Website updated Sept. 8, 2011

Content added:

- 4-p. NWBC FC flyer has updated contacts.

- New member - Skeena Sawmills Ltd.

- Haul maps and volume analysis for Meziadin and Kitwanga as delivery points.

- Frequently asked Questions & Answers

- Chinese text version

Northwest BC Forest Coalition: Infrastructure Highlights: The region is well serviced by various methods of highly efficient industrial transport.

Ports

The region is connected to international markets by three commercial ports: The Port of Kitimat, the Port of Prince Rupert, and the Port of Stewart.

All three ports provide year round, ice free passage are able to accommodate increased cargo volumes in both receiving and delivery, as well as higher capacity vessels due to their deep and wide passages.

The Port of Stewart holds the distinction as being Canada's northern most year round ice free port. It is an uncongested deep harbour with logging infrastructure and road links to Highway 16 and CN Rail. The existing bulk terminal has capacity to increase usage and volume to and from Pacific markets.
http://www.stewart-hyder.com/company/bulkterminals.html

The Port of Prince Rupert is North America's closest port to Asian markets. Prince Rupert is 436 miles closer to Shanghai than Vancouver and 1,000 miles closer than Los Angeles. With direct rail connections to the rest of the North America the Port's location puts shippers closer to markets than southern ports. Facilities of note at the port include:

• Prince Rupert Container Terminal is the newest in North America and the first dedicated ship to rail container terminal. It has a current capacity of 500,000 Twenty Foot Equivalent Units (TEU) annually and plans to expand capacity to 2 million TEU's annually.

• Ridley Terminals Inc is a highly efficient bulk terminal which currently moves coal, petroleum coke, wood pellets, and potentially other products such as sulphur. The annual shipping capacity is 12 million tonnes with 1.2 million tonnes of on-site storage.
  http://www.rupertport.com/

The Port of Kitimat is BC's largest private port (larger than the Federal Port of Vancouver). It is a deep passage, year round port and is one day closer to Asian markets than Vancouver and four days closer than Los Angeles. Industrial lands at the port allow private entities the opportunity to build, own and operate their own facilities. Currently operators ship alumina, green and petroleum coke, aluminum, condensate, methanol, sackkraft and linerboard. As a private port, labour contracts are local and not tied to national collective agreements resulting in the port not being affected by labour strife.
http://www.city.kitimat.bc.ca/EN/main/business/port-of-kitimat.html

Rail

Canadian National Railway (CN Rail) is the largest rail network in Canada and the only truly transcontinental network in North America. Rail lines terminate in the port cities of Prince Rupert and Kitimat. Rail service connects these ports (through Terrace and Hazelton) eastward from the region with CN Rail's extensive North American rail system.

With the communities of Prince Rupert, Terrace, Kitimat, and Hazelton located along the railway any proposed processing facility is well situated for delivery to all of North America as well as Asian and global markets via the international ports. There are numerous potential industrial sites along the railway which can provide highly efficient connections and limited turnaround times for shipping and/or receiving.

Air

Air service is available via the Terrace/Kitimat and Prince Rupert airports. There are multiple daily direct flights to Vancouver International Airport. With a recent runway expansion at the Terrace/Kitimat airport and the potential to connect the facility to the railway there is opportunity for high volume air cargo. In addition to current passenger flights, there exist cargo shipping and receiving as well as courier air service. The Terrace/Kitimat airport is directly adjacent to a developing industrial park.

Smithers Airport: http://www.smithersairport.com/

Terrace/Kitimat Airport: http://www.yxt.ca/

Prince Rupert Airport: http://www.ypr.ca/

Road

The Northwest region is serviced by two primary Highway corridors. Highway 16 is a West-East connection from the City and Port of Prince Rupert through Terrace and Hazelton onwards to the rest of British Columbia, Canada, and North America. Highway 37 is a South-North corridor from the City and Port of Kitimat links through Terrace and Kitwanga to the Village and Port of Stewart and beyond to the Yukon and Alaska.

The Coalition's collective timber supply area is serviced by an extensive network of rural resource roads which connect to the main highway transportation routes.

With excellent year round maintenance and low traffic congestion, Highways 16 and 37 offer plenty of opportunity for high volumes of commercial transport with minimal turnaround times relative to other Southern highway routes.

Electricity

There is an advancing power line construction project proposed that, when completed, will run parallel to Highway 37 (NW Transmission Project) to deliver power to northern communities and for resource development with the potential to link with existing Alaskan transmission lines. Supply of electricity is ample and suitable for the high demands of industrial sites with highly competitive usage rates offered by BC Hydro, the third largest electricity supplier in Canada.

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