Sept-Îles, QC -With a total of 33.4 million tonnes, the Port Authority is very pleased to report its best year of port activity since its creation in 1999. This was an increase of 4.1% compared to the previous year when some 32.1 million tonnes were handled.

This significant level of port activity on the St. Lawrence continues to position the 3rd largest volume of cargo handled among Canadian ports in 2022. Increased shipments of iron ore were responsible for the growth, mainly due to a 24% increase in Iron Ore Quebec’s export activities, which reached 10 million tonnes.

New peaks were also reached for Aluminerie Alouette’s aluminum shipments, with a record of 574,000 tonnes shipped by sea. Sept-Îles is the cruise port of call that welcomed the first ship on the river to the post-covid recovery of the cruise industry in Canada. This resulted in a record number of vessels with 11, totaling 14,400 visitors.

Looking ahead, the New Year looks very promising, thanks to the volumes of the 7 million-tonne expansion of Iron Ore Québec, now in production.

“These new volumes could make it possible to cross the symbolic mark of 40 million tonnes, which would then become a historic record, and allow the Port to possibly reach the 2nd place in Canada for its volume of activities,” said Pierre D. Gagnon. President and CEO of the Port of Sept-Îles. “The Port of Sept-Îles is a flagship of the regional and national economy. We must be proud of this and let it be known that about 10% of Quebec’s export values pass through our port,” said Bernard Lynch, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Port of Sept-Îles.

(Photo Port of  Sept-Îles)