dozen ships – by far the largest Canadian player in the inland trades, ahead of Canada Steamship Lines. The acquisition was finalized on April 15.

First vessel through the St. Lambert Lock at Montreal on March 22 was the MV Avonborg of Wagenborg Shipping, carrying wind mill components from Denmark for final destination of Burns Harbour on Lake Michigan.

At the opening ceremony at the Seaway entrance in Montreal, Terence Bowles, President and CEO of the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, predicted that shipments on the North American waterway should increase by about 7% this year to 39.1 million metric tons.

Last year, the Seaway handled 35.5 million tons on the heels of a recession-related collapse to 30.7 million tons in 2009 from 40.8 million tons in 2008.

In 2011, Bowles said he foresaw continued strength in the staple cargoes of grain and iron ore. He also anticipated a rebound of road salt shipments and rising project cargo movements due in part to continued activity in the Alberta oil sands.

“Transportation of raw materials serves as a bellwether for the economy as a whole, and despite volatile global economic conditions, we have reason to be cautiously optimistic regarding our various market segments,” said Bowles who has succeeded Richard Corfe at the helm of the Canadian Seaway corporation. Bowles is a former President of the Iron Ore Corporation of Canada in Sept-Isles.

Also commenting on the outlook were Ian White, President and CEO of the Canadian Wheat Board, Collister Johnson Jr, head of the Washington-based St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, and Stephen Wilkes, a senior executive with Tata Steel.

The presence of Wilkes drew considerable attention in light of the fact that Tata Steel is part of a powerful diversified group based in India with 98 operating companies employing 350,000 people across 80 countries. Tata Steel recently concluded an agreement with New Millenium Capital Corporation to potentially invest nearly $5 billion in huge iron ore deposits in northern Quebec and Labrador.

Wilkes underlined the important role played by the Seaway, with substantial shipments of steel products from its manufacturing plants in Europe reaching customers in the North American heartland via the Seaway. Sometimes raw materials are carried back through the Seaway to the Tata plants in Europe, he noted.

The CWB’s White said the Seaway continues to constitute a vital part of the CWB’s supply chain, with growing prospects for grain exports to Europe, Latin America and Africa.

Big fleet renewal orders
At St. Catharines, on the