"Such a large increase in liquid bulk volume in comparison of third quarters is rather exceptional, and is mainly the result of the very low base level of the previous year," Port of Tallinn CEO Valdo Kalm said. "In the upcoming periods, we do not predict the growth of liquid bulk on this scale; rather, we will see the stabilisation of cargo flows."

Aside from liquid bulk, mixed cargo and, to a lesser extent, ro-ro and bulk volumes also increased. The volume of container cargo measured in tonnes decreased, but the number of containers handled increased.

Passenger numbers on the biggest passenger routes, Tallinn-Helsinki and Tallinn-Stockholm, remained broadly unchanged on year. The biggest increase was registered in passenger numbers on the Tallinn-St. Petersburg route, which saw an 18% increase. Crusie passenger numbers also increased by 12% on year.

According to the CEO, the port company expects moderate growth in passenger numbers to continue.

The number of calls increased by 71 in freight ship calls and by 15 in cruise ship calls. The number of calls by ships serving regular routes decreased by 177 calls as a result of the pulling of the Viking FSTR.

In the first nine months of 2018, the Port of Tallinn's cargo volume totalled 15.6 million tonnes, up 9.3% on year. Over the first three quarters, a total of 8.3 million passengers visited the company's ports, up 1% on year.

Port of Tallinn subsidiary TS Laevad carried 905,000 passengers and 368 vehicles on ferry routes connecting the mainland to the major Western Estonian islands — respectively 5% and 6.7% more than during the same period last year.

In the first nine months of 2018, TS Laevad ferries carried 1.85 million passengers and 787,000 vehicles, marking increases of 2.5% and 4%, respectively, on year.

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