b'26American Journal of Transportation ajot.comACL AJOT_SailSchedule_2020_ACL2/27/209:33 AMPage 1Regulatory saga escalates onOproposed Port of VancouverONNEESSHHIIPPcontainer projectC onCo nttaaiinneerrss,,RROORROO,,BBrreeaakkbbuullkkCCaarrggooBy Leo Ryan, AJOTAregulatorysagathatforReactingtothe627-page severalyearshasplaguedareport,theVFPAassertedthat majorcontainerterminalproj- theprojectandmarineship-ect proposed by the Vancou- ping associated with the proj-verFraserPortAuthorityect will not have any adverse (VFPA)isshowingnoeffects to the environment signs of abating, and a finalthatcannotbemitigated. decisionbytheCanadianWe are eagerly awaiting the federalgovernmenthasnextstepsintheenvi-beendelayeduntilronmental assessment, November in light ofwhich includes a deci-the circumstances sur- sion from the Govern- A SERVICE AL1 SERVICE AL2 SERVICE RORO Customer Servicerounding COVID-19. mentofCanadaonCuto Friday Cuto Thursday Cuto Monday 877-918-7676Export Customer ServiceNot only are therewhethertheprojectFROM NEW YORK LOLO RORO LOLO LOLO 800-225-1235substantialenvironmentalissues,can proceed. TO Transit Time Transit Time Transit Time Transit Time Export Documentation but the Port of Vancouver stirredFor his part, GCT PresidentANTWERP 1620 18888-802-0401considerablecontroversybyDoronGrosmansubsequentlyDUBLIN 12Import Customer Serviceblockinglastyearanalternativeresponded that RBT2 would be aBELFAST 13888-802-0403GTEBORG 21 proposal from its biggest tenant,massiveundertakingcomparedHAMBURG 13 17 15 22 LogisticsGCT Global Container Terminals.withtheDeltaport4phased- LE HAVRE17 866-821-7449This prompted GCT, which oper- inapproachtoexpandingitsLIVERPOOL 9 13 Credit & CollectionsatestheDeltaportandVantermexisting facility. GCTs budgetLONDON GATEWAY20 19 888-225-7747terminals, to file a legal challengerangesbetween$1billiontoROTTERDAM11 20with a federal court that has still$1.6 billion compared with the not rendered its judgment. port authoritys cost estimate of In a report released in lateover $3 billion for RBT2. SeaIntelligences Jensen: container market March,athree-memberFed- British Columbia will need eralReviewPanelassessingcontainer port capacity that appro- recovery looks likelier in 2021 maybetheRobertsBankTerminal2priatelyrespondstotheneeds project(RBT2)atDeltasinceofexporters,consumersandthe 2016 acknowledged its potentialoceanshippingindustry,Gros- By Stas Margananis, AJOTcompetitivebenefitsforCana- man said. The Deltaport berth 4 dianmarineshippingmarketsexpansion is the only project thatThere are few signs of a possible recoverydue to the Covid-virus and the resulting recession. andregionalemployment.Butis nimble enough to do thisit isuntil the Covid-19 crisis is well behind us and theOn top of this there are 150-200 very large con-it also underscored significantincremental, privately funded andearliest that I see this is in early 2021, says Larstainer vessels that are sailing or soon to be deliv-adverseeffectsonthenearbyenvironmentally less damaging. Jensen, CEO, Copenhagen-based SeaIn- ered. Those ships have to go somewhere. wetlands,fishhabitatandGCTofficialshavealsotelligence Consulting. Even so, we areThedecisiontobuild18,000TEUand migratorybirdsaswellasonarguedthattheVFPAsRBT2already seeing a second wave of Covidbigger ships is to reduce the per container the quality of life of local popu- isbasedonforecastsfromacases in Asiaand so that date could gorate of transport. For this, the bigger ships lations and cultural heritage ofdecade ago that do not take intoout much further. This means that carriersdo very well.Indigenous groups. consideration significant marketwill continue to reduce the number of sail-Providingcapacityforanchanges in the past few years.ings and the longer this lasts the more thish ighert ransshiPmentC ostsadditional2.4millionTEUsAccording to the GCT, its stud- will become problematic for the Ports,However, bigger ships are limited to annually by 2025 to meet antici- ies suggest that Canadas westJensen added. a smaller number of ports, built to accommodate pated demand, it would requirecoast will not run out of capacityJensen toldAJOTthat there are three projec- them. So, shippers are forced to pay more money theconversionof177hectaresuntil 2030-2035 at the earliest. tions for recovery: for trucking and feeder shipping to get containers to of intertidal and subtidal habitatGCTfurtherconteststhe The V Shape: This assumes that the pandemictheir final destination: The problem is that you now on Roberts Bank to build a newvalidity of the target set by theconcerns have disappeared by July and that ship- require more transshipment costs such as, additional three-berthterminal,expandanVFPAthatnosingleoperatorpers are confident enough to order their Christmasfeederships and more trucking. For example, if I had existingcausewayandenlargeshouldcontrolmorethantwo- supplies with big volumes starting to show up intwo sailings per week of a 10,000 TEU ship and I an existing tug basin. It would bethirds of total capacity in order toAugust, September, etc. This appears to be verynow replace that with one sailing of a 20,000 TEU located immediately adjacent tomaintainacompetitivemarket.optimistic because we are already seeing a secondship you have doubled the need for trucking on one Tsawwassen First Nation lands. Such a competition clause is notwave of Covid cases in Asia. day but eliminated it for the second sailing. So now Amongthefindings,theto be found in the Canada Marine The U Shape: This assumes a recovery in early 2021you have to maintain a supply of trucking that has reportsaidaproposedoffset- Act, GCT maintains. in which accelerated orders occur before Chinese Newless days to work. At the same time your warehouses tingplanforaquaticspecies,Meanwhile,inanemailedYear and there is a ramp up in container volumes.get more containers in a shorter space of time In covering 29 hectares, would bereplytoquestions,theImpact The Third Option: The third option is that weEurope and Asia, you increase the need for feed-insufficienttocompensateforAssessment Agency of Canadadont see a recovery in either period and we are inerships to deliver containers to smaller ports that thereductioninproductivityindicated that on April 3 Jona- uncharted waters.cannot handle the bigger ships. So, the carriers unit associated with project-inducedthanWilkinson,thefederalcosts go down but the costs to the ports, truckers, habitatlossof177hectaresatMinisterofEnvironmentandP ortsP aying aP riCe Fora CCommoDating warehouses and ultimately to the shippers go up.Roberts Bank. ClimateChange,extendedthem ega - Containers hiPsThe report made 71 recom- timelimitby90daysfortheJensen, who has been critical of the decisioni s14,000 teu o Ptimums ize ?mendations to mitigate impactsissuance of a final decision dueby ocean carriers to heavily invest in 18,000 TEUJensen has argued for years that the optimum onwetlands,aquaticspeciesto the COVID-19 pandemic. Ifshipsandlargersaysportsandterminalswhosize vessel for most ports is around 14,000 TEUS: andothersectors,includingthe project is authorized to pro- upgradedtoaccommodatethemega-containerA smaller 14,000 TEU ship gives you more flex-thedevelopmentofamarineceed, the Minister will issue aships are now paying the price with higher debt atibility to serve more ports at a lower cost to the mammal management plan andDecisionStatementincludinga time of economic recession. There are currentlysupply chain, shippers and the ports. The shipper is theestablishmentofanIndig- conditions related to the project,between 150-200 of these vessels either sailing orgoing to be less likely to pay the ocean freight rate enous advisory committee. whichwouldbecomelegallysoon to be delivered to their owners: when using the bigger ship results in higher trans-The report further declares:bindingontheproponent,noThe terminals have been forced for the lastshipment and supply chain costs.TheProjectwouldresultinlater than November 22, 2020. 4-5 years to buy cranes and other upgrades in orderCarriers, more invested in 14,000 TEU ves-aresidualadverseeffectonIt added that the extensionto handle larger container vessels. This was done insels, will have an advantage in being able to serve daytimeandnighttimevisualwillensurethattheImpactthe anticipation of 18,000 TEU vessels arriving atmoremarkets:ifIhaveaservicebetween resourcesandonoutdoorrec- AssessmentAgencyofCanadatheir ports. In some cases, they have arrived once inShanghai and Los Angeles/Long Beach I can use reation as well as a significanthas sufficient time to engage thea blue moon, but the price the carriers demand fora 20,000 TEU ship because all three ports have the cumulativeeffectduringbothpublicandconsultIndigenousadmission to their services is this investment. Thecapability of handling those vessels. The problem construction and operations. (SAGAcontinued on page 27) result is higher debt and now a global uncertainty(RECOVERYcontinued on page 27)'