Coal throughput fell further in 3Q24 by 26.6% compared to the first nine months of 2023, when throughput also dropped by 17%. Thermal coal throughput saw the largest decline. Coal-fired power plants are increasingly losing ground as a source of power. In the first nine months of this year, coal-fired power plants in the Netherlands and Germany accounted for 6% and 20% of the electricity mix, respectively. Renewables represented a 58% share in the Dutch electricity mix and a 59% share in the German electricity mix.
The throughput of agribulk increased by 2.0% after correction. Soybean supply fell due to higher soybean prices as a result of a poor harvest and rising demand from China. The supply of maize from Ukraine (via Romania) has once again increased, after it fell significantly in 2023 due to the war in Ukraine. Maize is used as feed stock for bioethanol production, among other things. The throughput of other dry bulk increased by 20% after correction due to higher throughput on the buoys and dolphins, mainly of stones. The throughput of raw materials also increased at various stevedores. Although energy-intensive industries, in particular, are still struggling, stocks are slowly being replenished.
