$70M Stewart World Port opens to serve resource sectors
A gala grand-opening was held in Stewart, B.C., on September 16th to celebrate the opening of the Stewart World Port. — Photo courtesy Stewart World Port/BC Government
The Stewart World Port, the first commercial wharf built on the coast of British Columbia in over thirty years, is now open for business with a brand new world-class deep sea port that will allow for both export and imports to fuel industry in Northern B.C.
“The opening of the Stewart World Port is an important step in preparing for the unprecedented opportunities ahead for northern communities through natural gas development,” said Greg Kyllo, Parliamentary Secretary for the BC Jobs Plan. “The movement of goods at the Stewart World Port will drive future growth that will benefit the District of Stewart and support British Columbia’s diverse, strong and growing economy.”
The new $70 million commercial wharf is being positioned as the gateway for goods and products in and out of northern B.C., the Yukon and Northern Alberta markets. It officially opened on September 16, 2015 with a gala grand opening and celebration.
The new World Port is located in the northern community of Stewart. It promises shippers a day and a half less shipping time to and from Asian markets than can be had by utilizing more of southern BC port facilities, explained World Port official Brad Moffat to the Terrace Standard newspaper. The fact that Stewart is ice-free and that its harbour area is very accessible offers competitive advantages to commercial shippers including being, if not the deepest, one of the deeper ports on the west coast. “We're open to the mining sector, oil and gas, project cargo, pipes, logs,” Moffat said in his interview with the local newspaper.
An aerial view of the Stewart World Port, a world-class deep sea port located in Stewart, B.C. — Photo courtesy Stewart World Port/BC Government
Stewart World Port is privately owned by Ted Pickell of Fort St. John who also owns Arctic Construction, the northern company that constructed the entire facility. However the project is not entirely done, as construction has now started on a second phase of the World Port—this will be a $60 million project featuring a traveling bulk ship loader. “This is a large belt system, allowing us to move products like mine concentrate or wood chips. It's a tremendous amount of infrastructure and will move up and down the wharf so that ships won't have to move,” stated Moffat further in the same interview. “The ship loader is rated at being able to handle 3,300 tonnes of material per hour.”
Source: BC Government & Terrace Standard
