COS Weekly Newsletter - Friday, 3 March 2023

The Prince Rupert Port Authority (PRPA) has announced that the Ridley Island Export Logistics Project has reached a significant milestone with the receipt of its final determination of the Federal environmental effects evaluation review.  Federal authorities, including Environment and Climate Change Canada, Transport Canada and Fisheries & Oceans Canada, have determined that the Ridley Island Export Logistics Project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects. This concludes the Federal environmental review process.  Following the receipt of required permits, early works construction is scheduled for early March 2023, with tree clearing and site preparation activities.  PRPA continues to work toward making a Final Investment Decision on the project with its commercial partners, expected later this year

The export logistics facility will create an innovative and competitive transloading facility for Canadian commodities such as plastic pellets, cereal grains, specialty agriculture crops, lumber, and pulp to be loaded directly from rail into containers for export, creating 400,000 TEUs of export capacity in the first phase.  This facility will increase efficiencies in export supply chains, enable greater access to Indo-Pacific markets and maximize value for Western Canadian producers.

LOGISTEC Stevedoring Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Canadian and US marine terminal business of Fednav, including Federal Marine Terminals, Inc. and the logistics division, Fednav Direct (collectively, “FMT”), for a purchase price of US$105 million, subject to customary adjustments. This transaction will allow LOGISTEC to strengthen its presence in Canada and the United States and add specialized expertise to its service offering. FMT has operated terminal facilities at ports in Canada and the United States for over five decades. Recognized as an industry leader in marine terminal operations, it provides stevedoring, handling and warehousing services for bulk, containerized, project cargo, and general cargo. FMT also offers value-added on-carriage services, inventory management, and 24/7 inland cargo transportation in Canada and the United States. For the year ended December 31, 2022, FMT generated revenue of US$89.8 million (approximately CA$116.8 million) with gross margins comparable to LOGISTEC’s marine segment.

The addition of 11 terminals represents a major expansion of LOGISTEC’s network, bringing its total to 90 terminals in 60 ports across North America. The combined network will provide strategic gateways for existing and future customers, allowing LOGISTEC to gain an important foothold in the Great Lakes region and access prime locations in the US Gulf and East Coast regions.

Below is a survey to inform the research project “Fatigue in the Canadian Maritime Sector” led by Dr. Desai Shan, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, which is funded by Transport Canada. This online survey aims to (1) explore risk factors for fatigue onboard Canadian ships, (2) explore current fatigue mitigation measures and strategies adopted in the Canadian maritime sector, and (3) assess the effectiveness of the existing fatigue mitigation measures.  The survey can be found at: https://mun.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2nM0uaXhKimQFJI and will take about 30 minutes to complete and open until March 10, 2023.

Seaspan ULC (Seaspan) and Southern Railway of British Columbia (SRY) will be the 2023 inductees into its Fraser River Hall of Fame at a gala dinner and induction ceremony on Thursday, April 20th at the Fraser River Discovery Centre (FRDC) in New Westminster, B.C.  “Given their long and successful business history on and around the Fraser River, Seaspan and SRY are definitely deserving of a place within the Fraser River Hall of Fame!” said Mark Rizzo, Chair, FRDC Board of Directors, “Both individually and as members of the Washington Companies they have been a significant part of the “economic engine” of the mighty Fraser, creating benefits for workers, communities and all those in the Lower Mainland. Just as important, they have done so in a sustainable way, to ensure that the living, working Fraser will continue to be there for generations to come.”  To join the Induction ceremony, register at: https://fraserriverdiscovery.org/halloffame/

The National Transportation Corrridor Fund has awarded the Port of Belldune with half of the funds required to support its $25 million project to create a dry bulk conveyor loop between two terminals that will facilitate reloading and transshipments at the Port. With this funding, the Port will install fixed conveyors linking the deep-water terminal to the staging area, renovate existing storage, and build a new warehouse and transfer tower. The project will increase the quantities of bulk cargo handled at the Port of Belledune and make it easier to move goods like forest products, minerals, and petroleum between vessels and other modes of transportation. This investment will have important economic and employment benefits for the region, such as relieving supply chain congestion, and facilitating the movement of goods at this port while creating good jobs for Canadians in the region.

The Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, announced up to $5.4 million for 20 projects across Canada under the Rail Climate Change Adaptation Program, an initiative of the Rail Safety Improvement Program. The Rail Climate Change Adaptation Program supports research, development, and implementation of innovative technologies, tools, and approaches to better identify and reduce the increasing risks and impacts of climate change on Canada’s rail sector.

The Ministry of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation invites our readers to participate in the Exporter Insights Survey. The survey, which is being carried out by MNP and Mustel Group, will help provide insights to the Province on the conditions that exporters face, and on the characteristics of businesses (size, region, value of exports, etc.). The survey is also designed to collect information on the contributions of underrepresented groups to our economy. The 20-minute survey can be found at: https://survey.givingopinions.ca/c310 and will close on March 23, 2023.

The Coast Guard announced in the Federal Register the establishment of new base pilotage rates for the 2023 shipping season. This rule will adjust the pilotage rates to account for changes in district operating expenses, an increase in the number of pilots, and anticipated inflation. These changes, when combined, result in a 16-percent net increase in pilotage costs compared to the 2022 season. Maritime Magazine reports that "Marine industry stakeholders in Canada and the United States have strongly condemned the “excessive escalation” of the pilotage rates set by the U.S. Coast Guard for oceangoing vessels transiting the American waters of the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway system during the 2023 navigation season."

The Tokyo MoU region published the preliminary results of its concentrated inspection campaign (CIC) on STCW, which was conducted from September 1 to November 30, 2022. The CIC was jointly carried out with the Paris MoU with the aim to have a better understanding of the training and certification of crew members on board ships of various flag States, and to check the arrangements made by the company and the implementation of relevant requirements on watchkeeping and rest on board. During the campaign period, the member Authorities of the Tokyo MOU carried out 6,953 PSC inspections, of which 5,908 (84.97%) included the CIC inspection. 1,041 CIC-related deficiencies were found on 802 ships representing 13.57% of the CIC inspections.

Methanex Corporation (Methanex) and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) have announced that the dual-fuel vessel Cajun Sun successfully completed the first-ever net-zero voyage fuelled by bio-methanol. The voyage is an example of how Methanex and MOL are collaborating to demonstrate the viability of methanol as a marine fuel with a pathway to net-zero emissions.

The Cajun Sun, operated by Methanex’s subsidiary Waterfront Shipping and chartered from MOL, departed from Geismar, US on January 17 and arrived in Antwerp, Belgium on February 4. By blending ISCC-certified bio-methanol that has negative carbon intensity with natural gas-based methanol, net-zero greenhouse gas emissions on a lifecycle basis were achieved for the 18-day trans-Atlantic voyage. This innovative fuel solution offers shipping companies the ability to achieve net-zero carbon emissions today, supporting the industry’s transition to a low-carbon future.

The use of methanol as an alternative marine fuel was pioneered by Waterfront Shipping in 2016 when Methanex, Waterfront Shipping and MOL, in conjunction with other key partners, jointly built the world’s first ocean-going methanol dual-fuel tanker, Taranaki Sun.