The Globe and Mail has posted a story to its website today that details expansion plans for the Vancouver Port Authority by way of a merger with the Fraser Port Authority and North Fraser Port Authority, a plan that would provide for a larger interest in global trade, at the expense of smaller local users according to critics.
With the Rupert port set to open in the fall, there is expected to be some slippage in the Vancouver numbers as some of the freight that currently runs through there heads north, Vancouver’s plan is to try and attract shipments from congested ports in Seattle, Long Beach and Los Angeles.
With Asia-Pacific trade expected to increase by some 300 per cent over the next 15 years, there will apparently be lots of product for all, the planned merger down south is one way that Vancouver hopes to keep its hefty share of that trade flowing through the Lower Mainland.
SHIPPING
B.C. port merger sparks trade worries
Vancouver Port Authority-Fraser River deal expected to get green light despite fears of a growing global focus
WENDY STUECK
The Globe and Mail
June 18, 2007
VANCOUVER -- A proposed merger that would combine the Vancouver Port Authority with its Fraser River counterparts is inching closer to reality, despite worries that the bigger agency will focus on global trade at the expense of local concerns.
The port merger does not bode well for small-business operators whose livelihoods are tied to the Fraser River, says Vancouver conservative MP John Cummins.
"These businesses are small potatoes to a big port corporation whose main thrust is moving goods through it to the world," Mr. Cummins says.
Proponents say the merger - expected to get a green light from the federal government as soon as this week - is a logical move that reflects the growing importance of marine trade to the region.
"It's been talked about for 30 years, but it's one of those ideas whose time has come," says Gordon Houston, president and chief executive officer of the Vancouver Port Authority. "Mainly because of the growth in business we're all experiencing. If you look at our projected figures for growth over the next 15 or 20 years, there is no port in B.C. that can handle that alone."
Asia-Pacific container traffic is projected to increase by 300 per cent over the next 15 years, according to a consultant's report on the merger.
A new container terminal in Prince Rupert is expected to win some of that business.
But Lower Mainland ports want to hang on to the business they have and woo customers from competitors such as Los Angeles, Long Beach and Seattle.
A provincial ports strategy, released in 2005, calls for B.C. ports, including Prince Rupert, to increase their share of Asia-Pacific container traffic from a current 10 per cent to 17 per cent by 2020. That increase and corresponding hikes in bulk traffic could pump an additional $6.6-billion a year into the Canadian economy.
But hitting those targets requires "significant" additional terminal, rail and road capacity, says the consultant's report. Those investments fall under the federal government's 2006 Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, of which the port merger is a key element.
A consultant's report recommended integration, citing benefits such as better land-use planning and more efficient operations.
The report touched on the labour and congestion issues that have dogged the Port of Vancouver in recent years.
"An integrated entity would be able to manage stakeholders such as truckers and railways in a more consistent and equitable basis than is currently possible," the report said. "These improved operational efficiencies would send a strong message to customers that the Gateway's reliability challenges are being addressed."
The proposed port merger comes as communities stew over traffic, pollution and other impacts of port facilities, including the Port of Vancouver's Terminal 2 container project in Delta. Those worries could be overlooked by an agency dominated by international shipping interests, Mr. Cummins says.
Proponents disagree, saying the merged authority would be better able to tackle issues ranging from land use to pollution.
As an example, they point to the Fraser River debris trap, a floating barrier near Hope that traps wood debris before it flows into the lower reaches of the river.
Without it, an amount of wood equivalent to 13 football stadiums packed three metres deep would hurtle down the river every year, says the Fraser Basin Council. But there has been squabbling over who should pay for it, with shortfalls threatening its operation.
A combined port authority would be better able to push for long-term funding, says Peter Podovinikoff, chairman of the Fraser River Port Authority.
The new combined port authority body would be called the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and could be in place by early next year.
Proposed players
Vancouver Port Authority
Jurisdiction over the waters that run through Burrard Inlet up to Indian Arm. Facilities include 25 major terminals, two cruise ship terminals and links to three rail networks. $4-billion a year in GDP
Fraser River Port Authority
North Fraser
Port Authority
Ninety kilometres of foreshore along the north and middle arms of the Fraser. Several domestic terminals and links to two rail networks. $1-billion a year in GDP
With the Rupert port set to open in the fall, there is expected to be some slippage in the Vancouver numbers as some of the freight that currently runs through there heads north, Vancouver’s plan is to try and attract shipments from congested ports in Seattle, Long Beach and Los Angeles.
With Asia-Pacific trade expected to increase by some 300 per cent over the next 15 years, there will apparently be lots of product for all, the planned merger down south is one way that Vancouver hopes to keep its hefty share of that trade flowing through the Lower Mainland.
SHIPPING
B.C. port merger sparks trade worries
Vancouver Port Authority-Fraser River deal expected to get green light despite fears of a growing global focus
WENDY STUECK
The Globe and Mail
June 18, 2007
VANCOUVER -- A proposed merger that would combine the Vancouver Port Authority with its Fraser River counterparts is inching closer to reality, despite worries that the bigger agency will focus on global trade at the expense of local concerns.
The port merger does not bode well for small-business operators whose livelihoods are tied to the Fraser River, says Vancouver conservative MP John Cummins.
"These businesses are small potatoes to a big port corporation whose main thrust is moving goods through it to the world," Mr. Cummins says.
Proponents say the merger - expected to get a green light from the federal government as soon as this week - is a logical move that reflects the growing importance of marine trade to the region.
"It's been talked about for 30 years, but it's one of those ideas whose time has come," says Gordon Houston, president and chief executive officer of the Vancouver Port Authority. "Mainly because of the growth in business we're all experiencing. If you look at our projected figures for growth over the next 15 or 20 years, there is no port in B.C. that can handle that alone."
Asia-Pacific container traffic is projected to increase by 300 per cent over the next 15 years, according to a consultant's report on the merger.
A new container terminal in Prince Rupert is expected to win some of that business.
But Lower Mainland ports want to hang on to the business they have and woo customers from competitors such as Los Angeles, Long Beach and Seattle.
A provincial ports strategy, released in 2005, calls for B.C. ports, including Prince Rupert, to increase their share of Asia-Pacific container traffic from a current 10 per cent to 17 per cent by 2020. That increase and corresponding hikes in bulk traffic could pump an additional $6.6-billion a year into the Canadian economy.
But hitting those targets requires "significant" additional terminal, rail and road capacity, says the consultant's report. Those investments fall under the federal government's 2006 Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, of which the port merger is a key element.
A consultant's report recommended integration, citing benefits such as better land-use planning and more efficient operations.
The report touched on the labour and congestion issues that have dogged the Port of Vancouver in recent years.
"An integrated entity would be able to manage stakeholders such as truckers and railways in a more consistent and equitable basis than is currently possible," the report said. "These improved operational efficiencies would send a strong message to customers that the Gateway's reliability challenges are being addressed."
The proposed port merger comes as communities stew over traffic, pollution and other impacts of port facilities, including the Port of Vancouver's Terminal 2 container project in Delta. Those worries could be overlooked by an agency dominated by international shipping interests, Mr. Cummins says.
Proponents disagree, saying the merged authority would be better able to tackle issues ranging from land use to pollution.
As an example, they point to the Fraser River debris trap, a floating barrier near Hope that traps wood debris before it flows into the lower reaches of the river.
Without it, an amount of wood equivalent to 13 football stadiums packed three metres deep would hurtle down the river every year, says the Fraser Basin Council. But there has been squabbling over who should pay for it, with shortfalls threatening its operation.
A combined port authority would be better able to push for long-term funding, says Peter Podovinikoff, chairman of the Fraser River Port Authority.
The new combined port authority body would be called the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and could be in place by early next year.
Proposed players
Vancouver Port Authority
Jurisdiction over the waters that run through Burrard Inlet up to Indian Arm. Facilities include 25 major terminals, two cruise ship terminals and links to three rail networks. $4-billion a year in GDP
Fraser River Port Authority
First 60 kilometres of the Fraser River. Three major terminals, links to four rail networks.
$1.3-billion a year in GDP
$1.3-billion a year in GDP
North Fraser
Port Authority
Ninety kilometres of foreshore along the north and middle arms of the Fraser. Several domestic terminals and links to two rail networks. $1-billion a year in GDP
Source: Port reports
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