CENTRAL AMERICAN PORTS STATISTICAL SUMMARY, YEAR2019 1.4
Distribution of cargo by handling method
Volume of containerized cargo carried across Central American ports registered a 2% increase in 2019, and it represented 50% of the total cargo handled in the region. Unloaded cargo constituted 47% with a 2% increase while loaded cargo totaled 53% with a 3% increase. In second place, liquid bulk cargo totaled 33% this year, growing by 12%. Predominantly, it included unloaded cargo by 70%, and it reported a 8% increase. Volume of loaded cargo experienced a 10% increase. Table 6 Distribution of cargo handled in ports per year, by handling type (Percentages distribution), Years 2015-2019 Country
General Cargo
Containerized
Ro-Ro
Dry Bulk
Liquid Bulk
Others
Total
2015
2.43%
47.16%
0.27%
12.81%
36.12%
1.21%
151,230
2016
3.41%
48.65%
0.28%
13.48%
33.02%
1.15%
141,482
2017
2.59%
49.34%
0.29%
13.06%
33.62%
1.10%
151,774
2018
2.54%
51.51%
0.40%
13.72%
31.54%
0.29%
149,970
2019
2.43%
49.66%
0.41%
14.00%
33.27%
0.23%
159,317
Source: Central American Ports and Panama Maritime Authority
Handling of solid bulk cargo totaled 14%, and it grew by 8%. 78% of the operations included unloaded cargo with an 8% increase, and the remaining 22% represented loaded cargo with a 10% increase. On the other hand, general cargo represented 2% of the handled cargo, with a modest increase of 2%, 78% of the operation accounted for unloaded cargo with a 7% increase while loaded general cargo showed a 13% decrease this year. Handling of Ro-Ro cargo continues under 1%, reporting an increase in both unloaded and loaded cargo by 8% and 5% respectively. Chart 21 Central America: Traffic Cargo Breakdown by type of handling in port, (Thousands MT and percentage), Year 2019 Liquid Bulk; 53,009.8; 33%
Solid Bulk; 22,304.9; 14%
General Cargo ; 3,873.9; 3% Containerized; 79,114.6; 50%
Ro-Ro; 647.9; 0% Other; 365.7; 0%
Source: Central American Ports and Panama Maritime Authority
Volume of general cargo handled this year totaled 3.8 million MT, and 90% of this type of cargo was handled by Quetzal port, representing 25% of the total, Limon-Moin port complex and Caldera port each one handled 13%; while Cortes and Acajutla ports handled 11% and 10% respectively; SANTOCAS handled 9% while San Lorenzo handled 6% and Barrios port reported 3%. Ports that reported a significant increase in the handling of general cargo included Quetzal port by 25%, Cortes port by 18% and San Lorenzo by 21%.
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