The Soo Locks have officially opened for the shipping season. On Friday morning, the first vessel through was the Erie Trader, on its way to Duluth. It was being tugged by the Clyde S. Vanenkevort.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened the locks in Sault St. Marie about four days ahead of schedule, after completing important maintenance.
“This year, a number of factors worked in our favor that allowed us to safely deliver this critical maintenance and also open to navigation traffic a few days early,” said Soo Locks Operation Manager LaighAnn Ryckeghem in a statement from the Army Corp.
Jeff Harrington is the Operations Branch Chief at the Soo office for the Army Corp of Engineers, he said repairs included maintenance of dewatering systems, a repair to work bridges and the removal of an underground storage tank among others.
According to Harrington, the Army Corp has sufficient funding to continue its long-term construction on a new lock.
“Funding has been appropriated by Congress for the next several years' worth of work,” he said.
Eric Peace is with the Lake Carriers' Association, a group representing American shipping vessels on the Great Lakes.
He said the early opening is a sign of strength for the shipping industry.
"I can tell you right now that we have boats that are ready to go and they're running," Peace said. "Pretty sure all of our companies have a full book of business for this summer, so we expect we'll be shipping all those raw materials."
Historically, the Great Lakes have their most ice coverage in March. On Thursday, ice coverage was just under 9%, the most ice at the start of the shipping season in three years.
Peace said the industry has weathered an icy start to the year, but things are beginning to warm up.
“The warm temperatures we've had in the southern end have almost eliminated the ice down here, with the exception of a large patch sitting off if Buffalo,” he said.
According to Peace, icebreakers are currently focused on clearing ice on the St. Mary’s River and Whitefish Bay.
The Great Lakes-St Lawrence Seaway generated over $50 billion in economic activity in 2023, and is responsible for over 300,00 jobs in Canada and America.
Harrington said he expected an above-average year for the Locks in terms of vessel traffic. He said he's expecting “at least 7,000 and probably into that 7,500, maybe even approaching 8,000,” vessels this year.
