Baltimore port bridge collapse: What impact it may have on shipping operations
Upstox
2 min read • Updated: March 27, 2024, 12:07 PM
Summary
The disruption assumes significance as the Baltimore port, with five public and 12 private terminals, is the busiest US port for car shipments. It handled over 750,000 vehicles in 2023, as per the data available with the Maryland Port Administration. The port is also the largest in the US in terms of the handling of agricultural products, along with farm and construction machinery.
A bridge in the port of Baltimore, located in the United States’ Maryland province, collapsed on Tuesday, March 26 after it was struck by a container ship. Six workers were presumed to have died in the accident, with fears also raised that it may temporarily disrupt the port’s shipping operations.
The to and fro traffic at the port – one of the key sea trading hubs on US east coast – will remain suspended till further notice, the Maryland transportation authorities said.
The disruption assumes significance as the Baltimore port, with five public and 12 private terminals, is the busiest US port for car shipments. It handled over 750,000 vehicles in 2023, as per the data available with the Maryland Port Administration.
Some of the major automakers whose imports and exports are handled by the port include Toyota, General Motors, Volvo Car, Jaguar Land Rover, Volkswagen, Audi, Lamborghini and Bentley, among others.
The Baltimore port is also the largest US port in terms of the handling of agricultural products, along with farm and construction machinery, news agency Reuters reported. In 2023, it handled total agricultural imports amounting to 3 million tonnes, said Kpler analyst Ishan Bhanu.
The port is the second-largest in the US for coal exports, ranking only behind the Norfolk port in Virginia, as per the data available for the January-September 2023 period with the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). It exported 20.3 million short tonnes of coal during these nine months, up from 14.3 million short tonnes in the year-ago period, the data showed.
Other top export commodities handled by the port include liquefied natural gas (LNG), automobiles/light trucks and ferrous scrap, among others, according to the official data shared by the Maryland government.
The Baltimore port is also a key cruise terminal, with cruises carrying over 440,000 passengers departing from the port in 2023, the data further showed.
As of March 26, at least 40 ships remained inside Baltimore port following the suspension of operations due to the bridge collapse, as per maritime analytics provider MarineTraffic. The rescue operations were currently underway, and the channel needs to be cleared before the ship traffic can resume, US President Joe Biden said in a media briefing.