Singapore port authority arm acquires majority stakes in Canada port

It is PSA's debut into Canadian ports.

PSA International Pte Ltd (PSA) through its subsidiary in Canada acquired 60% of Ashcroft Terminal (AT) business, an announcement revealed.

Located about 300 kilometres east of the Port of Vancouver, AT is an inland port facility with 320 acres of freehold industrial land. It is Canada’s only major privately-owned industrial property where both Class 1 railroad lines run through to transport import and export cargoes across Canada, Chicago, and other North American markets.

The terminal is also located close to the major highways of British Columbia.

“Ashcroft Terminal is PSA’s first foray into Canada and offers us an entry point into the hinterland supply chain for the North American market, as well as an opportunity to increase our capabilities in intermodal and inland container depot (ICD) operations,” PSA group CEO Tan Chong Meng said.

Tan added that they will ink partnerships with shipping lines, rail operators, and trucking companies for “a more robust, efficient and cost-effective supply chain solution”.

Through transloading, fleet management, railcar storage, and logistics solutions, AT provides service to all sectors of the natural resource industries, including agriculture, mining, forestry, and oil and gas.

A CAD$28m ($29.25m) upgrade is set to improve AT’s inland port and container handling capabilities. The terminal is slated to receive a new rail link to the Canadian National (CN) main line, additional rail track of existing infrastructure, an internal road system, and a multi-commodity storage facility.