Port of Churchill grain shipping operation on the Churchill River. Port of Churchill photo.
A northern delegation comprised of representatives from the Town of Churchill and The Pas, City of Thompson, Hudson Bay Route Association, and the War Lake First Nation have met with provincial and federal governments to try to sort out the recent Port of Churchill closure by american based owner Omnitrax. The company closed the port and issued two – week lay – off notices on July 25th of this year.
No grain has been shipped through the Port of Churchill prior to the shut – down in what Churchill Mayor Spence has characterized a “bumper -crop year”. The “unforseen” circumstances that Omnitrax is siting as reason for closure have still not been disclosed by the company that purchased the facility in 1993 from the Government of Canada which was at the time divesting itself from numerous crown corporations. The current closure affects nearly 200 paid positions all along the Bayline.
Speaking for the northern delegation, Mayor Spence stated “this is an emergency situation for our community, our region and indeed our country. We’ve been told by farmers that there is a bumper crop and as an export country we can’t be shutting down ports if we are able to keep people employed and grow our economy”.
The delegation is in agreement that the Government of Canada at national and regional levels should take responsibility to insure that the Port of Churchill is of national interest. In this light all involved feel the Port of Churchill needs to be reopened and continue to function as a part of Canada’s national infrastructure. This new delegation has pledged to continue to diligently work with the branches of government to find a long term solution for keeping the port operations running.
Michael Constant, Chief of the Opaskwayak Cree Nation, reinforced the message by Mayor Mike Spence of Churchill stating “we have all come together to find a workable long term solution and we are prepared to advance a northern regional ownership model that we feel is the best approach going forward”.
Last December a group of Manitoba First Nations purportedly was in the process of finalizing an agreement to purchase the Port of Churchill though that news has simmered somewhat as no definitive sale has been finalized.
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Port of Churchill grain shipping operation on the Churchill River. Port of Churchill photo.
A First Nations group based in Northern Manitoba is in the process of buying the Port of Churchill and Hudson Bay rail line from OmniTrax, a Denver ,Colorado based company. The town known as the polar bear capital of the world has been struggling to keep the ancillary business viable in these changing times.
The First Nations group provided a letter of intent for the purchase of the port and the Hudson Bay line – the stretch of track from The Pas to Churchill – as soon as both sides complete necessary research on the transaction.The rail line is the lifeline that connects all the small communities that have no road access in the region.
“It’s a group of communities along the line and others that, you know, over the period of time have always believed the railway was theirs. This now can become a reality based on current negotiations,” said OmniTrax president Merv Tweed. With the invested interest that the group has to keep the rail line running smoothly as a means of access to their remote communities, train service there and onto Churchill should thrive for the distant future.
At this juncture of the negotiations the buying group nor the purchase price of the assets has not been specifically identified.
“They’ll make their own statement in their time,” Tweed said.
For the next 45 days OmniTrax and the First Nations group will engage in a “due diligence period in which both parties will work together to ensure that a purchase becomes a reality,” a news release from Omnitrax stated. Omnitrax has agreed to work with the First Nations group for the next several years to facilitate a smooth transition. However, given the lack of success that Omnitrax has had in managing the port and increasing the shipping quota, this new regional rooted infusion might be a time to try new strategies for building the business and attaining higher levels of success.
OmniTrax acquired and began operating the port and rail line in 1997, though a reduction in grain shipments has placed financial strain on the operation. An attempt to diversify and specifically ship oil through the port was met with voracious public outcry which inevitably killed the initiative. The operation just seemed dead in the water after that battle this past year.
All these factors combined spurred the company to announce earlier this month plans to sell the operations. A quicker than expected sale agreement and local interest in the growth of the operation has instilled high hopes for the next phase in the life of the Port of Churchill. The operation employs roughly 100 local workers.
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The Port of Churchill and the Hudson Bay Railway are being put up for sale by Denver based Omnitrax owned by the Broe Group. Both the Hudson Bay line from the Pas to Churchill and the port are being sold together as a package deal.
Prior to 1997 the Government of Canada owned the Port but then divested many of their crown holdings and sold the facility to US based Omnitrax. Because the Canadian National Railway had also been privatized, the line between Churchill and the Pas was also sold to the company.
While the sale announcement has been kept low key the news is now out and potential suitors have yet to come forward.
After anticipating a surge in shipping from the port, years of average growth and a decline this year in the grain shipping out of Churchill have lead management to search for new product avenues. Recent attempts to initiate oil shipments from the sub – Arctic port were quashed by public outcry amid fears of potential environmental destruction in the case of a spill. Protesters fear an oil spill in the Hudson Bay would cause irreversible damage to the fragile northern ecosystem that, among other wildlife, is home to the mighty polar bear.
It will be very interesting to see who steps forward as a potential buyer and what plans are put forth for the port and the Hudson Bay Line. The challenge is huge.
“Obviously, after a tough year in the industry we’ve looked at a lot of things and concluded that either the railway and the port needs more support or perhaps another owner or operator could take it on and see what they could do,” say Merv Tweed, president of OmniTrax Canada. “It is obviously a big challenge, but we feel we’ve put the port and railroad in decent shape over the last couple of years. We’ve brought in a lot of efficiencies, but it is a challenge.”
See Churchill's Spectacular Summer Wildlife!
Meet hundreds of friendly beluga whales up close on Zodiac excursions, as well as caribou, polar bears, arctic fox and more on a Northland tundra adventure!
This view of the trip from The Pas to Churchill on the Hudson Bay Railroad gives a feeling of heading north through uncharted territory to the frontier town of Churchill. The town is accessible only by rail and air since no roads exist over the permafrost. Venturing by train allows one to feel isolated in a way explorers might have felt as they trekked north. I have taken this rail journey many times and it never was the same and always was an exciting feeling to board in Winnipeg and see the transition in topography and environment heading to Churchill. With Churchill’s Arctic summer coming, travelers will be filling the rail cars and heading north to see incredible wildlife of the Churchill region!
See Churchill's Spectacular Summer Wildlife!
Meet hundreds of friendly beluga whales up close on Zodiac excursions, as well as caribou, polar bears, arctic fox and more on a Northland tundra adventure!
Port of Churchill in the siege of winter. Steve Selden photo.
With the Port of Churchill processing over 600,000 tonnes of grain last year, the stability of the industry in Churchill has stabilized.
This has alleviated the need to a degree for Omnitrax Canada, owner of the port and Hudson Bay rail line, to continue to press for crude oil shipment by rail to Churchill and subsequent shipping through the port and Hudson Bay.
Environmental activists and farmers have praised Omnitrax for the decision to shelve shipping the oil at this time.
Eric Reder, The Wilderness Committee’s Manitoba campaign director, organized a year-long campaign including town hall meetings in Winnipeg, Thompson and Churchill and solicited over 4,000 protest letters mailed to the provincial and federal governments. The campaign was aimed at raising awareness thus facilitating pressure for the authorities to intervene and prevent Omnitrax from continuing the venture into transporting and shipping oil.
From the start, anyone familiar with the rail-line north from The Pas, knows of the calamity of grain – car derailments over the past decade. It seems irresponsible for any company failing to address those issues first then research and evaluate an emergency recovery plan for derailment of oil cars as well as shipping such a commodity on the pristine Hudson Bay.
“What we were asking of Omnitrax was to find any other product to ship other than crude oil, because every other product than this specific one is easier to clean up,” Reder said. “People from around the world voiced their objection… we are all relieved.”
Churchill Democratic Member of Parliment (MP) Niki Ashton had a fervent opinion on the issue. “Omnitrax has a lead role to play and I hope they continue to do that and support and respect the livelihoods of northerners”, stated Ashton.
“People didn’t feel safe, not only for the environmental conditions but because the emergency measures aren’t in place at all. Northerners and First Nations leaders spoke out loud and clear… although Omnitrax may not acknowledge that overtly.”
The Wilderness Committee also presented strong anti-shipping points to engaged people and the government. For some of the remote communities along the rail line, this single railway is their only access to the outside world – and to each other. How can oil spill response equipment be transported into these communities, when the only rail line has an accident on it? How do you evacuate people when there is no road into these communities? How do we safeguard the population, the wildlife, and the lands and waters that provide for them, when the only access – the rail line – is blocked by a train derailment?
Port of Churchill with grain ships dockside. Port of Churchill photo.
Suspending crude-oil shipments to Churchill indefinitely was a logical business decision considering the record-breaking success of grain shipments in recent years.
“Having reviewed all of our opportunities and the things we’d like to do, we decided it wasn’t necessary or in our best interests to pursue shipping oil any further,” Stated Omnitrax Canada President Merv Tweed. “I’m convinced that within the next couple of years we’ll hit the million-tonne mark.
Grain vessel awaits docking at the Port of Churchill. Steve Selden photo.
However, the grain market has fluctuated this last decade leading to the break-up of the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly with the Port of Churchill. With this history there’s no telling whether soaring grain shipment tonnage will permanently quell Omnitrax’s long term aspirations to ship crude oil through the Port of Churchill. News releases from the company have framed the current status as “suspended”.
See Churchill's Spectacular Summer Wildlife!
Meet hundreds of friendly beluga whales up close on Zodiac excursions, as well as caribou, polar bears, arctic fox and more on a Northland tundra adventure!
