'More than just the cargo': 15,000 tons of Venezuelan aluminum arrive in Louisiana

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): About 15,000 tons of aluminum from Venezuela have arrived in Louisiana, marking the first shipment of Venezuelan aluminum to the United States in nearly a decade and opening what officials describe as a new trade corridor between the two countries. 

The shipment traveled through the Mississippi River and arrived at the Avondale Port in Louisiana, where officials say the aluminum will be refined in the United States.

“There isn’t a person that gets up and goes through their day in America that doesn’t somehow touch aluminum,” the U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said at Monday's announcement. 

Louisiana officials pointed to the state’s access to the Mississippi River, its ports and its workforce as key advantages for moving the material into the country. Officials highlighted how cargo brought to the country through Louisiana will have impacts beyond the state and throughout the country.  Aluminum is widely used in transportation, infrastructure, manufacturing and consumer products, including cars and airplanes.

Officials also described the shipment as a bridge between the United States and Venezuela, following a period of heightened tensions between the two countries — including strikes in the South American country and the arrest by the United States of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. 

“This is more than just the cargo,” Sean Pi with Heeney Capital said. “It’s the opening chapter of a renewed partnership that will help define our country’s future.”

Officials estimate that between 200,000 and 300,000 tons of aluminum could move through the new trade corridor over the course of about a year.

Courtesy: www.wwltv.com