PRINCE RUPERT, B.C. — The Prince Rupert Port Authority and DP World are boosting capacity on B.C.'s north coast amid ongoing supply chain challenges that an analyst says could bode well for Canadian National Railway Co.
The port authority and the global logistics company announced updates today that will improve the West Coast's ability to move goods and supplies.
The Fairview container terminal is expected to become Canada's second-largest when its capacity increases to 1.6 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) this summer from 1.35 million TEUs. Capacity is slated to grow to 1.8 million TEUs by 2024.
Other updates include advanced plans for a logistics facility on Ridley Island for exports.
The improvements at Prince Rupert come after flooding and mudslides cut railway and highway links to Vancouver last year.
Analyst Walter Spracklin of RBC Capital Markets says the expansions are good news for Canada's largest railway, which serves the port.
"We continue to believe that this provides a material growth opportunity for CNR, especially given congestion at other West Coast ports, specifically in Southern California," he wrote in a report.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 2, 2022.
Companies in this story: (TSX:CNR)
The Canadian Press
