COS Weekly Newsletter - Friday, 17 March 2023

Yesterday we held our Annual General Meeting in Vancouver, BC to reflect on the past year, confirm directors and bid a fond farewell to the COS President, Robert Lewis-Manning who will join the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority next week.

Simon Brown of Pacific Basin Shipping joins the Board and fills the vacancy left behind by Peter Amat, also of Pacific Basin Shipping. We are pleased to announce that Garth Mitcham of CSL International will continue to serve as the Board Chair, and that Lorri Stewart of Seaspan Marine has been appointed as Vice Chair, and Tony Pearkes of Oldendorff Carriers appointed as Treasurer for the year.

On March 16, Vida Ramin's promotion to Vice President, Policy and Partnerships was announced by incoming President, Bonnie Gee at the Chamber of Shipping’s Annual General Meeting. In her previous role as Senior Director, Policy and External Affairs, Vida quickly grasped the policy and regulatory context governing the marine transportation sector, familiarized herself with the key issues impacting our members and developed strategic relationships with external and internal stakeholders. Despite only having been with the Chamber for ten months, she has made significant contributions to the organization, from a policy and advocacy standpoint, particularly in relation to supply chain fluidity and resilience as well as a range of environmental and sustainability matters.

Prior to joining the Chamber, Vida worked at the BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation as the Director, Regulatory Policy in the Oil and Gas Division. She has 20+ years of expertise in public policy, government and regulatory affairs, Indigenous relations and stakeholder engagement, gained through progressively senior experience with the oil, gas, mining, telecommunications and transportation industries.

Vida has a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree, a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Environmental Science and Applied Management from Capilano University and an undergraduate degree in Physical Geography.

Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern (KCS) are set to combine as early as April 14th to create Canadian Pacific Kansas City, the first and only single-line railway connecting the US, Mexico and Canada. The announcement from CP comes after the US Surface Transportation Board approved the merger earlier this week. CP announced today the executive leadership team that will lead CPKC. Keith Creel will become President and CEO of CPKC while Pat Ottensmeyer, KCS President and CEO, has agreed to continue to be an advisor to Mr. Creel through the remainder of 2023 to ensure continuity on key initiatives predominantly involving the combined company and Mexico.

Haisla Nation and Pembina Pipeline have achieved historic milestones for Canada’s first Indigenous majority-owned floating LNG facility.  After receiving a provincial Environmental Assessment Certificate on March 14, Cedar LNG received a positive Decision Statement from the federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change.

Powered by renewable electricity from BC Hydro, the project plans to be one of the lowest-emitting LNG facilities in the world.  The Project in Kitimat will leverage existing LNG infrastructure, including the Coastal GasLink pipeline, with which Cedar LNG has a long-term transportation agreement.

Cedar LNG has entered into an MOU for a 20-year liquefaction services agreement with ARC Resources. The parties are working towards finalizing a definitive agreement for 1.5 million tonnes of LNG per year, equivalent to approximately 200 million standard cubic feet per day of natural gas, or approximately half of Cedar LNG’s production.

Canadian Pacific (CP) has reached a tentative collective agreement with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Maintenance of Way Employees Division (TCRC-MWED) covering approximately 2,600 engineering services employees in Canada. Details of the tentative agreement will not be released publicly until the agreement has been ratified.

Earlier in the week members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) have ratified a new five-year collective agreement covering approximately 300 employees working on CP's Soo Line subsidiary. CP has successfully negotiated agreements with multiple unions representing craft employees in recent months, resulting in the ratification of 16 agreements in 2023 in Canada and the United States.

PSA Halifax has signed an agreement with the Finnish port equipment manufacturer Konecranes for eight new electric Rubber Tyred Gantry cranes (E-RTGs) for its Atlantic Hub terminal. The new E-RTGs will transform the Atlantic Hub into an all-electric RTG operating facility when they arrive in Q2 2024, increasing the Atlantic Hub Terminal’s total RTG fleet from nine to 17. According to PSA Halifax, this purchase will expand the terminal’s handling capacity by 25% and is part of PSA’s efforts to electrify its equipment, which will help the company meet its sustainability and decarbonization targets.

The Nanaimo Port Authority will receive $600,000 from the National Trade Corridors Fund, for the Nanaimo Port Authority to study the expansion of container handling capacity, the development of land near the port, and assess potential improvements to the transportation of cargo by sea over short distances between Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland.

The study will also determine the possibility of expanding the Vancouver Island’s Duke Point Terminal, to help alleviate bottlenecks at Vancouver’s deep-sea terminals. It will also explore the feasibility of improving the terminal’s infrastructure, providing better connectivity to transfer cargo from barges to rail cars on the mainland.

Under a contract between the Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC) and Canpotex, Canada will increase the amount of Canadian potash supplied to Bangladesh in 2023. The Canadian potash will support Bangladesh’s agricultural sector and strengthen its domestic food production and security. The agreement, which is in line with Canada’s commitment to deepening regional agriculture and agri-food partnerships under the new Indo-Pacific Strategy, will help Bangladesh address the increased food insecurity it is facing due to Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine. In Canada, the deal will support hundreds of well-paying jobs and contribute to economic growth and stability. In 2022, Canadian exports of potash to Bangladesh were valued at more than $500 million.

The Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities has released its report, "Addressing labour shortages in the Canadian Transportation Sector" covering rail, road, and marine transportation challenges.  Both Both the Council of Marine Carriers and the Canadian Ferry Association called on Transport Canada to undertake consultations with marine stakeholders to review and modernize the regulations governing the crewing of ships.

The Minister of Transport, the Honourable Omar Alghabra, announced an investment of up to $23 million to Global Agriculture Trans-Loading Inc., under the National Trade Corridors Fund, for a project that will expand rail capacity in Surrey, British Columbia. With this funding, Global Agriculture Trans-Loading will make several purchases, including a three-track rail spur, new container lifts, railcar pushers, conveyor belt systems, and bagging equipment. These improvements to rail infrastructure and capacity will enable Global Agriculture Trans-Loading to double their operations and help move agricultural products and grain between different modes of transportation more efficiently.

BIMCO has launched a campaign to accelerate the update of electronic bills of lading.  Paper bills of lading are inefficient and slow down trade. They are vulnerable to fraud and human error. Their use results in unnecessary legal and commercial risks such as relying on letters of indemnity or getting lost in transit.  A number of companies have signed the 25 by 25 Pledge and will target moving at least 25% of their annual seaborne trade volume for at least one commodity to eBLs by 2025.

IMO has welcomed the landmark agreement on a new oceans treaty to protect marine biodiversity on the high seas earlier this month.  The new legally binding international instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction – known as BBNJ is crucial in building a legally binding regime for regulating human intervention and combating climate change to protect marine life and health of the high seas.  The treaty also creates an institutional set-up for effective implementation: a conference of the parties for adopting decisions and conducting timely evaluation; a multidisciplinary science and technology body of experts performing an advisory function; and a secretariat to provide administrative assistance and ensure coordination among various subsidiary and international bodies. It also establishes a clearing-house mechanism, providing open access to all information regarding activities, requests and knowledge generated under its purview.

Chinese shipbuilder Yangzijiang Shipbuilding in China has delivered what is believed to be the world’s largest containership by carrying capacity. The MSC Irina was delivered March 9 to MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company by Yangzi Xinfu Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of Yangzijiang Shipbuilding located in Jingjiang city on the Yangtze River.

With an advertised carrying capacity of 24,346 twenty-foot containers (TEUs), the ship takes the unofficial title of the world’s container ship. According to Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, the MSC Irina is its first 24,000 TEU class delivery and the first in a series of six ships being built for MSC.

At 399.9 metres long and 61.3 metres wide, the vessel is so large it had to be floated out with a truncated deckhouse and funnel, according to Alphaliner, so that it could slip underneath a number of bridges that cross the Yangtze River.