Joint Infrastructure Investment Unlocks Growing Canadian Trade Opportunities

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Transport Canada Jun 02, 2015

The Prince Rupert Port Authority today announced the completion of the Port of Prince Rupert’s $97-million Road, Rail & Utility Corridor (RRUC), unlocking new terminal developments and market access for Canadian exporters.

Representatives of the Port Authority were joined by project funding partners - the Government of Canada, Province of British Columbia, Canpotex and CN - at an event held on the Ridley Island Industrial Site, where the last rail spike of the $97-million project was driven. The Government of Canada and the Government of British Columbia each contributed $15 million, CN provided $30 million, Canpotex provided $15 million, and the Prince Rupert Port Authority provided the remaining amount.

The completed RRUC was constructed over a two-year period with the contracted expertise of two local joint ventures, and supports multiple new large-scale terminal developments that will boost Canada’s trade capacity with fast-growing Asia-Pacific markets.

Prince Rupert Constructors, a joint venture between Coast Tsimshian Enterprises (a local First Nations firm), JJM Construction Ltd., and Emil Anderson Construction Inc., completed roughly 75 per cent of the work on the RRUC. Coast Industrial Construction, a partnership between ICON Construction and the Gitxaala Nation (Kitkatla), was responsible for the remaining quarter of construction.

The Port of Prince Rupert’s development plan is based on a goal of reaching an annual throughput capacity of 100 million tonnes of cargo as proposed terminal developments are completed over the next decade. Much of that forecasted growth is dependent on the introduction of additional infrastructure on Ridley Island to realize its development potential, minimize use conflicts between potential terminal developments, and maximize the industrial footprint of the lands under the Port Authority’s jurisdiction.

Quick Facts

• The project includes the construction of five parallel rail tracks, a two-lane roadway, and a port-owned power distribution system along an eight-kilometre corridor. This shared-use infrastructure defines a long-term port development plan for Canadian export terminals that will provide the capacity to ship potash, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other Canadian products to international markets. The RRUC will ensure that growth can be accommodated by a sustainable, efficient, coordinated platform.
• Construction on the Road, Rail and Utility Corridor created employment opportunities for over 100 people, many of them from communities in the region, providing training for skills that are already being applied in additional port expansion.

Quotes

"The Government of Canada is focused on creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. This project is one of many pieces of transportation infrastructure that deliver on this goal. Reaching the development potential of Ridley Island is good news not only for communities on BC’s North Coast, but for all Canadians as we continue to open new markets, increase our export capacity, and strengthen the economies of Canada and our many trade partners across the globe."
Andrew Saxton
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for North Vancouver,
on behalf of the Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Transport

"This project is symbolic of British Columbia’s leading role in developing new transportation corridors and relationships between Canada and the world’s fastest growing economies of Asia Pacific. We are proud to have worked with the federal government and private sector partners on the first project of its kind to be completed in Northern BC. Road-rail corridors and port-related infrastructure to support international trade are priorities identified in B.C. on the Move, our 10-year transportation plan. In addition, a key part of the BC Jobs Plan and the Pacific Gateway Strategy is creating jobs and opportunities for families in Northern BC and to grow the economy across the province."
The Honourable Todd Stone
B.C. Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure

"The success of this project exemplifies what can be accomplished when a strategic, long-term vision is executed by a partnership of public and private investment. The RRUC will expand the diversity of Prince Rupert’s growing port complex and further link Western Canada to a world of opportunity."
Don Krusel
President and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority

"The completion of the Road, Rail and Utility Corridor is the result of a positive cooperation between governments and the private sector and will allow future terminals on a larger Ridley Island site."
Michael Cory
CN senior vice-president, Western Region

"Congratulations to the Prince Rupert Port Authority, the Tsimshian First Nations, the Canadian National Railway Company, the Federal and Provincial Governments and local communities on their exemplary work on the construction of the first phase of the RRUC. Canpotex is pleased to have contributed $15 million to such an important project to the Prince Rupert community and to the transportation capacity of western Canada. The collective commitment and the excellent work of everyone who has contributed has meant that the RRUC is already delivering benefits to the community and the economy of Prince Rupert and British Columbia."
Steve Dechka
Canpotex President and CEO