The Fairview Container Terminal has received all major regulatory approvals to proceed with the next phase of expansion.
Phase 2B will increase the throughput of DP World’s Prince Rupert facility from the current 1.35-million TEUs annually to 1.6-million TEUs by 2022, and 1.8 million TEUs by 2023.
DP World Canada’s CEO and general manager, Maksim Mihic, said completion will secure Prince Rupert as one of the key trans-Pacific gateways, while providing a solid base for supporting sectors to grow along side it.
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“The Fairview container terminal plays a major role in enabling trade and in supporting Canada’s long-term supply chain requirements,” Mihic said. “The expansion project will have a significant economic impact. It will add approximately 300 full-time equivalent positions at Fairview Container Terminal, in addition to creating indirect jobs locally and throughout the country.
“The success of Prince Rupert as a port city lies in the fact that it is supported wholeheartedly by the entire community. This level of support is difficult to find, if not unprecedented in most port cities.”
According to the Journal of Commerce Prince Rupert and Vancouver saw a combined drop of 6.5 per cent in container traffic due to falling consumer demands during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mihic said despite this “blip” he expects terminal volumes to recover to 2019 levels in the next 18 to 24 months.
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The Fairview Phase 2B project follows the 2017 completion of Fairview Phase 2A, which increased the terminal capacity by 500,000 TEUs to its current capacity of 1.35 million TEUs.
The project will expand the container yard from its current 32 hectares to 41 hectares and add two new rubber-tired gantry (RTG) cranes as well as an eighth dock gantry crane. The existing maintenance and administration buildings will be relocated to create additional container storage capacity.
Expansion and relocation of the truck gate to the south end of the terminal, where it will connect with the Fairview – Ridley Connector project being advanced by the Port of Prince Rupert, will also improve efficiency. The Phase 2B project will further expand on-dock rail capacity with the addition of 6,680 feet of working track, for a total of 24,680 feet of on-dock rail by 2022.
– With files from Shannon Lough
