Larger ships pulling into Port of Halifax pose intermodal business boost for CN

By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor 

Bigger ships are calling on the Port of Halifax. That poses bigger opportunities for CN to boost its intermodal business at the major Nova Scotia deepwater seaport. 

CN is the only railroad that serves the port, which characterizes itself as Canada’s “Ultra Atlantic Gateway” due to the closest proximity to Europe and connections to more than 150 countries.  

The Halifax Port Authority conducts business with 21 European ports via 14 ocean shipping lines — more than any other Canadian port. Halifax is typically the first port of call for ships heading to North America from Europe or Asia via the Suez Canal. 

On April 26, the first larger East Coast Loop 5 (EC5) vessel arrived at the Halifax port. The nearly 1,200-foot-long ONE Stork ship operated by Ocean Network Express (ONE) carried 14,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) to the PSA Halifax Atlantic Hub, a container terminal owned and operated by PSA International. ONE is a member of THE Alliance, which also includes ocean carriers Hapag Lloyd, Yang Ming and Hyundai Merchant Marine. 

The PSA terminal features the longest and deepest berth of any eastern Canadian port and five super post-Panamax (SPPX) cranes. Two additional SPPX cranes are expected to arrive at the terminal later this year along with new yard handling equipment. 

EC5 vessels typically carry loads in the 6,000- to 9000-TEU range, says Lane Farguson, the Port of Halifax’s director of communications and marketing. The EC5 service begins at the Halifax port, then heads south to major ports in New York City; Savannah, Georgia; and Jacksonville, Florida. Northward return trips include a stop in Norfolk, Virgina. 

Each day, CN moves double-stack trains from the Halifax port to its terminals in Toronto, Montreal and Chicago. CN

CN officials hailed the larger ship milestone in a recent Tweet: “Sending a #SupplyChainSalute to PSA Halifax and THE Alliance on the arrival of the first upsized 14,000-TEU vessel on the EC5 service with the berthing of the ONE Stork.” 

The alliance partners expect additional large EC5 vessels to call on the Halifax port later this year. 

“ONE is upsizing its EC5 vessels, and ONE Stork was the first of them,” says Farguson. 

The larger vessels will continue to solidify Halifax as Canada’s Ultra Atlantic Gateway, said Halifax Port Authority President and CEO Allan Gray in a May 5 press release.  

“The PSA Halifax Atlantic Hub has the infrastructure, operational knowledge and experience to efficiently handle vessels of this size,” he said. 

Most facilities at the Halifax port offer direct, on-dock rail service via CN. Importers in Canada and the United States distribute goods to Chicago, Toronto, Detroit, Montreal and Moncton, New Brunswick, using the on-dock facility. 

CN moves double-stack trains daily from the port to its terminals in Toronto, Montreal and Chicago. Specialized rail equipment is available for bulk, breakbulk, heavy-lift and containerized cargo. 

Last year, CN added a second pair of intermodal trains linking the port with points in eastern Canada and the U.S. Midwest. 

Volume has been booming at the Halifax port for more than a year. In 2022, the port exceeded 600,000 TEUs in a given year for the first time, reaching 601,700 TEUs. 

“PSA Halifax, CN and the Halifax Port Authority worked together in a collaborative, meaningful way, and the increased throughput volume [in 2022] is a positive outcome of that collaboration,” said Gray in a release issued earlier this year. 

Added CN Vice President of Intermodal Dan Bresolin: “Through strong collaboration ... there are many more opportunities that lie ahead to further grow the Halifax gateway.”  

To help ensure that Halifax remains a competitive and effective international gateway, several infrastructure projects will continue this year to improve efficiency, enhance sustainability and increase yard handling space, port authority officials said.