English
Foto: Alpha Osta termināls
In September, a total of 1.56 million tons of cargo was handled at the terminals of the Port of Riga, which is 12% more than in August. One third, or 0.52 million tons, of the cargo consisted of various agricultural products, marking the highest monthly turnover in this cargo group at the Port of Riga in its history.
The largest volume of cargo handled in September was local wheat, followed by rapeseed shipments, as well as exported barley and peas. It should be noted that an interesting phenomenon has been observed in logistics chains this year – due to the storage capacity available at the Riga port terminals the facilities can be used as grain collection or consolidation points before further shipments, This year, several ships from Sweden have delivered 37,000 tons of wheat products to the Port of Riga.
Since August of this year, with the start of the active grain season in Latvia, a total of 0.83 million tons of agricultural products have been loaded onto ships at the Riga port terminals. A total of 72 ships has been handled, including KN FOREST - the largest ship in terms of cargo capacity this season, which sailed to the ports of Bangkok and Koh Sichang in Thailand with a cargo of 55,800 tons of wheat. Agricultural cargo from Riga is sent to African countries, Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands.
The share of agricultural cargo in the Port of Riga is growing every year, and since 2018, the share of this cargo in the port's cargo portfolio has increased by 15 percentage points. With the aim to continuously improve the quality of port services and increase market share in the region, the terminals operating in the port invest annually in the development of their storage capacities and handling technologies. Furthermore, this year the Freeport of Riga Authority has developed and implemented a digital solution that regulates the flow of cargo suppliers' vehicles to the port, thereby reducing congestion and truck downtime on port access roads.
According to the FPRA data, a total of 12.3 million tons of cargo was handled at Riga port terminals in the first nine months of this year, which is 6.6% less than last year. The largest throughput was recorded for containerized cargo (3.65 million tons), agricultural products (2.03 million tons), and forestry products (3.88 million tons).
Over the nine-month period, the volume of petroleum products handled at the port increased by 38.2%. As previously reported, this year the Riga port terminal NAFTIMPEKSS, in cooperation with the Port of Houston, have started deliveries of diesel fuel from the US. The volume of liquefied gas shipments has more than doubled this year, fostered by gas deliveries from the US that began in June. In total, 37.1 thousand tons of liquefied gas were handled at the Port of Riga in September, and 170 thousand tons of gas in the first nine months of this year.
Positive dynamics in the port's cargo portfolio is maintained by bulk mineral fertilizers (+8.7% compared to 2024) and construction materials (+46.8% compared to 2024), while smaller volumes were recorded over the nine-month period for forestry cargo, containers and mineral fertilizers.
This year, the Port of Riga has achieved a record in the number of cruise passengers. In the first nine months of the year, Riga has already welcomed 78 ships with 101,900 passengers, which is 28,200 passengers more than during the same period last year.
The Port of Riga is the largest port in Latvia and the largest trade hub in the country, handling half (50%) of Latvia's cargo turnover and 38% of Latvia's export volume, shipping cargo to more than 300 ports worldwide. According to a study conducted by the CERTUS think tank, each ton of cargo transhipped at the Port of Riga contributes EUR 10.7 to Latvia's GDP, reaching EUR 131 million in the first nine months of this year.
Information for media
- [email protected], +371 670 308 53
- Freeport of Riga Authority
- 12 Kalpaka blvd, Riga, Latvia, LV-1010
