THE lack of a central strategy could thwart the drive to create a thriving national cargo gateway on Canada's East Coast.
There is a growing concern that without a central strategy - like the one that helped Western ports embark on a slew of key transformative projects - the modest funds available to the numerous Eastern Canadian port projects will fail to achieve the target of establishing a major national cargo gateway on Canada's East Coast.
The coast is already under pressure from an average annual container volume growth of 6 per cent - double the growth on the Canadian West Coast - and the need to adapt to escalating vessel sizes.
Development proposals put forward to handle expected future volume growth into East Canada include one to expand the Port of Montreal by creating a new terminal at Contrecoeur, and one to create a new terminal in Halifax.
Others include proposed greenfield ports in Melford and Sydney, both in Nova Scotia. A new terminal is also proposed for Quebec City, closer to the mouth of the St Lawrence River than Montreal. Together all the projects would add about 4.3 million TEU of capacity to the East Coast, well above the combined volume of 1.02 million TEU handled by Montreal and Halifax - the coast's main ports - in 2017.
Yet there is little consensus among port and logistics stakeholders on which projects would bring the most benefit to the region, speakers at a recent Canada trade conference in Toronto said, reports IHS Media.
And without that unified vision to focus and prioritise projects, some analysts fear the coast could fritter away its potential.
Senior consultant and vice president, commercial at the Halifax Port Authority, Paul DuVoisin, said that without careful planning, the benefits of increased investment and capacity could be diluted by offering shippers too many alternatives.
That lack of consensus contrasts with the experience on Canada's West Coast over the last two decades, where the industry has leveraged public money to attract billions of dollars of investment in Canada's Pacific Coast ports and infrastructure, and as a result has captured a growing share of US Midwest cargo from Seattle and Tacoma.
Jean-Paul Rodrigue, a geography professor at Hofstra University, who has studied Canada's ports, said: 'Eastern Canada is facing almost a kind of an existential question,' said Rodrigue. 'How do we deal with this ...[to] accommodate the new game?'
The Canadian government in March said it will review the nation's 18 port authorities to gauge their efficiency and security. The same month, Canadian freight forwarders urged the government to create a national intermodal maritime strategy and to ramp up its spending related to its C$2 billion ($1.54 billion) National Trade Corridors Fund.
Which of the proposed East Coast port developments go ahead, and which don't, could help determine how shippers in the future see Canada's East Coast ports, and whether it is considered an efficient gateway through which to get cargo in and out of the Canada, and to the Midwest.
Each project has benefits and drawbacks, and what's clear is that if nothing is done to enable the coast to handle bigger ships and more cargo, shippers will send their goods elsewhere, most likely through US ports, Mr Rodrigue said.
Cargo volume through the main Canadian East Coast ports - Montreal, Halifax - has increased with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6 per cent over the last five years, double the 3 per cent CAGR of the West Coast, which handled about 68 per cent of the volume of about 3.22 million TEU through the four major ports on both coasts in 2017.
Imports through the Canadian East Coast major ports grew with a CAGR of 6.6 per cent in the last five years, easily outpacing the 5.1 per cent CAGR of Canadian West Coast ports. East Coast exports grew with a CAGR of 5.4 per cent, while West Coast export cargo volumes declined slightly over the period.
West Coast cargo volumes have in recent years grown with the help of Asia-Pacific Gateway projects, which emerged from Canada's concept of gateway partnerships in which ports, marine terminal operators and railroads work with provincial and federal government agencies to address infrastructure needs.
There is a growing concern that without a central strategy - like the one that helped Western ports embark on a slew of key transformative projects - the modest funds available to the numerous Eastern Canadian port projects will fail to achieve the target of establishing a major national cargo gateway on Canada's East Coast.
The coast is already under pressure from an average annual container volume growth of 6 per cent - double the growth on the Canadian West Coast - and the need to adapt to escalating vessel sizes.
Development proposals put forward to handle expected future volume growth into East Canada include one to expand the Port of Montreal by creating a new terminal at Contrecoeur, and one to create a new terminal in Halifax.
Others include proposed greenfield ports in Melford and Sydney, both in Nova Scotia. A new terminal is also proposed for Quebec City, closer to the mouth of the St Lawrence River than Montreal. Together all the projects would add about 4.3 million TEU of capacity to the East Coast, well above the combined volume of 1.02 million TEU handled by Montreal and Halifax - the coast's main ports - in 2017.
Yet there is little consensus among port and logistics stakeholders on which projects would bring the most benefit to the region, speakers at a recent Canada trade conference in Toronto said, reports IHS Media.
And without that unified vision to focus and prioritise projects, some analysts fear the coast could fritter away its potential.
Senior consultant and vice president, commercial at the Halifax Port Authority, Paul DuVoisin, said that without careful planning, the benefits of increased investment and capacity could be diluted by offering shippers too many alternatives.
That lack of consensus contrasts with the experience on Canada's West Coast over the last two decades, where the industry has leveraged public money to attract billions of dollars of investment in Canada's Pacific Coast ports and infrastructure, and as a result has captured a growing share of US Midwest cargo from Seattle and Tacoma.
Jean-Paul Rodrigue, a geography professor at Hofstra University, who has studied Canada's ports, said: 'Eastern Canada is facing almost a kind of an existential question,' said Rodrigue. 'How do we deal with this ...[to] accommodate the new game?'
The Canadian government in March said it will review the nation's 18 port authorities to gauge their efficiency and security. The same month, Canadian freight forwarders urged the government to create a national intermodal maritime strategy and to ramp up its spending related to its C$2 billion ($1.54 billion) National Trade Corridors Fund.
Which of the proposed East Coast port developments go ahead, and which don't, could help determine how shippers in the future see Canada's East Coast ports, and whether it is considered an efficient gateway through which to get cargo in and out of the Canada, and to the Midwest.
Each project has benefits and drawbacks, and what's clear is that if nothing is done to enable the coast to handle bigger ships and more cargo, shippers will send their goods elsewhere, most likely through US ports, Mr Rodrigue said.
Cargo volume through the main Canadian East Coast ports - Montreal, Halifax - has increased with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6 per cent over the last five years, double the 3 per cent CAGR of the West Coast, which handled about 68 per cent of the volume of about 3.22 million TEU through the four major ports on both coasts in 2017.
Imports through the Canadian East Coast major ports grew with a CAGR of 6.6 per cent in the last five years, easily outpacing the 5.1 per cent CAGR of Canadian West Coast ports. East Coast exports grew with a CAGR of 5.4 per cent, while West Coast export cargo volumes declined slightly over the period.
West Coast cargo volumes have in recent years grown with the help of Asia-Pacific Gateway projects, which emerged from Canada's concept of gateway partnerships in which ports, marine terminal operators and railroads work with provincial and federal government agencies to address infrastructure needs.