Province still working on Crown corporation legislation to get Port of Churchill expansion going, Kinew says

Legislation needed to begin the work of turning the Port of Churchill into a national export hub with the potential to transform Manitoba’s economy is still being hammered out, says Premier Wab Kinew.

The act, to create the Manitoba Crown-Indigenous Corp., is still being written, which meant it was not among the more than 40 bills introduced by the NDP before Wednesday’s deadline for passage before the legislative session’s summer recess.

The government promised the legislation in November’s throne speech.

“The corporation has been set up,” the premier said Thursday at an unrelated event.

“What needs to happen is for us to pass legislation that gives it that unique status that a Crown corporation has.”

The publicly owned entities are hybrids that combine the public policy objectives of a government department with the commercial, operational and administrative structure of a private company.

“I would have loved if we could have introduced this bill prior to the deadline,” Kinew said. “But I think it’s most important that we get it right rather than trying to rush it.”

The 29 First Nations and 12 northern communities who own the Port of Churchill and the railway linking it to the rest of Canada aren’t involved in the creation of the Crown corporation, Arctic Gateway Group president and CEO Chris Avery said.

“We will continue to work with all government and industry partners to move (the expansion) forward with speed and determination, ensuring this transformative plan for trade-enabling infrastructure supports Canada’s national goals and delivers long-term benefits for northern Manitoba,” Avery said in a statement.

Kinew said he met with the head of the federal government’s Major Projects Office, CEO Dawn Farrell, in the last week. The federal agency was established in late 2025 to accelerate “nation-building” infrastructure projects.

“We all see the the potential opportunity in Churchill,” he told reporters.

Expanding its port capacity to move resources from western provinces via the Arctic Ocean to markets other than in the U.S. is “huge” for the Canadian economy, he said.

“This is how we Trump-proof our economy here in Manitoba and Canada,” he said. “In order to do that, we’ve got to bring the Indigenous nations in the province along.”

Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Kyra Wilson issued a statement earlier saying the AMC is encouraged by the province’s recognition that the North needs long-term stability, investment and new opportunities.

“Churchill’s development holds the potential for jobs, regional growth, and real ownership for the First Nations who have sustained the North for generations… but real progress in the North must begin with First Nations leadership, grounded in the voices, direction, and decision-making of our 63 Nations,” Wilson said.

Kinew said the province is working closely with the First Nations and the Manitoba Métis community to make it happen.

In February, the federal government announced a market-sounding study on how rail, port and other improvements near Churchill might attract more business from grain, mining and other companies. Ottawa and the province have pledged more than $262 million over five years to make the port ready.

“Now we’re going to the energy industry, we’re going to the mining industry, we’re going to the other big businesses in Western Canada saying, ‘Who’s ready to invest? How can we make this Churchill thing a reality?’” Kinew said.

“If we get an energy company to say, ‘Yep, we’re willing to put big money on the table… that’s when this thing becomes a winner. That’s what the market planning exercise hopefully returns sometime in April or May.”

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca