Ottawa lists Roberts Bank port expansion in B.C. as project of national interest

Without additional capacity, “congestion at the port could drive shipping costs to more than $800 million a year by 2035,” MacKinnon said.

“That’s a cost that would have to be borne by Canadian businesses and consumers, but that is a cost they should not and cannot afford to bear.”

In his first appearance alongside federal officials since the B.C. Conservatives won a decisive victory in the Oct. 24 election, premier-designate Lorne Doerkson said the port expansion is about preparing for the future rather than reacting to it.

“For British Columbia, these benefits are particularly significant. The project will help cement our province’s role as Canada’s leading trade gateway, attracting investment and ensuring our economy remains competitive on the world stage.”

The estimated capital cost for Roberts Bank expansion project is $5.9 billion. A statement from Ottawa said it’s on a “viable path” to a final investment decision by the middle of next year.

The listing as a project of national interest speeds up the timeline for commercial operation by up to four years, to 2035, the federal government said.

The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is the proponent for the three-berth expansion project set to be built next to an existing container facility.

Ottawa has said the expansion would support roughly 17,000 jobs across Canada’s supply chains, contribute approximately $3 billion annually to the country’s GDP and generate more than $630 million in annual tax revenues.

Tsawwassen First Nation Chief Laura Cassidy said her community has been focused on protecting treaty rights and ensuring the surrounding environment remains healthy and productive for future generations.

The nation’s position on the expansion project “is one of consent, but not unconditional support,” she said.

“We continue to have concerns about the impacts of the project and the long-term health of the Fraser River Estuary and the Salish Sea. At the same time, years of consultation have resulted in a deeper understanding of those impacts and how they can be addressed,” she said.

Cassidy said the nation had previously sought assurances that the Building Canada Act, under which the expansion has been listed, would not be used to cut corners or weaken environmental protections.

Environmental groups have long voiced concern over the potential impacts of the project, which is located in the habitat of endangered southern resident killer whales.

The Wilderness Committee issued a statement Friday saying its listing as a project of national interest was a “path to extinction” for the whales, taken alongside other existing and planned industrial activity in the area.

A statement from another group, the Raincoast Conservation Foundation, said the Port of Vancouver would have been required to obtain a permit under the Species At Risk Act related to the whales, but Friday’s announcement overrides that process.

MacKinnon told the news conference the expansion project “continues the absolutely vital conservation and other work that goes into the final remaining permits.”

The port expansion was not the only infrastructure project discussed at Friday’s news conference.

Doerkson’s Conservatives had promised during the provincial election campaign to scrap the replacement of the Massey Tunnel that runs beneath the Fraser River between Richmond and Delta in favour of a bridge, prompting questions about federal funding for the project, which is already under way.

But MacKinnon said Ottawa supports “crossing that river whatever way the premier tells us to.”

He said the project was not something the federal government would normally be involved in, but the investment was important.

“If the government of British Columbia says it wants to construct a bridge, we’re for a bridge,” he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 30, 2026.

Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

Ottawa lists Roberts Bank port expansion in B.C. as project of national interest

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