Canada is a trading nation with a deep history of building strategic partnerships with nations whose customers value the quality and consistency of the goods we export. Goods that come from different sectors, including agriculture, fisheries, manufacturing and mining, from regions across the country. Canada has what the world wants, and Canadian businesses need modern, reliable and efficient infrastructure to get their products to customers and keep Canada competitive on the world stage.
Moving $1 billion in goods every day, the Port of Vancouver (the Port) is Canada's largest and most cargo-diverse port Connecting Canada to 170 markets, it is a critical trade gateway - handling 40 per cent of Canada's trade in goods beyond North America. The Port's trade activities represent one in three dollars of Canada's non-U.S. trade, while contributing $16.3 billion to Canada's GDP every year, and supporting over 130,000 jobs nation-wide. The Port offers advantages that cannot be easily replicated elsewhere, including service from Class 1 railways, year-round access, proximity to Asia, and a well-developed local shipping ecosystem. Now is the time to build on those competitive advantages.
To meet Canada's growth and trade diversification objectives, including doubling exports to non-U.S. markets by 2035, long-standing infrastructure constraints need to be addressed at the Port. We must build more and optimize existing infrastructure to grow the Port's capacity. Environmental protections that encompass the region will also support responsible growth at Canada's largest marine trading corridor.
Today the Honourable Steven MacKinnon, Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, announced the referral of the Port of Vancouver Gateway Strategy (Gateway Strategy) to the Major Projects Office (MPO). This transformational strategy and associated pillars, including the Roberts Bank Terminal 2 project (RBT2), reflect the type of nation-building infrastructure projects the Building Canada Act (the Act) aims to urgently advance to diversify and grow trade capacity, reach more global markets such as the fast-growing Indo-Pacific region, and drive economic growth.
The Gateway Strategy will focus on four key pillars to support capacity growth at the Port:
Roberts Bank Terminal 2 (RBT2) - is being referred to the MPO for potential listing as a project of national interest under the Act to provide regulatory certainty and future financial success. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA)-led RBT2 is a proposed three-berth container terminal at Roberts Bank that would increase the Port's container capacity by 50 per cent enabling $100 billion of new container trade capacity annually, contribute over $3 billion to Canada's GDP per year, and support the creation of 17,000 ongoing jobs across the supply chain during operations.
RBT2 has undergone more than a decade of regulatory reviews, including a robust environmental assessment approval process and consultation with Indigenous groups. The VFPA has Mutual Benefit Agreements in place with 27 First Nations. The Project completed a federal impact assessment in 2023, receiving key environmental approvals and is awaiting final permits. Listing allows the Minister of the One Canadian Economy to bring RBT2 under one single regulatory window.
The MPO will immediately begin consultations with potentially impacted Indigenous communities, to inform the federal government's decision to potentially list RBT2 under the Act. Before making a determination regarding listing, a notice will be posted in the Canada Gazette.
Land use and infrastructure for bulk terminals - The Port hosts 29 major marine terminals, many of which handle Canada's most important exports, including grain, potash, petroleum products, and canola oil. Dry and liquid bulk account for approximately 70 per cent of total Port of Vancouver tonnage. To double non-U.S. trade by 2035, new land, modern terminals and other export-focused infrastructure needs to be built.
The opportunity for Canada's exporters is now. On July 20, the VFPA will launch a process to select an operator for its 40-acre Fraser Wharves terminal site in Richmond - the first major terminal opportunity at the Port in a decade. The MPO may support VFPA with this process to ensure the project is efficiently advanced, while respecting Indigenous rights and safeguarding the environment.
As part of the Land Use and Infrastructure for Bulk Terminals pillar, Alberta's West Coast Oil Pipeline (WCOP) proposal located in the Delta Area of B.C. will be reviewed and considered.
Under the Gateway Strategy, the MPO and the VFPA will cooperate to identify similar opportunities for export terminal expansion.
Rail Infrastructure optimization and expansion - The majority of cargo moving through the Port is transported by rail. The current system requires investment to diversify Canada's trade. Without targeted expansions of the Port's rail infrastructure, Canada's transportation network will become congested, which increases shipping costs and reduces the competitiveness of Canadian businesses.
In partnership with the railways, the MPO and Transport Canada are developing a rail infrastructure strategy to increase capacity and enhance supply chain efficiency, reliability, and resilience.
Environmental Protections - B.C. and Canada's robust environmental protections ensure that growth at the Port occurs responsibly. As part of the Spring Economic Update 2026: Canada Strong For All, the Government committed more than $258 million over five years to renew and enhance funding for protection of whales and their habitats. This includes $95 million over the next five years and $16.5 million on an annual basis to protect Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW) and their habitat along B.C.'s coast, through enhanced SRKW (ESRKW) measures, delivered by Transport Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Through the Oceans Protection Plan and the Whales Initiative, Canada has supported the survival and recovery of SRKW since 2016. These new investments build on this work and are in addition to strong 2026 management measures already in place. Together, these initiatives will continue to enhance whale protections by:
- implementing and enforcing whale protection measures, such as vessel speed restrictions, fisheries management measures, and marine mammal incident response;
- continuing research and funding for whale surveillance and detection systems, such as acoustic monitoring;
- implementing a new, regional noise monitoring and management program in the Salish Sea;
- enhancing collaboration with industry and partners through the VFPA-led Enhancing Cetacean Habitat and Observation (ECHO) Program, including funding for large commercial vessel slowdowns, and to support development and testing of new underwater noise reduction approaches;
- working with B.C. Ferries to accelerate the adoption of quieting technologies, with the aim of reducing underwater radiated noise by up to 50 per cent on their vessels in the Salish Sea, and entering into a Species at Risk Act, section 11 Conservation Agreement to support the recovery of at-risk whale species;
- funding research, development and demonstration projects to reduce underwater noise from vessels; and
- continuing and increasing funding for Indigenous participation in projects and activities that address the impacts of underwater vessel noise on the marine environment.
This funding complements the Government's announcement of $412.9 million over five years to renew the Pacific Salmon Strategy Initiative (PSSI) to enable continued protection and recovery of wild Pacific Salmon stocks. Through the $3.5 billion Oceans Protection Plan, the Government has partnered with Indigenous and coastal communities to develop a world-leading marine safety system that meets the unique needs of Canada and B.C.
As reinforced in the Canada-British Columbia Cooperative Prosperity Agreement, the federal government will support coastal protection and address key threats to the marine ecosystem, including salmon and at-risk whales, as part of achieving its trade diversification agenda.
