Figures in a report from the Mobility and Transport Authority (AMT) released on Tuesday showed the port of Sines spearheaded the growth in goods handled at ports on mainland Portugal with a contribution of 54.8 percent which compensated for losses at other ports.
In November 2016, mainland port activity registered a growth of 4.1 percent in comparison to the same period of 2015, sustained by the 6.5 million ton increase at Sines, determining a net global growth of 3.4 million tonnes.
During the first 11 months of the year, the mainland’s commercial ports handled an overall total of 85.4 million tons of cargo of various types, the highest ever recorded, according to the AMT’s report.
The Port of Sines - which registered a movement of 46.8 million tons - was able to absorb, with the symbolic support of the Port of Figueira da Foz, a 3.2 million ton drop at remaining ports.
Thanks to this, Sines reinforced its leadership as mainland Portugal’s busiest commercial port, followed by Leixões (19.5 percent), Lisbon (10.6 percent) Setúbal (7.5 percent) and Aveiro (4.8 percent).
The reinforcement of Sines’s position during the last few months is partly due to the Leixões Ocean Terminal being totally paralysed by maintenance since March with activity only resuming in October.
The Algarve port of Faro – which has seen no cargo movement whatsoever since June when cement manufacturers Cimpor, the port’s only customer, stopped production at its Loulé central – is expected to return to life later this year as the Loulé Cimpor factory is due to resume activity next month.