Port Of Prince Rupert Eyed by Shippers

Wednesday, August 27, 2008 03:52 AM

Prince Rupert, B.C.- The Manager of Corporate Communications for the Prince Rupert Port Authority, Barry Bartlett, says the Fairview Terminal operations now employ 300 workers and has begun to fill a gap in the labor market in that community.

"We are moving ahead very quickly with our facilities, and while at present a third shipping line is not confirmed, there are several interested parties."

The back haul capacity is about 30 to 40% says Bartlett because it is made up of heavy materials heading back to China. "Let me explain it this way, if you have pillows arriving here in a container or some other light items and you want to send back items such as logs or Aluminum ingots they are much heavier and you are unable to send the ship back with all of the containers full."

"At present" he added "we are short of space. Alcan Rio Tinto is shipping a lot of aluminum ingots through the port, as well there is a lot of lumber and raw logs back moving through the port to China. The shippers would like more containers to become available,but the problem is the weight not the number of containers."

Bartlett says the Port of Prince Rupert is fully supporting the efforts of the City of Prince George to develop and expand its airport and its intermodal inland port."We are providing all the support we can, afterall, Prince George supported the Port." Bartlett says week by week, the number of containers increases as larger ships dock at the port. "Things continue to move really well, and the shippers are very pleased with the service." The port is less than a year old and is surpassing the expectations.

***

Correction:

Opinion250 had incorrectly reported a third ship was "not on the drawing board", the fact is, a third shipping line is possible (as indicated in the revision) but has not been confirmed. We apologize for our error.

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Posted on Wednesday, August 27, 2008 03:52 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: vulcan on August 27 2008 7:21 AM

Sure is funny how all the politicians say that there are no raw logs being shipped from the North, but I guess now we no the truth. Somehow we have got to stop the raw log exports, we need the jobs in BC not in China.

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on August 27 2008 7:49 AM

I wonder how many logs are going into the containers, and where are the logs coming from?

Posted by: vulcan on August 27 2008 8:20 AM

That would be very interesting to know! Maybe Pat Bell could answer that for us.

Posted by: lostfaith on August 27 2008 8:22 AM

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on August 27 2008 7:49 AM
I wonder how many logs are going into the containers, and where are the logs coming from?

-------------------------------------------

Depends on how big both the container and the logs are.
I think the logs are coming from Canadian forests.

Posted by: rufus1 on August 27 2008 8:27 AM

I heard chips from Canfor's Isle Pierre mill were being shipped to China. Is this just bs? Doen't make sense to me I thought the pulp mills were short of chips. Does anyone know?

Posted by: swingline on August 27 2008 9:23 AM

So should we force mills to stay open and create products that don't have buyers? Or should we produce an export that is in high demand, while still having jobs for loggers, truckers, layout contractors, silviculture contractors, and the Port of PR workers?

Posted by: my2bits on August 27 2008 10:08 AM

The argument in favour of exporting raw logs has always been that it is creating the above mentioned jobs. However the number of jobs in the logging end of the chain is miniscule in comparison to those when the product is processed here.

Timberbaron Company from Terrace is exporting logs to China. They're being cut into container lengths at the old S.C.I. log yard in that city. To those who live in P.G., the size and quality of these logs is unbelievable.
Take an 8 hour drive west and see for yourselves. Then follow the emplty logging trucks to see where they're coming from.

Posted by: swingline on August 27 2008 10:34 AM

Oh I agree, there's more jobs when logs are processed where they're cut. But mills are shutting down because the demand for their products is so low that it's unprofitable. We could cut all the timber we want, but if no one's making any money off processing them here, it doesn't make sense to do it.

Posted by: mackbc on August 27 2008 10:52 AM

Good thing we do'nt export logs from the north right !

swingline if you ship raw logs over seas so they can make the same product we would make the price of lumber will never go up to a point where our mills can run and provide the jobs to support our province
or would china ever have a reson to buy lumber from us ,kind of a no brainer , if you give them the cow they wont need to buy your milk

Our company is looking for a long term contract to supply 300,000 tonnes annually of softwood fiber in whole log or chip form. We have 20 years of experience in the logging business. Our company has the permits and licenses to export 100% of this fiber for a minimum of 15 years. We have exported all over the world and have a reputation of excellent quality and performance
Read more

Basic Information
Company Name: timber baron forest products
Business Type: Manufacturer
Product/Service: We are a private company with the ability to provide softwood fiber for sawmills and pulp mills
Number of Employees: 51 - 100 People

Trade & Market
Main Markets: Eastern Asia

Total Annual Sales Volume: US$10 Million - US$50 Million

Factory Information
Number of R&D Staff: Less than 5 People

Posted by: Born in BC on August 27 2008 10:52 AM

It is not just a demand issue as these logs are being converted to a product and sold somewhere. It comes down to labor costs and productivity. BC does not win that battle with anyone.

Posted by: He speaks on August 27 2008 11:30 AM

What is the real economic sense in selling our logs raw. if we truly are going to be the best place in the world to live. We have to make all the efforts to employ as many British Columbians as possibles with high paying jobs.

This would mean taking our resources and processing it. Inclusive of logs in to lumber products, Mineral ores into concentrates and or ingots of copper, gold and other forms of secondary industries. We live in a province that has all kinds of resources, we should not have to give them away.

Logging and Mining is important for the success of the economy. But if we have a leader that can make a commitment towards developing and maintaining the manufacturing portion of trade, then we will become a powerhouse.

Posted by: Palopu on August 27 2008 11:41 AM

We seldom get any real good information on situations in the North such as the Airport runway expansion, and Prince Rupert container terminal. We usually get statements issued by various managers of these facilities, who have a vested interest in show casing the positive side of the situation rather than the actual. Usually the newspapers involved quote these peope verbatim and do little or no investigative reporting. The article on the Prince Rupert Container port being full in regards to backhauls is a case in point. Here is what is actually happening.

There are two container ships that arrive in Prince Rupert on a weekly basis. These ships carry approx 3500 to 4000 40ft containers. They unload approx 8 to 900 containers in Prince Rupert and reload a like amount of loaded and empty containers. The ships then carry on the either Vancouver, Seattle, or Oakland, Longbeach Calif. and unload the balance of the loaded containers and reload with loads and em;ptys from those area.

So in essence the ships arriving in Prince Rupert have a limited capacity for back hauls, somewhere in the area of 700 40ft containers. It seems that a large majority of the 700 are loaded in Wisc. Tenn. and other Eastern locations, and the balance are loaded with logs from the Terrace area and ingots from Kitimat.

Posted by: Palopu on August 27 2008 11:48 AM

PS. There are no plans for a third ship to dock in Prince Rupert in the immediate future, and therefore no chance of increasing the capacity for back hauls.

I am not aware of any containers being loaded in Prince George to Prince Rupert since the CN Reload facility was built last October (some 11 months ago). If there have been any loaded it wouldnt be much, and we are now facing a shortage of backhaul space which means that most shippers will continue to use the port of Vancouvver.

Posted by: gamblor on August 27 2008 1:53 PM

do we really want to try and compete with the chinese? Its been tried before. Keeping the logs here would mean working in a sawmill for $3-5 a day. I cant see a union accepting a 98% reduction in wages and elimination of benefits just to sell wood instead of logs to the chinese. The only way to win with them is to supply them things they need ie logs. We simply cannot compete with them on the manufacturing front, just ask any autoworker.

Posted by: Bridge on August 27 2008 2:36 PM

Thanks Pal. Nice to see someone doing their homework.

Chjeers

Posted by: swingline on August 27 2008 4:04 PM

mackbc - The main consumer by far of BC wood products is the US, not China.

he speaks - "We have to make all the efforts to employ as many British Columbians as possibles with high paying jobs."

I agree, that would be great, but who is going to pay the wages when companies are going bankrupt because the market has gone down the drain? It comes down to the fact that if no one is going to buy your product, you can't stay above water for long. And unfortunately, people lose their jobs over it. All we can do is try to weather the storm, and hopefully we'll come out stronger and better off at the end of it.

Posted by: mackbc on August 27 2008 4:43 PM

swingline I am well aware that our main market is the U.S.A. and we should not be sending logs there either ! Raw logs should stay in Canada to be milled into a product and if the economics don't allow us to do that right now then they should stay in the forest , until the economics do make sense for us to run .We should not be giving our competition materials to keep our mills down

Posted by: leoleo on August 27 2008 9:18 PM

Mackbc -

What is it you currently export to Asia?
What is it you manufacture?

So you are against shipping logs but have no problem exporting fibre?

Posted by: golden bear on August 27 2008 9:34 PM

Mack BC - So with the Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic going on your solution would be to leave the trees in the field? Probably not the best solution considering the shelf life of these trees. If you leave them in the field for ten years they won't be going to the sawmill anymore and probably not the pulpmill (that exports pulp to China and the US to make paper).

In addition, I think everyone needs to realize that BC imports a lot more logs from the U.S. than we export. BC has restrictions on the amount that can be exported, so it's not like the borders are open and the entire industry is shipping logs there.

Posted by: mackbc on August 28 2008 9:59 AM

leoleo I currently export nothing to Asia and I am an out of work forestry worker and I all so would not ship chips as our own pulp mill could us then as there are shortages now with all the mills not working

golden bear you take me a little to literal , I have no problem with taking the bug kill out and chipping it and sending it to our pulp mills , As for exporting pulp / craft to china at lest we all make a living wadge out of this process including the loggers but if only loggers make a living because the logs are shipped out whole our province is only firing on 2 cylinders instead of 8 . As for your last statement BULLSHerT even you can't beleive that ,Been in the bush to long ???

Posted by: leoleo on August 28 2008 11:27 AM

By your comments I thought you were shipping fibre??- "Our company has the permits and licenses to export 100% of this fiber for a minimum of 15 years."

This "shortage" is in large part brought on by the companies themselves.......brutal management case in point P&T and or business decisions ie Canfor.
The pulp mills that aren't running shouldn't be running.

Posted by: cryptkeeper on August 28 2008 12:59 PM

Some people "just don't get it" and never will. There is no need to 'compete' with China, we haven't been suckered into a deal with them yet, have we?
And chips are the leftover from processing here, even if the logs were simply ground up whole and exported that would make jobs here.
China can pay the new Russian tax on Russian logs, they can buy processed wood or they can suck eggs.
So we make things a tiny bit worse for a short time instead of stampeding to give our resources away for as little as possible.
Cut the stumpage to near zero on wood being exported to China or something!
Raw lag exports must STOP, that's simply all there is to it.

Posted by: mackbc on August 28 2008 1:08 PM

leoleo tell me are you cutting on public lands or private ? Are you shipping saw logs or are they pulp logs ?

Posted by: gamblor on August 28 2008 1:10 PM

welcome to the real world, funboy - we have to compete with everyone on everything - its called "trade", read up on it. We cant force the chinese to buy processed wood anymore than we can force the americans to drop the softwood tax. I'm going to let you in on a little secret - there's no shortage of trees in this world. BC acts like they have the patent on trees or something and its that attitude that drives this mess. No one is compelled to buy our wood just because we have alot of trees. Stumpage in Canada is already very low, thats what the americans are all mad about and thats the governments piece, good luck getting them to swallow the losses.

Posted by: leoleo on August 28 2008 1:59 PM

Mackbc- I am referring to your quote:

"Our company has the permits and licenses to export 100% of this fiber for a minimum of 15 years."