MAINE MONITOR • February 4, 2023
After three of the slowest years in its 42-year history, the Eastport Port Authority is scrambling to find new business and continue operating in the black. Once the second-busiest port in the country, Eastport’s enduring legacy as a connecting point for overseas shipments was endangered by global affairs that changed the trade networks. The Covid pandemic, plus the war in Ukraine and resulting European instability, upset a steady stream of shipments that averaged 300,000 tons a year and provided consistent work for about 70 direct and indirect workers. Local officials are exploring cruise ships, a railway line and additional cargo shipments to improve the port’s financial condition. A mobile harbor crane was moved from Portland to Eastport last summer, with the goal of being able to load pulp from the Baileyville mill onto barges for domestic shipment. With Eastport’s breakwater located downtown and new limitations on how many passengers can disembark per day at Bar Harbor, local officials also see potential in cruise ship business.