The benefits of our Arctic trade corridor

Opinion

The Arctic Gateway Group spoke about the importance of the Port of Churchill and the Hudson Bay Railway long before the current trade war with the U.S. and rhetoric of Canada becoming the 51st state.

The Port of Churchill and the Hudson Bay Railway provide trade enabling infrastructure and greater access to global markets for the vast resources of Western Canada, in support of our national economy. The work to build back up a historical set of Canadian infrastructure that was neglected for decades, ironically by American owners, is more important than ever.

What the current geopolitical situation has taught us is we cannot depend on any single trade partner, even our closest and largest one. The chaos of the Trump tariffs reminds us that we must diversify our trade routes and trade infrastructure. The tariffs could subside at some point and the trade relationship could even improve; however, we cannot forget the lesson of trade diversification.

Canada’s Arctic Trade Corridor, through the Port of Churchill, creates efficient trade routes to alternative global markets in Europe, Africa, Middle East, South America and beyond, allowing Canada to diversify trade from the U.S.

For a country the size of Canada with our vast northern coastal boundaries, a northern deepwater port that is connected to the broader Canadian rail system just makes sense. The Port of Churchill will never replace major Canadian ports in Vancouver or Montreal, but it will give Canada supply chain optionality and build resilience in the face of trade disruptions from weather events, forest fires, and even labour disputes.

There are also major interprovincial and territorial trade opportunities that Arctic Gateway will unlock. The Port of Churchill provides a direct and cost-effective route for shipping supplies from Manitoba to the Kivalliq region of Nunavut, including potentially helping Nunavut export critical minerals and other commodities to world markets. Manitoba has long been a natural economic partner with the Kivalliq region, sharing deep cultural and trade ties.

Churchill is the right location to anchor our northern economic growth. The set of multi-use infrastructure with the port, railway, tank farm and an airport with a 9,200-foot runway capable of handling any transport or passenger aircraft in the world, also supports the assertion of Canada’s sovereignty in the North. The town of Churchill also has municipal infrastructure to support defense personnel that would be needed for a northern supply base.

Arctic Gateway is often asked about the strength of the Hudson Bay Railway and its ability to support significantly increased trade. The railway today is in the best condition it’s been in decades, and with the use of modern technology that was not available even five years ago, we can maintain high-quality track conditions. Technologies include ground-penetrating radar, drones, precision GPS, thermosyphons, and artificial intelligence to help identify areas for maintenance before they even become an issue. Hudson Bay Railway has partnered with academia from across Canada utilizing research, science, data, technology and good old fashion Canadian innovation and smarts to ensure the railway is strong under any climate conditions.

To that point, the Port of Churchill and Hudson Bay Railway have always had detractors. It is time to put those criticisms to bed. The Port of Churchill is ideally located on Hudson Bay, with a natural harbour to protect it from the Bay’s weather volatilities, without the silt build up of other locations on the Bay, and with room to expand Churchill’s shipping capabilities. This is why Churchill was selected almost a century ago and why other locations were abandoned.

The time is now for Canada’s Arctic Trade Corridor. Be it critical minerals, mining and agricultural products, northern resupply, Canadian imports and exports, energy products, or maintaining essential community linkages, the role Arctic Gateway can play in boosting and supporting Canada’s economy cannot be understated. On top of that, as an organization owned by a consortium of 41 northern Manitoba First Nations and local communities, Arctic Gateway is a unique and leading form of economic reconciliation, with jobs, opportunities and economic growth for ownership communities.

Canada is strong and free. Building up the nation’s trade enabling infrastructure and making us less dependent on any one country or region just makes sense.

Chris Avery is CEO of the Arctic Gateway Group.