The new CEO wants to sell the seaway as a green transport corridor. But he, too, is worried about effects of tariffs.
The St. Lawrence Seaway represents an efficient network and has a better carbon footprint for the transport of goods than other options. However, the volume transiting there represents only 50 per cent of its capacity, says the president and CEO of the organization that manages the Canadian side of the seaway.
“We are at around 38 million tonnes per year passing through. We can easily double that,” said St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation president and CEO Jim Athanasiou in an interview with The Canadian Press.
“Tomorrow morning we can double the capacity with almost zero effort and no investment. The capacity is there,” he said from the corporation’s offices in St-Lambert, on the South Shore of Montreal.
Athanasiou intends to remind the corporation’s partners, such as ports and ship owners, of the potential of the sea route in order to increase its use. To reinforce his message, the CEO will highlight the benefits of the network.
“We tick all the boxes. We are efficient; we are green. A boat removes 1,000 trucks and 300 train cars. We are truly located in the heart of North America, (serving) eight states and two provinces,” he noted.
More cargo of grain and steel, among other things, could pass through the seaway. There is also room for project shipments, such as wind turbines, says Athanasiou, who took office four months ago.
During the 2023-24 fiscal year, nearly 4,000 ships and more than 9,300 pleasure boats used the St. Lawrence Seaway over 292 days of navigation in Canada.
Athanasiou is well aware of the strengths of this binational link shared between the United States and Canada, which includes 15 locks (13 Canadian and two American) between Montreal and Lake Erie.
He joined the corporation in 2008, first as a company director in mechanical engineering. He was then tasked with leading the company’s modernization program and was named vice-president of engineering and technology in 2016.
An engineer by training, Athanasiou has also participated over the last two years in the negotiation of a new 20-year agreement between the corporation and the federal government for the management, operation and maintenance of the corridor.
Tariff threat ‘worrying’
It remains difficult at the moment to know precisely what effect such a measure could have on the network. But any barrier to the movement of goods remains “worrying,” he said.
“What we discovered during the pandemic is that the supply chains in both countries are very interconnected. With this as a background, there will definitely be an impact one way or another,” he said. “It’s difficult to judge if it’s going to be down, but I don’t think we’re going to have more volume.”
Athanasiou is awaiting the arrival of a new U.S. counterpart. The agency administrator in charge of the American section of the seaway is a political appointee.
Adam Tindall-Schlicht currently holds this position. He was nominated in November 2022 by President Joe Biden.
“We work closely with our American partners,” Athanasiou said. “This is not the first time that the seaway has experienced political change in the United States and Canada. We will continue to work and transit the ships to ensure that the goods arrive at their destination.”
More than $350 million in investments
Over the next three years, the corporation plans to invest more than $350 million to modernize some of its facilities.
There are plans to modernize locks and bridges as well as improve energy infrastructure. Work also targets “mechanical and structural strategies to extend the life of essential assets.”
Of the amount announced, more than $170 million will be invested in the Montreal-Lake Ontario region.
“This is to ensure that we maintain the same level of reliability. This is equipment that dates from 70 or almost 100 years ago. So, every year, we make investments to ensure that we have a renewal or replacement of our assets,” said Athanasiou, who also makes innovation a priority.
According to the corporation, freight transportation in the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Seaway network supports $66 billion in economic activity and 357,000 jobs.