The Halifax Gateway Council (HGC) held its Annual General Meeting at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport last week. The meeting included the reappointment of George Malec, Vice-President, Business Development & Operations at the Halifax Port Authority as Chair; Marie Houde, Director of Business Development with CN as Vice Chair and Todd Protheroe, Director of Supply Chain with Clearwater as Treasurer. George Malec indicated that this was the 10th anniversary of the Halifax Gateway Council and thanked the members for their unwavering support for the organization. In his remarks to the board, Mr. Malec noted that the Halifax Gateway is a great example of collaboration and an organization that is actively implementing the One Nova Scotia Report’s recommendations especially as it relates to maximizing trade and free trade opportunities. Nancy Phillips, Executive Director of the Halifax Gateway, highlighted the year’s major activities: • Gateway outreach sessions for businesses in Toronto, Vancouver, and five European cities to promote the Halifax Gateway’s value proposition for international trade and opportunities related to the Comprehensive European Trade Agreement (CETA) • Maximizing and profiling the Gateway’s capabilities to move supplies and people related to the $129B in mega projects in Atlantic Canada. • Defining the Gateway’s role as a conduit for moving supplies and people within Atlantic Canada’s energy sector which includes oil and gas exploration by BP and the Shell as well as wind, tidal and other renewables. • Promoting success stories of local transportation and logistics companies: Armour Transportation, the Port of Sheet Harbour, Richmond Terminals, Korean Air Cargo, and US Pre-Clearance. • Led the collaborative Air Gateway committee which has been a mechanism for marketing Halifax’s air access within Europe. This year’s new and increased services included: Europe Airpost with service to Dublin and Paris, Iceland Air to Reykjavik, Condor to Frankfurt and the new WestJet service to Glasgow. The Chair closed the meeting by saying “Halifax has an unprecedented level of opportunity before it with the new free trade agreements and billions in mega projects in the region,” says Malec. “As Canada’s gateway to Europe, we are excited by the opportunities for collaboration to maximize opportunities to grow both the amount of cargo and people that move through Halifax.”