2020 was the year of the Covid-19 public health emergency which reached every corner of the planet and impacted every aspect of human activity. The measures introduced to stem the spread of the virus led to a global crisis of unprecedented reach and proportion, with a drop in GDP, consumer spending and international trade. The resulting fall-out of the pandemic set forth a reduction in the demand for liner shipping services on the major trade routes (down -10% on 2019) and a subsequent decrease in cargo and passenger volumes handled by ports worldwide.
Nevertheless, amidst this global health emergency, the Western Ligurian Sea Port Authority has always been open for business, with a pledge to keeping the four Ports of Genoa, Prà, Savona and Vado Ligure fully operational to guarantee the smooth movement of freight across the country, without disruptions to the supply chain.
In terms of cargo throughput, notwithstanding the exceedingly positive results registered in the first two months of the year, in the aftermath of the lockdown introduced in March and the slump in imports from Asia, volumes fell substantially. In 2020, in total, 7000 vessels (-20% on 2019) called at the Ports of Genoa in 2020, and tonnage dropped to 58.5 million tons, with an overall reduction of -14.2% which impacted upon all commodity segments.
Container box trade registered only a modest decline of -6.5% compared to the previous year, and closed with a total of 2.5 million TEUs and a -4.9% decrease in containerised cargo. It is important to highlight that volumes bounced back in the second half of the year, reporting a +4.5% increase in the fourth quarter on the corresponding period in 2019. Another positive note, the container rail modal split improved, up to 14.5%, with a +4% rise in containers freighted by train to/from the Ports of Genoa catchment area ((323,075 TEUs on 7,877 trains).
Conventional cargo suffered an overall setback of -13.5%, closing at 13.2 million tons, but with diverse throughput figures recorded across the individual cargo segments. Forest products remained stable, perishable goods fell slightly (-3.4%), whilst the steel industry reported the heaviest loss and slumped by over -30% year-on-year. Ro-ro traffic and the Motorways of the Sea were severely penalised by the stoppage of many ro-pax scheduled services from the Ports of Genoa to the major Italian islands and other Mediterranean destinations, and dropped by -10% compared to 2019.
Bulk trade was severely hit: solid bulk fell dramatically by -30.5%, slightly over 2 million tons, whilst mineral oils suffered a -23% decline, down to 16 million tons. The other segments of the liquid bulk trade registered more moderate decreases: vegetable oils and wine down by -4.4% and chemical products registering a harsher -13.2% reduction.
However, passenger shipping reported the heaviest loss: the Ports of Genoa, Savona and Vado Ligure handled a total of over 1.5 million passengers (-66%). Ferry traffic decreased almost by half compared to the previous year, whilst the quasi-total stoppage of cruise activities generated a 90% reduction in passengers. Nevertheless, it is important to note that on 16 August MSC Grandiosa was the first cruise ship to set sail in Italy and in the Med in the aftermath of the lockdown, from the Port of Genoa, followed by Costa Smeralda from the Port of Savona on 19 September.
WESTERN LIGURIAN SEA PORT AUTHORITY STATISTICS
Traffic Ports of Genoa – February 2022 (pdf - 156.22 Kb )
Traffic Ports of Genoa – January 2022 (pdf - 155.34 Kb )
PORTS OF GENOVA AND PRA' STATISTICS
For a breakdown of the Ports of Genoa and Pra' handling statistics, please consult the
following link: http://servizi.porto.genova.it/en/traffici/statistiche.aspx
Traffic Ports of Genova e Pra’ - February 2022 (pdf - 149.27 Kb )
Traffic Ports of Genova e Pra’ - January 2022 (pdf - 149.13 Kb )
PORTS OF SAVONA AND VADO STATISTICS
Traffic Ports of Savona and Vado – February 2022 (pdf - 57.39 Kb )
Traffic Ports of Savona and Vado – January 2022 (pdf - 50.68 Kb )
