A memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the development of Canada's Atlantic Gateway was signed last year by the four Atlantic Provinces and the federal government. The Atlantic Gateway Alliance’s mandate is:
• To promote the need for a pan-Atlantic Canada gateway strategy.
• To ensure that transportation stakeholders from all Atlantic Provinces are involved in the development of policies and regulatory and investment priorities related to the Atlantic Gateway.
• To enhance Atlantic Canada’s transportation system and the competitiveness and efficiency of our road, rail, air and marine transportation systems.
• To contribute to the economic expansion of all Atlantic Provinces through the development of an inclusive and fair Atlantic Gateway strategy.
Canada’s Atlantic Gateway strategy is focused on three ports, The Port of Halifax, the Saint John (New Brunswick) Port Authority and the terminal planned for the Port of Melford in the Strait of Canso.
According to report commissioned by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), there appears to be a strong business case to support to develop Canada’s east coast ports which would help strengthen the region and Canada’s position in international commerce.

Peter MacKay, in addition to being Canada’s Minister of National Defence is also Minister of ACOA. In a recent speech, he commented that “the Atlantic Gateway has a strong value proposition rooted in three key factors: competitive transit times, reliability and cost competitiveness. In addition, the Atlantic Gateway has the potential to provide North American businesses with more efficient supply chain management practices, greater market reach through initiatives such as building the transload sector, access to specialized services, and the application of new transportation technologies.” While the Federal Government has committed $2.1 million to fund infrastructure projects that support key trade corridors, the ACOA study was left to determine if a business case can be made for Canada’s east coast ports as it has for its west coast ports where $1 billion has already been committed to support Asia-pacific trade through the west coast ports.

The private sector is stepping forward with money to invest in these ports. There is approximately $250 million committed to the Port of Halifax.

Macquarie Infrastructure Partners’ purchase of Halterm $172 million
Ceres purchase of two new post-Panamax cranes $20 million
Port Authority’s investment in port infrastructure $20 million
CN’s investment in Autoport $15 million
Consolidated Fastfrate (now part of Fenway Partners) $10 million
Investment in a new transload and distribution facility
Halterm’s purchase of new yard equipment $8 million

A consortium of Canadian and U. S. investors is funding Melford International Terminal, Inc., in the building of a 1.5 million-TEU terminal in the port of Melford, Nova Scotia. The first phase is due to be complete by the year 2010 on 14,000 acres in Guysborough County facing the Atlantic Ocean.
Involved in the project are SSA Marine who will operate the terminal, CenterPoint Properties will provide the capital and has partnered with Melford to develop a 1,500 acre logistics center adjacent to the terminal; and the short line railroad Rail America will construct the 20-mile long spur from Linwood Junction to the development at a cost of approximately $25 million dollars.

Unfortunately, growth in the Port of Halifax has been flat compared to two of its major competitors, Montreal and New York. In fact, Halifax is operating at about fifty percent capacity. Various reasons have been cited for these disappointing results. The most obvious is that Halifax is not well located to attract freight from Asia due to its location. Another criticism is that Halifax is a one railroad town compared to most other Canadian and American ports that are served by two major railways. Perhaps the major reason for this performance was identified by Karen Oldfield, the Halifax Port’s president and CEO in stating that “people don’t know about Atlantic Canada, so we have a big job to do to increase awareness of our region.” Some people have been openly critical of the “build it and they will come” mentality. Clearly all of Canada’s east coast ports have a marketing job to do.

A number of suggestions have been put forth as to how to drive traffic through these ports. They include the following:

Becoming the biggest short sea operator to the East Coast of the United States
Using CN as a land bridge for goods (e.g. fish products) coming from Asia via the Port of Prince Rupert to the East Coast of the United States
Focus on emerging markets such as India (via the Suez Canal), Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Eastern Europe
Focus on Central and South America and the Caribbean
Focus on export reefer traffic
Focus on traffic moving to Chicago and the Ohio valley

This list will have to be assessed and rationalized into a set of clear focused marketing strategies rather than a “wish list” of opportunities. The other key determinant for success is inter-government and inter-port co-operation. Infighting and turf wars could serve to undermine the focus and clear marketing direction needed to achieve success for the region. In summary, a clear focus on where the Atlantic ports can make a difference, a well designed marketing program, good communication, teamwork and leadership will be the key ingredients for success.