Thousands of tonnes of northern Manitoba zinc concentrate will soon be hitting the rails away from Flin Flon.
A tentative agreement was announced last month by both Hudbay and Arctic Gateway Group, the organization that owns and operates the Port of Churchill and other facilities near the Hudson Bay port town.
According to the Arctic Gateway announcement, the deal will see up to 20,000 tonnes of zinc concentrate being shipped from Flin Flon to the Arctic Gateway terminal in Churchill, where new storage facilities will be built to store the concentrate before using the port to send it out to open sea. The deal is listed by Arctic Gateway as a “proposed first step.”
That concentrate would originally come from the Snow Lake area and Hudbay’s Lalor mine - the concentrate would be taken from Snow Lake to Flin Flon by truck, then moved onto railcars.
The agreement would see the shipments coming in as soon as next year. It is not yet fully confirmed, still needs potential regulatory approvals and requires negotiation of definitive documents.
Hudbay already operates rail infrastructure in Flin Flon and has operated an ore train from Flin Flon through to The Pas for decades.
“On behalf of the board, I am pleased to see this important agreement reached as we begin to ship Manitoba critical minerals through the port to international markets for the first time in over two decades,” said Arctic Gateway chair Mike Spence in the company’s announcement. Spence is also the mayor of Churchill - according to Arctic Gateway’s website, former Flin Flon mayor Cal Huntley also serves as the group’s director.
In the past two years, the organization has set up an office in Flin Flon and has advertised for open positions on its northern lines.
“This agreement will allow us to call back some port workers sooner and we also plan to construct new facilities at the port to store these critical minerals and prepare for the 2024 shipping season. It also demonstrates the positive impact the federal and provincial governments into the Hudson Bay Railway are having that enable an expanded role for the Port of Churchill and Arctic Gateway’s pathway to prosperity.”
Arctic Gateway was formed in 2018 as a partnership between local governments and First Nations and two companies, Toronto-based financiers Fairfax Financial Holdings and Regina-based food company AGT Food and Ingredients. Northern Manitoba communities, including some not located on the rail line, were invited to purchase ownership in the partnership under the name OneNorth - the City of Flin Flon did just that in 2018, buying three shares for three dollars. As such, the City of Flin Flon is a part-owner of the project.
The company is responsible for operating the Hudson Bay Railway and operates both the Port of Churchill itself and the nearby Churchill tank farm, along with a freight services branch.
The rail line was purchased by the group in 2018 after its previous owner left the line unused for more than 18 months after it was damaged in a flood, leaving the community of Churchill cut off from land transport. The province already pledged last year to spend up to $73.8 million over two years to help upgrade the railway and federal government already provided almost $160 million in funding to help repair and operate the railway, with commitments to add almost $60 million more in the future.
The port is advertised as a quicker way for shipments from western Canada, including agricultural and industrial shipments, to get to open water and be shipped abroad. Requests have been made from western Canadian policy analysts and researchers to use the railway as part of a northern transport corridor that might potentially see oil or gas shipments being made from western provinces to Churchill through northern Manitoba.
“With the continued upgrades and work we have underway, Arctic Gateway is well positioned for growth and expansion opportunities in the years to come,” said Arctic Gateway CEO Michael Woelcke.
