Hydro Contracts With The United States Will Not Be Renewed

Manitoba premier Wab Kinew announced last week that his province will not be renewing several American hydroelectric supply contracts when they expire at the end of April.  Those Manitoba Hydro contracts amount to 500 Megawatts of power annually and feed electric grids throughout Minnesota.  Kinew, a native Ojibway from Winnipeg, said that with some large infrastructure and transportation projects in the works for international trade needs and other projects, additional electric power is now required by the Manitoba government.

“We saw that there are 500 megs of export contracts that are expiring at the end of the month," he noted.  "We’ve decided, as Canadians and as Manitobans, we are going to use that power to build up our own economy. We’re bringing back some of this power to our country so that we can build up Canadian infrastructure.”

A major infrastructure investment involves upgrades to the Port of Churchill on Hudson’s Bay in northern Manitoba.  Along with a federal investment of $43 million, Manitoba is investing $36 million in the Port of Churchill to revitalize the port and its rail connection.  Those investments aim to expand Western Canada’s international trade and a faster ocean transportation link with several European countries for international trade through the Port of Churchill facility.

“The Port of Churchill can reach Germany more quickly than a ship could from Thunder Bay," Kinew stressed.  "We’ve got the E.U. ambassadors here talking about Ag and talking to manufacturers who are dealing with this tariff conflict. All of a sudden, all of those markets, countries like Germany, Spain, and Estonia, those are jurisdictions that we need to lean in on.”

The Port of Churchill has several advantages for trade with Europe, including shorter shipping routes to northern Europe than the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway routes. The Port of Churchill, through a direct rail line, has access to Western Canada’s natural resources. And it presents an alternative trade route - beneficial in times of congestion or disruptions at other Canadian seaports.

The Manitoba premier said that he and other western Canada premiers are seeking trade partners beyond the U.S. and for investors willing to take advantage of a warm-weather transportation link such as the Port of Churchill.

“We’re looking for closer relationships, given what’s happening with the U.S. right now. Using the Port of Churchill to open up trade back and forth and some of the opportunities around how the shipping season and Europe’s needs align," Kinew added.  "They want to import energy products in the summer to prepare for their winter, and we have a shipping season in Churchill that’s open during the summer months. So, we heard from the EU ambassadors that there is a willingness to invest.”

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