Indigenous-led logistics project secures federal funding for construction at B.C. port

An Indigenous-led logistics project in British Columbia has secured a $60.7-million loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank to forge ahead with construction at the Port of Prince Rupert.

The loan from the CIB, a federal Crown corporation, will help finance development of a site owned by the Metlakatla First Nation.

A $43.3-million grant previously committed by Transport Canada will be the other major funding component. The Metlakatla and the Prince Rupert Port Authority are slated to contribute the remaining $13.1-million for the $117.1-million project.

Ehren Cory, the CIB’s chief executive officer, said the South Kaien Import Logistics Park will be a prime example of economic reconciliation, with the loan being provided through the CIB’s Indigenous Community Infrastructure Initiative.

The South Kaien project is designed to smooth the handling of container imports, with the goal of strengthening Prince Rupert’s role as a key port for North American trade with Asia.

With new facilities such as warehousing for containers, the idea is to improve the flow of cargo, notably intermodal freight – goods transported inside standardized metal containers that are readily transferred among trains, trucks and ships.

“The government of Canada sets investment priorities for us, one of those being Indigenous participation in infrastructure,” Mr. Cory said in an interview from Toronto. “It’s up to us as an arm’s-length Crown corporation to go make that happen, and that’s what we’re doing in this investment and others like it.”

The port authority, which reports to federal Transport Minister Anita Anand, serves as the landlord for tenants such as DP World PLC at the Fairview container terminal in Prince Rupert.

“It’s about an economic opportunity for the Metlakatla,” Mr. Cory said.

The 56-acre import logistics project will be the first in a series of Indigenous-led plans to develop infrastructure across sprawling properties. Site preparation for South Kaien is slated to be finished within two years.

“We envision these lands as an integral part of the Prince Rupert gateway and other commercial uses,” Harold Leighton, CEO of Metlakatla Development Corp. (MDC), said in a statement.

“MDC plans to develop the remaining 280 acres in subsequent phases to support regional growth and provide economic opportunities for the region and next generation of Metlakatla members.”

Port authority president Shaun Stevenson welcomed the CIB’s loan announcement. “This investment is vital to anchoring the Port of Prince Rupert as a full-service trade gateway,” he said in a news release.

Last year, the CIB agreed to lend $150-million to the port authority to help finance the construction of a $750-million export logistics project called Canxport. Ray-Mont Logistics, which specializes in freight forwarding, will be the operator of Canxport on Ridley Island.

While the Metlakatla and the port authority are collaborating on the import logistics park, tensions linger over the right to export liquefied petroleum gas such as propane and butane.

The port authority previously granted exclusive rights for developing liquefied petroleum gas and bulk liquids on Ridley Island to Netherlands-based Royal Vopak NV and Calgary-based AltaGas Ltd.

The Metlakatla and the Lax Kw’alaams Band hold a combined 10-per-cent stake in Trigon Pacific Terminals Ltd., which operates a coal-export terminal on Ridley Island.

Trigon filed a lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court in 2023, claiming that the port authority reneged on a leasing arrangement that would have allowed Trigon to diversify its exports. New York-based Riverstone Holdings LLC and AMCI Group of Connecticut own 90 per cent of Trigon.

The Metlakatla filed a separate lawsuit last year, alleging the port authority “breached its constitutional duties to adequately consult and accommodate Metlakatla,” including when it approved a monopoly called the Ridley Island Energy Export Facility (REEF), which is co-owned equally by AltaGas and Vopak.

After REEF opens within two years, AltaGas and Vopak plan to export liquefied petroleum gas, as well as methanol and other bulk liquids.

AltaGas also owns 70 per cent of a joint venture that started exporting liquefied propane in 2019 from Ridley Island. Vopak holds the remaining 30 per cent.