CanEst Transit Inc. will receive nearly $8 million for upgrades
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
The federal government is investing in a grain terminal at the Port of Montreal.
CanEst Transit, which has 91 silos at the port with a total storage capacity of 68,000 tonnes, will receive nearly $8 million to use for facility upgrades, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced on Oct. 19.
The funding came from the National Trade Corridors Fund, which helps fund infrastructure projects in Canada.
The total cost to complete DG CanEst Transit’s upgrades is about $18 million.
The funding will help secure improvements that translate into more efficient operations, Alghabra said.
“Specifically, the funds will allow for new equipment here at the grain terminal,” he said during the announcement. “And this will increase the number of containers stored on site. It will also improve the flow of traffic in the yard and increase capacity for loading and handling containers.”
The terminal’s current container filling design system allows for about eight containers per hour, the company’s website says.
The project will also add 50 full-time jobs at CanEst Transit’s plant and in its transportation division.
This investment represents good news for Canadian farmers.
Statistics Canada data suggests farmers will rebound from 2021 with larger harvests of canola, barley, soybeans corn and wheat in 2022.
Investing in ag infrastructure means Canada can continue to be a reliable trading partner, said Marie-Claude Bibeau, Canada’s federal ag minister.
“The entire world looks to Canada to support food security around the globe. Port infrastructure is critical for the continuous flow of commercial trade and our government will continue to support initiatives like CanEst Transit as they help with the export of Canadian agricultural products,” she said in a statement.