Activity at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor is sharply higher from a year earlier because of improved economic conditions.
And this year, the port is also handling one of the largest single shipments -- a 388-ton electrical transformer -- in its 40-year history.
The transformer arrived last week on the ship "Beluga Recognition" from Cordoba, Spain. It was transloaded at the port onto a 20-axle rail car, the largest ever to enter the facility, according to Jody Peacock, spokesman for the statewide port authority. The combined weight of the railcar and transformer are more than 1.3 million pounds, or 650 tons.
The transformer is destined for Ottawa, Ill., to be installed at Exelon Corp.'s LaSalle County Nuclear Generating Station, which supplies electricity to Chicago and northern Illinois. The transformer is being stored at the port until final delivery to the generating station.
The port's 40th shipping season opened in April and through July, tonnage at the Burns Harbor port is up 52 percent from the same period in 2009, reflecting improved economic activity.
The port has handled about 70,000 tons of project cargo shipments this shipping season, up from 18,000 tons during the entire 2009 shipping season. Project cargo describes heavy or oversized items generally too large to fit in a normal shipping container or conventional transporters, Peacock said in a news release.
Last month, Lancaster, Pa.-based maritime economic consulting firm Martin Associates said Indiana's three ports contribute $5.4 billion in economic activity to the state and supports 43,700 jobs.
The two other ports – Jeffersonville and Mount Vernon – are located along the Ohio River downstate. The report was generated from 124 companies that have operations at the three ports or service cargo and vessels at port terminals.
Based on 2009 data, the Burns Harbor port was estimated to bring in about 65 percent of the total economic activity and supported 5,092 jobs directly and 25,941 jobs total.
"The mission of the Ports of Indiana is to develop and maintain a world-class port system dedicated to growing Indiana's economy," said Rich Cooper, CEO for the Ports of Indiana, in a statement. "This study helps us quantify how valuable these ports are to our state's economy, but the biggest contribution of our ports is the competitive advantage they create for Indiana companies that ship goods by water.
"Maintaining this advantage will ensure these ports continue to help grow our state economy for years to come."
