(The following story by Tom Peters appeared on the Chronicle Herald website on April 3.)
HALIFAX, N.S. — The Port of Halifax will continue with a “work-together” attitude to deal with the challenges of the day and focus on increasing its container cargo business, says the head of the Halifax Port Authority.
“We are absolutely focused on our core business — building cargo volumes and growing Canada’s Atlantic gateway to the world,” Karen Oldfield said Wednesday in her annual state of the port address to the Halifax Chamber of Commerce.
The authority president and CEO was quick off the mark to deal with some recent criticisms by former port board chairman Merv Russell who said last week the authority appeared to be more concerned with developing real estate than in attracting cargo business. “The management team at the Port of Halifax does not think it is a real estate agency,” Ms. Oldfield countered Wednesday.
In response to media questions, the president also came out in support of CN, the port’s lone rail server. Recently, Caterpillar Inc., a major port customer, moved its business to Virginia, saying it had received inconsistent service from the rail carrier during the winter. “CN has had a lot of challenges this winter and I think they would be the first company to stand up and say so.
“The challenge we have is, CN’s problem is our problem. They do well, we do well. They don’t do well, we don’t do well. So the fact of the matter is, as our lifeline, we have to work with them. We have to support them.
“So we are really focused on working with CN to make sure we are in a position to grow this port.”
Ms. Oldfield made it clear that the problems Caterpillar had with CN did not occur in Halifax but it is the job of the port to make sure CN deals with the issues with Caterpillar and “we have to keep working to make sure they deliver.” (CN has said that severe weather conditions across the continent affected its operations this winter.)
Caterpillar informed Virginia its move there was only temporary but Ms. Oldfield couldn’t comment on when or if Caterpillar will return to Halifax. But, she said, “it does make great business sense for Caterpillar to use the Port of Halifax, so that is a point in our favour.”
The authority president told the luncheon crowd the port is facing many challenges in its efforts to attract more business: global trading patterns, currency rates (including the stronger Canadian dollar), trade agreements, government supported interest rates, high bunker fuel prices, a weakening U.S. economy, industry consolidation, development at competitive ports, etc.
She said many of these challenges are out of the port’s control, so “we really need to be very good at the aspects of the business that are within our control. . . . There is no silver bullet. We have to keep working together.”
She stressed the authority and its partners have to keep “taking the message to the world.”
“The world is not going to come knocking on our door . . . so it’s just plain hard work, tenacity and perseverance, all of the things that we were taught growing up.”