PANAMA CITY — After a slow year for one of the largest imports at Port Panama City, the facility checked in with a lower rate of tonnage handled during the 2014 fiscal year.
At a meeting Thursday, Port Authority members reviewed the port’s end-of-the-year tonnage report, which revealed the facility handled 1.57 million tons of goods this year, a decline from the record-breaking 1.7 million tons handled in 2013.
Port Director Wayne Stubbs cited a steep reduction in copper during the first part of the fiscal year as the culprit. This year, the facility handled 251,000 tons of copper, down from 335,000 tons the previous year.
The port is a designated delivery point for copper by the London Metal Exchange and draws imports predominately from South America. The slowdown last fall stemmed from a copper shortage in Chile.
The port also saw a 65,000-ton reduction in steel plate imports and exports.
“The culprit is two basic general commodities,” Stubbs said. “We never could make up for that lost tonnage we suffered the first part of the year.”
Less tonnage also meant less revenue for the port, which saw a 5.5 percent decline year-over-year. Total revenues hit $13 million, about $700,000 less than expected.
“That’s basically coming back to the steel and copper,” said Stubbs, adding that staff also kept the expense budget down about 5.5 percent, or $260,000 less than what was budgeted. “We still had a good year in terms of revenue.”
Despite the decline, Stubbs said 2014 was still a good year and signs are pointing to an even better 2015.
“Next year, I have to say ... we’re looking at a tremendous year,” he said, citing a major project on the line for one of the port’s tenants, Berg Steel Pipe.
Berg announced earlier this year it received its largest order in the company’s 35-year history. Stubbs said the port is expecting about 300,000 tons of steel to move through the port for that project alone.
“That’s basically 300,000 tons of new business that we didn’t have this year,” Stubbs said, also citing 50,000 tons of new business in paper. “Barring a disaster, I think we’re going to have a good year next year.”