All quiet on the Northern front as Omnitrax, province mum on rail line to Churchill

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/08/2017 (2962 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Omnitrax’s website boasts two pages lavishly extolling the values of its rail line to Churchill and its ownership and operation of the Port of Churchill.

Neither page mentions that the rail line has been washed out since May 23, with no sign of the Denver-based company’s paying for repairs any time soon, nor does it mention that Omnitrax has essentially shut down the port.

Elsewhere on the company’s website, there is a link posted July 13 to a June 9 news release in which the company said that the rail line to Churchill would be closed indefinitely.

The company declined to discuss its online promotional strategy Monday.

Peter Touesnard, chief commercial officer at Omnitrax, said by email from Denver Monday, “We are focused on what is most important to the people of Churchill at the moment: working with government to return safe and reliable service to the communities north of Amery, Manitoba. At this time, we have no further comments to provide.”

Repeated attempts over several days to contact Churchill Mayor Mike Spence have been unsuccessful, and Premier Brian Pallister’s office deferred to the company for comment.

Omnitrax has refused to bear the cost of repairing the line, which it estimates at between $20 million and $60 million.

Omnitrax says that its rail line to Churchill “is a vital transportation link in northern Manitoba, hauling perishables, automobiles, construction material, heavy and dimensional equipment, scrap, hazardous materials, kraft paper, concentrates, containers, fertilizer, wheat and other grain products. VIA Rail also operates remote services on HBRY (Hudson Bay Railway Company) using its Hudson Bay passenger train between Winnipeg, and Churchill, Manitoba.

“Major customers for HBRY include HudBay Minerals, Tolko Manitoba, Imperial Oil, Petro Canada, and Sittco Energy. HBRY proudly supports the export of Western Canadian Farmers Grain and Specialty Crops through their affiliate, the Hudson Bay Port Company, which is located at the northern end of the railway.”

The Omnitrax website does not note that the company shut down its grain terminal operation in Churchill in July of 2016, and cut its freight rail service in half.

The line in northern Manitoba is the only non-American line among the 21 rail lines Omnitrax operates.

The page touting the port notes it is North America’s only deep water Arctic port and is strategically located — and links to several other sites extolling the value of individual services in Churchill.

Says Omnitrax: “The Port brings the world of ocean trade to the front doorstep of the central United States and Canada. Churchill’s unique location provides opportunities for the export of grain, manufactured, mining, and forest products, as well as the import of ores, minerals, steel, building materials, fertilizer, and petroleum products for distribution in Central and Western Canada and the United States.

“Hudson Bay Port Company has four deep-sea berths for the loading and unloading of grain, bulk commodities, general cargo, and tanker vessels. The Port is connected to the Hudson Bay Railway and further connections are made with the Canadian National Railway system,” it says.

“The location of the port is ideal for shipping products to and from Europe, Russia, Mexico, Africa, South America, and the Middle East. Using the Port of Churchill eliminates time-consuming navigation, additional handling and high-cost transportation through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway. Shipping seasons normally run from late July to early November.”

When the province recently announced it would ship in enough propane to get Churchill through this coming winter, Blaine Pedersen — at that time Manitoba’s infrastructure minister — said that the ship needs to offload by late September in order to be able to get out again before it’s blocked by ice from getting back to Montreal.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca