Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Blair Lekstrom was in town on Tuesday to tour various port facilities, and says he sees nothing but positive in Prince Rupert’s future.
“Our opportunity with Asia is huge. We sit on the best opportunity for expansion and that is here in Prince Rupert. There is limited capability for growth for most ports, and the one thing that Prince Rupert has is the ability to grow and land available for that. Another thing is that the port has the land that will allow it to grow while maintaining their social license to operate. For instance, Ridley Island isn’t in downtown,” he said.
“The opportunity for expansion here is significant. I don’t think there is any opportunity for similar growth anywhere on the west coast of North America.”
Lekstrom said that if the Prince Rupert Port Authority wants to achieve its goal of being the second largest port in the country, realistically all they have to do is stay the course with what they’re doing now.
“This is not one of those cases of build it and they will come...Prince Rupert and the Prince Rupert Port Authority have a world class reputation around the world,” he said, noting that shippers are wanting to come to Prince Rupert for its speed and reliability.
“When we talk about the benefits of expansion to Prince Rupert, it’s really just the tip of the iceberg. This benefits all of BC and the country...We are a resource rich province , but the resources mean nothing if we can’t get it out to market, so we’re very fortunate to have this infrastructure that is the envy of the world.”
Some of the increased growth in Prince Rupert could come at the expense of Port Metro Vancouver, and Lekstrom said that both ports have to work to attract the cargo.
“Competition is always good. It breeds innovation and thinking outside the box,” he said, noting that having a focussed provincial vision will go a long way to benefitting both facilities.
“We have to focus in the same direction and with the Asia Pacific gateway and the Northern gateway, we have that focus.”
And while he said he and the provincial government were fully supportive of the expansion in Prince Rupert, Lekstrom said that support doesn’t necessarily extend to financial aid for future construction.
“[The government] doesn’t create job, what we do is provide an atmosphere for the private sector that they want to invest in,” he said.
“I think the operators realize that what they need is for the government to recognize what they’re doing and support them, which includes policies and legislation.”