Port Réunion traffic recorded a 9% drop in 2023 compared to the previous year, with 5,156 million tonnes processed. This is the lowest level since the end of the extension work on the Eastern port in 2015 and the acquisition of the first overpanamax gantries (capable of handling vessels up to 42 meters wide, i.e. 20 rows of containers), which allowed Port Réunion to become one of the transshipment hubs in the Indian Ocean zone.
The number of containers in TEU (twenty foot equivalent) handled in 2023 stands at 323,840, including 70,000 transshipment, down 13%, for a total tonnage of 3,017 million tonnes. Some activities record positive growth : grain trafficking (+7 %), the conventional (+83 %) and vehicles (+4 %). All other flows are decreasing. New traffic generated by the conversion to biomass into wood pellets as part of the energy transition, to the tune of 262,629 tonnes, replaces that of coal. The resumption of cruise activity resulted in the reception of 29 cruise ship calls, representing 20,498 passengers who passed through the ferry terminal. The season is marked by the reception of smaller ships in the “luxury and/or expedition” category, representing 50% of calls.. According to studies carried out by the Indian Ocean Islands Ports Association, this trend is expected to continue, because the reception capacity of many ports in the area is limited. The total number of ship calls (all types combined) stands at 566 in 2023 in Port Réunion, against 494 in 2022, an increase of 14%.
