Port of Vancouver pitches expansion to win back potash shipper to local terminals

The Port of Vancouver lost a major cargo shipper to Washington state and is now racing to win it back with a multifaceted expansion plan that aims to resolve the rail bottlenecks and labour disruptions that drove the deal away.

Nutrien Ltd., a Saskatoon-based potash producer, chose Longview, Washington—350 kilometres south of its existing North Vancouver export facilities—as the site for a $1-billion potash export terminal. The company cited Metro Vancouver's rail constraints and the port's labour history as deal-breakers.

Port of Vancouver's CEO Peter Xotta announced the gateway strategy in response, a plan that includes expanding Roberts Bank Terminal 2 to double container capacity at the artificial island in Delta, and converting two vacant port properties—Sterling Shipyard on Burrard Inlet's south shore and Fraser Wharves on the Fraser River in Richmond—into bulk terminals. Both sites require remediation and redevelopment.

"We think that we've got some things to offer and are anxious to get to maybe refresh Nutrien's look at Vancouver, along with other bulk commodities that are part of Prime Minister Mark Carney's objective to double trade," Xotta said. The port has been developing the strategy's business case since July.

Xotta plans to present the pitch to Nutrien in coming weeks. Typically, a new terminal takes three to five years to become operational after a shipper commits. Federal political will to expedite permits could accelerate that timeline—Xotta noted that a major shipper like Nutrien could "become kind of a rallying cry for all of the regulators and government around making sure that things that are proposed actually happen."

Nutrien remains committed to Longview. "Longview remains Nutrien's preferred location for a potential potash export terminal," the company said, adding it would complement existing stakes at Neptune Bulk Terminals in Vancouver and broader operations in Portland and Saint John. Yet the port handled record exports in 2025: 170 million tonnes of total cargo, 30 million tonnes of grain, and 10.5 million tonnes of potash. The port aims to increase capacity by 40 to 60 million tonnes annually to meet Carney's export objectives.

The port authority closed expressions of interest for Fraser Wharves proposals in September and may have identified what Xotta called "an ideal candidate" to develop the site.