Port of Duluth-Superior Extends Season to its Latest Date in History

DULUTH, Minn. — Despite it being the end of the shipping season, the Duluth Seaway Port Authority is cruising along with it’s latest closure date since it opened in 1959.

It’s been a good year for the seaway with total tonnage running about 4% ahead of last years pace. Iron ore, cement and salt have continued to be strong all season long. Grain shipments have reached an 18 month high.

As we know, it’s been a mild start to winter here in the northland, but the weather does not ultimately impact the length of the shipping season. The reason for this is because the ships, too, need a break. The off-season serves as time for routine maintenance. However, less ice on the water does keep the ships moving swiftly.

Duluth Seaway Port Authority Director of Communications & Marketing Jayson Hron said, “the only effect we’ve seen, from a shipping perspective, on the recent unseasonably warm weather is that there is very little ice concentration built up any where on the Great Lakes. So, the positive out of that is that the ships are not having to bang around on the ice. It’s just easier on the ships, less wear and tear, helps them be able to move more efficiently without having to navigate through plated ice.”

The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway will close on January 15, but the port of Duluth-Superior will remain open until January 5. This means we are about to see the latest arriving and departing ocean-going vessel ever in the seaway. “And when it departs, if all goes according to schedule, it will make this the longest ocean going traffic season in the history of this port,” said Hron.

The season extension bookends with the earliest arriving salty in the ports history, which happened earlier this year in march. Eight ships are scheduled to have winter layup here in the twin ports. Crews will work to get the ships ready to sail again come march 25th of 2024.