A Winnnipeg-based grain company says it is “100 per cent” going ahead with its planned Bowden-area grain handling facility at the intersection of Highway 587 and Rge. Rd. 12, despite the fact that another grain company has put another nearby grain terminal's future on hold.
“From our perspective, things are progressing as good as hoped and we are definitely still hoping to start potentially as soon as September but all of the cards have to fall into the right place for that to happen,” says Shane Paterson, corporate development officer of Paterson Grain.
Paterson's comments come as a highly anticipated high-throughput grain terminal planned for Niobe, about a kilometre north of Innisfail, is now in jeopardy of being derailed.
The $30 to $40 million project was announced by GrainsConnect Canada last winter. Construction for the massive inland grain terminal was originally scheduled to start this year, with the project going online in 2017.
However, GrainsConnect, a new player in the grain handling industry, has put the project “on hold” and Niobe could be bypassed by the company altogether as it moves forward on the building of its first Saskatchewan terminal and looks at other Alberta site options.
“We are on hold at this point until we sort out some of the agreements around the terminal,” said Warren Stow, president of the company, who would not disclose details about the problematic agreement issues. However, Stow added it would be “fair” to say he's not sure if the Niobe grain terminal project will ever go ahead.
“That's fair. At this point we don't have enough information to give it justice,” said Stow. “When we have all the information available we're happy to share it but at this point nothing has been determined, so to say it's not going ahead isn't correct and to say it is going ahead isn't correct.”
Paterson said GrainsConnect's change from its original plans will not alter his company's intentions for the market. “I can't speak to what GrainsConnect is doing or what might have motivated their change in plans.
“For the farmers there will be less capacity in the region, which is maybe a good thing or a bad thing depending on the year,” said Paterson, whose company is currently constructing new grain terminals in Daysland and Bottineau, N.D. “Overall, it changes nothing for us.”
Stow's comments caught Jim Wood, the mayor of Red Deer County, completely off guard.
“I wasn't personally aware of what you were talking about until you just told me,” said Wood, who has been an enthusiastic booster of GrainsConnect's ambitious plan for Niobe as it would have injected a significant economic boost to the region. “I am wondering what concerns they have. There is no problem at Red Deer County as far as regulations.
“If there is a regulation on another level of government, and say if it's the province because I know the province has a lot of tough environmental rules they have changed in the last while, and I know Paterson was struggling somewhat with the provincial requirements on the environment,” noted the mayor of the issues Paterson Grain encountered for its proposed terminal in Bowden. “If it is something like that that is their problem, Red Deer County, including myself, will personally do whatever is necessary to lobby to help them overcome any regulatory hurdles they may be experiencing.”
In the meantime, the provincial government has confirmed to the Province that GrainsConnect will have to get approvals from Alberta Environment and Parks in order to move forward on the Niobe project, if the company ultimately decides to do so.
“Environment and Parks regional staff have spoken with the company's engineering contractors and confirmed that Water Act approvals will be necessary, due to the proposed facility's proximity to a watercourse,” said Elyse Nabata, a spokesperson with the provincial ministry who noted the Water Act administers activities that impact Alberta's water resources. “At this point we have not received a Water Act application for this project but look forward to receiving one. Once a complete application is received, approvals are anticipated to take two to four weeks.”
Last December, GrainsConnect Canada, a joint venture between Australia's GrainCorp and Japanese co-operative Zen-Noh, announced it was investing $120 million to construct four grain terminals in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
The Niobe project along Highway 2A was made public two months later in February, which was soon followed by Paterson Grain's announcement of an even bigger 55,000 metric tonne grain terminal at Bowden, 15 kilometres to the south.
GrainsConnect's project was to cover more than 207 acres west of the current northern wooden Canada Malting Co. elevator, which the company owns, and process up to 35,000 metric tonnes of grain in 10 hours from 10 massive concrete towers. The project was designed to include a 2,652-metre loop rail track from the existing CP rail line.
However, GrainsConnect Canada has since run into the unspecified “agreements” problems and is now focusing on its two Saskatchewan grain terminal projects, including the new Maymont facility that is identical to the one planned for Niobe. The company hosted a ground-breaking ceremony on July 12. GrainsConnect is announcing its second Saskatchewan location within the next 30 to 60 days.
“Nobody is more disappointed than I am. We would have liked to go ahead at Niobe first off,” said Stow. “We want to make sure we are making good solid economic decisions. We are going to pick locations that make sense, so we are going to take our time (and) not rush into anything.
“We had the ability to switch on the Saskatchewan locations immediately so that is what we did and we will proceed in Alberta next year,” he added.
Warren Stow, president of GrainsConnect Canada
"When we have all the information available we're happy to share it but at this point nothing has been determined, so to say it's not going ahead isn't correct and to say it is going ahead isn't correct."
