A United States company has announced plans to build a cold storage facility at Port Saint John.
Americold will invest between $75 million and $80 million, the company announced on Tuesday.
The project, according to Americold, is expected to create up to 100 new jobs by the end of 2029.
CEO George Chappelle said this facility marks an exciting step forward for Americold as it expands into “strategically compelling geography.”
“Port Saint John has been the beneficiary of significant investments in recent years from both DP World and CPKC, and the infrastructure they have built has attracted major global shipping lines to this location,” Chappelle said in a news release.
The new facility will aim to enhance food flows primarily between central and eastern Canada and Europe, South America, and the Asia-Pacific region, said Chappelle.
Craig Bell Estabrooks, president and CEO of the port, told our newsroom in May that the project was an exciting prospect for them.
“Cold storage and the cold supply chain is a big part of our vision on how we’re going to keep the momentum and keep growing the container volumes at the Port of Saint John,” said Bell Estabrooks.
Bell Estabrooks said a cold storage facility will benefit not only Saint John but the region as a whole by helping to create supply chain resiliency.
“We’ve learned through the pandemic and through other environmental issues and challenges related to climate change that we see a real strain on our infrastructure and a real strain on supply chain across North America, Europe and all parts of the world,” he said.
In addition, having a cold storage facility will make Port Saint John even more attractive to shipping companies, said Bell Estabrooks.
“So we really see that adding value through that supply chain resiliency and having cold storage and having optionality in rail, for example, it just enhances the whole supply chain.”
As part of the project, Opportunities NB will provide up to $1.01 million in the form of a payroll rebate to assist Americold with job creation. This expansion is expected to contribute up to $37 million in direct provincial GDP.
Luke Randall, the minister responsible for Opportunities NB, said the Americold project will improve market access for New Brunswick’s exporting companies and create good paying jobs.
“Americold’s expansion in New Brunswick enhances the port’s capacity to accommodate growing shipping volumes and strengthens its position as Atlantic Canada’s largest port by volume and one of the fastest-growing container ports on the East Coast of North America,” said Randall.
The facility will be located on the last piece of unleased land on the west side between the Crosby’s terminal and tank farm and the Bay Ferries terminal.
