Haropa above the threshold of 90 million t of cargo
Haropa, the French alliance of the ports of Le Havre, Rouen and Paris, handled 90 million t of maritime traffic in 2019. Some bulk traffic flourished, some did not. Cereal exports grew strongly with the second-best performance of the last 20 years, up 9.3% to 8.3 million t.
2019 also saw an upturn in river traffic driven mainly by maritime and urban containers, a construction sector engaged on the building sites of Greater Paris and a rise in grain exports. With more than 25 million t handled in Ile-de-France, river port activity achieved a level not seen since 1992.
Yet, technical shutdowns on the Seine Valley refining units and the prospect of the closure of the Le Havre coal-fired power plant took their toll. Solid and liquid energy bulk suffered a setback, resulting in a 5% decline of Haropa’s total maritime traffic.
With a total of 2.9 million teu, container shipping was down 3.5%, despite the good performance of hinterland traffic, and December was hit hard by strikes linked to the French pension reform. (mw)