Contrecoeur, Québec – The Government of Canada, in a bid to enhance the efficiency and resilience of Canada’s transportation system, announced a substantial investment of up to $150 million under the National Trade Corridors Fund for the construction of a state-of-the-art container terminal within the city of Contrecoeur, Québec. The announcement was made yesterday by the Minister of Transport and Quebec Lieutenant, Pablo Rodriguez.
The new container terminal, set to be developed by the Montréal Port Authority, is poised to significantly increase the capacity of the Port of Montréal to meet the ever-growing demand for cargo transportation while ensuring the continued smooth flow of operations at the port. The ambitious construction project encompasses several key elements, including a 675-meter-long dock, a rail network that will connect to the existing Canadian National Railway (CN) tracks, road access for public connectivity, a container handling yard, and essential operations and administrative buildings.
These infrastructure enhancements will not only fortify the connections between Canada and global markets but also provide Canadian businesses with the necessary port infrastructure to remain competitive in the international trade landscape. The completion of the new terminal is expected to boost the annual value of imports and exports handled at the Port, potentially generating up to $140 million annually across the country. Furthermore, the project is anticipated to bolster the Port of Montréal’s total capacity by a remarkable 55 percent.
Minister Pablo Rodriguez expressed the importance of this investment, stating, “The Port of Montreal is an economic driver for the province of Quebec and Montreal, and a key element of our national supply chain. By supporting the Port in its expansion project in Contrecoeur, we continue our efforts to strengthen Canada’s supply chain. This is important so that we never again have to go through product shortages like we experienced during the pandemic, or the significant price increases that came along with them.”
Geneviève Deschamps, Interim President and Chief Executive Officer of the Montréal Port Authority, also lauded the federal government’s support for this significant expansion project. She highlighted its role in bolstering the economic resilience of the St. Lawrence-Great Lakes corridor, a development that will prove beneficial for all of Canada. “This concrete action reflects the government’s confidence and allows us to consolidate this project at a critical stage in its development,” she noted.
The investment falls under the purview of the National Trade Corridors Fund, a competitive, merit-based program that facilitates infrastructure improvements in critical transportation assets across Canada. Over a span of 11 years, from 2017 to 2028, a total of $4.6 billion has been allocated to the program, fostering domestic and international trade by supporting improvements in roads, rail, air, and marine shipping routes.