WINNIPEG – The board of directors of the Vancouver Port Corporation sailed into Winnipeg recently to talk to producers and shippers about trade through the port.
“It’s really to hear their views about what we’re doing right, what we’re doing wrong, what we can do better and to get a better understanding of their needs for the future,” said Norman Stark, president of the port.
During remarks made before the conference, port officials talked about railway issues as much as they spoke about port issues since rail costs are the biggest portion of the total cost of moving grain from the elevator to a ship.
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Ron Longstaffe, chair of the port’s board of directors, said the railroads are a “lifeline” for the port because 85 percent of the product handled there comes or leaves by rail.
Although it costs twice as much to use competing U.S. ports at Portland and Seattle, the property and fuel taxes on Canadian railroads greatly increase the cost of the northern option.
Running a train from Tacoma to Toronto is about $10,000 cheaper than running one from Vancouver to Toronto, solely because of taxes here.
Longstaffe said labor problems at the port and railways have affected its image in Asian Pacific countries. He said 35 collective agreements affect the work of the port. So the port has been taking union representatives on trade missions to show them how important a reliable workforce is to the port.
Ports to benefit
Officials said changes to the Western Grain Transportation Act would also be a topic covered at the conference.
According to information Longstaffe has received from the Canadian Wheat Board and a major grain company, west coast ports will be the net beneficiary of WGTA changes.
He said that producers have said premiums for shipping through Vancouver may offset the loss of the WGTA, especially for higher-value crops and canola.
