The B.C. Marine Terminal Operators Association (BCMTOA) has appointed Alicia Peters as its new President, succeeding Stephanie Jones. Peters brings more than 15 years of experience in government relations, strategic operations and regulated sectors, including previous work with Canada’s Minister of International Trade and senior regulatory and policy roles in B.C.’s financial sector. She will lead BCMTOA’s advocacy, policy and public affairs efforts and represent marine terminal operators with governments, port authorities and industry stakeholders as Canada focuses on strengthening its Asia-Pacific trade gateway. BCMTOA also recognized outgoing President Stephanie Jones for guiding the association through major challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and B.C.’s historic floods, while strengthening its national profile and industry relationships.

Seaspan Marine has agreed to sell its petroleum products barging business to Enercor Energy, an affiliate of Evernorth Marine Group, as it focuses more closely on its core towing, marine transportation and ship-assist operations. The transaction includes existing customer contracts and five vessels, four oil barges and the Seaspan Raider tugboat, and is expected to close in the coming weeks subject to customary conditions. The deal follows Seaspan’s June sale of its legacy chip and hog barge business to Hodder, which subsequently launched Evernorth Marine Group, and provides Enercor with an established petroleum transportation fleet and customer base.

Trans Mountain has filed an application with the Canada Energy Regulator for a $4-billion optimization project that would add 210,000 barrels per day of capacity to its Edmonton-to-Burnaby pipeline system, potentially bringing the additional capacity online by the end of 2028. The proposal includes new pumping stations and about 30 kilometres of pipeline within the existing corridor and comes as Western Canadian oil production rises and Canada seeks greater access to Asian markets. Trans Mountain operated at a record 94% utilization in the second quarter of 2026, averaging 840,000 barrels per day, while 12–15% of Canadian oil exports now go to markets outside the U.S., compared with less than 4% before TMX entered service in 2024. Since then, more than 600 vessels have loaded at the Westridge Marine Terminal, with nearly two-thirds destined for Asia, highlighting the pipeline’s growing role in Canadian energy trade diversification.

The Port of Churchill is handling its first grain export since 2020, with approximately 30,000 tonnes of Saskatchewan durum wheat supplied by AGT Foods being shipped to customers in Europe. The shipment marks a significant milestone in efforts to revitalize the Indigenous- and community-owned port and Hudson Bay Railway as an alternative Canadian trade corridor amid growing emphasis on export diversification. Arctic Gateway Group is continuing upgrades to the port and railway, including wharf rehabilitation and studies aimed at bringing the rail line to modern industrial weight standards, while assessments indicate year-round shipping could be possible using existing ice-strengthened vessels. Beyond grain, potash, nickel concentrate and zinc concentrate are also scheduled for export through Churchill this year.

Western Potash has entered court-supervised insolvency proceedings after defaulting on more than US$108 million owed to senior lender Appian Capital Advisory, putting its Milestone potash project near Regina up for sale. Despite more than US$240 million invested, the project, designed to produce 146,000 tonnes of potash annually over an estimated 40-year mine life, has never reached commercial production and has been on care and maintenance since May 2024, with another US$149 million estimated to be required for its next development phase. FTI is overseeing a 14-week sale and investment process, with binding bids due in December. The proceedings come amid heightened attention on Saskatchewan potash as Canadian governments debate whether the commodity, which supplies roughly 85% of U.S. demand, should play any role in Canada’s ongoing trade dispute with Washington.

More than $1 billion in Canadian agricultural exports to the European Union could be at risk under proposed EU rules that would effectively eliminate allowable residue levels for 18 pesticides already banned within the bloc. Canada exports about US$1.4 billion annually of the affected commodities to the EU, with lentils among the products potentially most exposed. An EU Joint Research Centre analysis found the measures could reduce overall EU agricultural imports by as much as 41% under a scenario where foreign producers do not change existing practices, although impacts would be significantly lower if exporters adapt. Canadian agricultural groups, including Pulse Canada, are concerned the approach could shift pesticide regulation from science- and risk-based assessments toward hazard-based standards, potentially restricting crop-protection options and complicating Canada’s efforts to diversify agricultural exports beyond the U.S. market.

Construction has begun on the first phase of B.C. Hydro’s North Coast Transmission Line expansion, a major infrastructure project that will more than double electricity transmission capacity between Prince George, Terrace and northwest B.C. The additional power is intended to support major industrial developments, including LNG export facilities and mining projects identified as being in the national interest, while providing access to B.C.’s relatively low-carbon hydroelectricity. Provincial and federal governments are positioning the project as an important component of Canada’s trade diversification and economic development strategy, although environmental groups have raised concerns about the greenhouse gas emissions associated with expanding LNG production, including the planned Ksi Lisims LNG project.

The federal government is investing more than $11 million in ten businesses and organizations across Northern B.C. to support jobs, productivity, trade diversification and supply-chain resilience amid ongoing global trade disruptions. Through PacifiCan, funding includes $450,000 for Prince George-based Open Waters Solar to expand and automate manufacturing, and $672,134 for Indigenous-led Portland Canal Terminals to advance engineering and planning for the modernization and expansion of the Port of Stewart, supporting critical-mineral exports. A further $1.6 million will support an Indigenous trades training centre and food hub in Kitwanga. The investments complement Ottawa’s enhanced Regional Tariff Response Initiative, which will provide additional support to B.C. businesses affected by tariffs and changing trade conditions.

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers has introduced the American Mariner Tax Fairness Act, which would extend the federal foreign earned income exclusion to qualifying U.S. merchant mariners working aboard U.S.-flag vessels in international trade. Mariners spending at least 90 days during 12 months aboard eligible vessels could exclude income earned during qualifying periods at sea from federal taxation. Supporters argue the measure would improve recruitment and retention at a time when the U.S. faces concerns over its shrinking deep-sea commercial fleet and the availability of qualified mariners for both commercial shipping and strategic military sealift.

Maersk has selected British wind-propulsion specialist Anemoi Marine Technologies to install a Rotor Sail on an 8,700 TEU Maersk Lima-class containership, marking the first application of Anemoi’s technology on a container vessel. The 35-metre-high, five-metre-diameter fixed Rotor Sail will use wind-generated aerodynamic lift to provide additional propulsion, potentially reducing fuel consumption and emissions. Installation is planned for mid-2027, after which the system will be tested during regular operations, expected primarily on North and South Atlantic routes. The pilot will allow Maersk to assess the technology’s performance and potential for broader fleet deployment as the shipping industry pursues efficiency improvements and longer-term decarbonization targets.

Worsening global port congestion is temporarily supporting the container shipping market by effectively removing around 2.3 million TEU, or 6.6% of the global containership fleet, from available capacity, three times the pre-pandemic level. Schedule reliability fell sharply to 56.4% in July, with Asian ports particularly affected by congestion and typhoons, including Shanghai where reliability dropped to just 21%. While the disruption is helping absorb excess tonnage, the effect could unwind within months just as substantial new capacity enters the market and carriers progressively return Asia-Europe services to the Suez Canal. Sea-Intelligence estimates a full normalization of Suez routings could reduce global head-haul TEU-mile demand by 8.7% year over year in the first half of 2027, creating significant oversupply risk given that the containership orderbook is already around 40% of the existing fleet.

DP World has named its new methanol dual-fuel containership DP World London in Aarhus, Denmark, marking another step in the company’s fleet modernization and maritime decarbonization efforts. The 1,250 TEU vessel, built in China and delivered in April 2026, is owned by Germany’s Elbdeich Reederei and operated by DP World’s Shipping Solutions business on its North Europe service. The Portugal-flagged vessel features a five-cylinder main engine, Exhaust Gas Recirculation technology and the capability to operate on methanol, with its first methanol bunkering completed in Rotterdam in June. The investment forms part of DP World’s strategy to expand lower-emission shipping options while strengthening connectivity across its integrated ports, terminals, marine and logistics network.