Proponents of a proposed multibillion-dollar inland port initiative are unveiling their plans in front of the movers and shakers in the transportation industry later this month.
Saskatchewan Agrivision Corp. will share its idea with senior representatives of Canada’s four major ports, two railways and 16 steamship lines in Vancouver on Jan. 16.
“They’re specifically coming in to hear us. We’ve got their attention,” said Saskatchewan Agrivision executive director Al Scholz.
Also attending the invitation-only meeting will be federal and provincial officials and representatives from major importers of retail products including Sears, Canadian Tire and Wal-Mart.
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What they will hear is a business case prepared by transportation consultant John Vickerman for an inland terminal located in Saskatchewan that will perform the same bulk and container loading and unloading tasks taking place at the coastal ports.
Scholz said the goal is to reduce the excessive dwell times at Canada’s four major ports in Vancouver, Prince Rupert, Halifax and Montreal.
The problem is particularly acute in the containerized movement of goods. Steamship lines would like to unload and load containers in 24 hours, but at most ports in North America they sit at a dock for five to 10 days.
The proposal to establish an inland port in Saskatchewan already appears to have an important ally. In a recent speech to the Empire Club of Toronto, British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell said he would like to see such facilities in Prince George and Kamloops, B.C., and Moose Jaw, Sask.
“Those inland ports will take pressure off of our sea terminals and allow our goods to get to Asian markets faster and more cost-competitively,” Campbell said.
Scholz said the proposed port would be a northern version of the Kansas City SmartPort, a non-profit organization that co-ordinates and promotes transportation and logistics assets and services in Kansas and Missouri.
“I’ve compared it to a convention and visitors bureau,” said SmartPort chair Ken Hoffman.
Since it was founded in 2001, SmartPort has helped make Kansas City the fifth largest logistics infrastructure region in the United States.
Hoffman sees merit in exploring the idea of establishing a similar transportation clearinghouse in Saskatchewan.
He said Saskatchewan has a similar history and geography as Kansas and Missouri, with its agrarian background, dependence on rail transportation and centralized location.
However, he noted there may be important differences in the volume and type of goods being transported through the region.
One of the differences is that Kansas City doesn’t have any problem attracting containers, while they are few and far between in Saskatchewan, said Scholz.
That is why the Saskatchewan project would include a physical facility to receive and redistribute containers in addition to the “virtual” SmartPort concept. Scholz said there is no price tag on the project yet but it could easily exceed $1 billion.
He contends that isn’t a grotesque expenditure for a province that generates $5 billion in farm cash receipts and is heavily dependent on potash and forestry exports.
