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An Address by Mr. Dominic J. Taddeo
President and CEO, Montreal Port Authority
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MR. BRUNEAU, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen:
On behalf of myself, the Montreal Port Authority's executive, its management and all of its personnel, I welcome you to our annual meeting. This meeting is a valuable opportunity to review the Port of Montreal's progress in 2006 and to share our considerable achievements. And what a year it has been!
For the Montreal Port Authority (MPA) and the Port of Montreal, 2006 was an exceptional year, in which we achieved a record performance.
It was also in 2006 that we
We have also continued to pursue our strategic planning exercise, which began in fall 2005, with the consulting firm Moffatt & Nichol. The firm has been mandated to study capacity issues at the port. The study will:
At the Port of Montreal, container growth has not slowed since the arrival of the first container in 1967. And we anticipate that the Port of Montreal will attain the 2 million TEU mark by 2020 - almost double our current annual capacity. This study will allow us to prepare a master plan and an action plan for our container infrastructures for the next ten to 15 years.
The results of the study will be presented to the board of directors in the near future.
Our position as the "gateway to North America" ensures Montreal's position among the leading ports in North America. In fact, the Port of Montreal is:
These accomplishments are all a reflection of the remarkable work we have achieved.
In addition, the business relationships that we have developed over the years have helped reinforce and extend Montreal's reach, even in Asia and India, through transshipment ports in Northern Europe, Italy and the Bahamas. Ships originating in Asia and passing through the Panama Canal also connect through the transshipment Port of Freeport, in the Bahamas, where MSC operates direct services to Montreal and to Northern Europe. Whereas ships that originate in India and pass through the Suez Canal connect through the Port of Gioia Tauro, in Italy, and through north European ports like Antwerp and Hamburg, served by some of the shipping lines that call at Montreal directly.
2006 also saw the arrival of new services to Montreal, demonstrating that our port continues to grow. One of these new services, the Japanese shipping line MOL, arrived in Montreal on April 2006 for the first time. With the arrival of this new shipping line, the Port of Montreal is home to nine out of the 12 most important container shipping lines in the world.
Some of these lines are:
Among our domestic shipping lines in the container sector is Océanex, which operates a biweekly service between Montreal and St. John's, Newfoundland, using two ships.
Montreal is also port of call to a dozen other domestic and international ship owners who specialize in the transport of non-containerized general cargo and in liquid and dry bulk. Among these lines are:
The presence of these important shipping lines that connect Montreal to more than 80 countries around the world is reflected in our results.
It is now my pleasure to present to you our financial results: For the period ended December 31, 2006, the MPA registered net earnings - for the 27th consecutive year - of CA$10.5 million.
Revenue rose to CA$82.6 million, up by CA$3.7 million, an increase of 4.8 percent since 2005. These revenues include CA$77.9 million in operating revenues, an increase of CA$3.5 million from the previous year, and financial revenues of CA$4.7 million. Expenses amounted to CA$69.5 million, an increase of CA$4.8 million over the CA$64.7 million for the previous period, an increase of 7.4 percent.
Among the 2006 highlights, the MPA has continued its proactive approach to the issue of security. In fact, an audit conducted jointly by the United States Coast Guard and Transport Canada indicated that five security practises established at the port of Montreal should serve as industry standards, most notably:
It is also important to note the presence of the National Port Enforcement Team (NPET) - a federal initiative under the jurisdiction of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Border Services Agency, Immigration Canada and the various police forces of the City of Montreal and the Sûreté du Québec (SQ).
You are undoubtedly aware that we invest heavily in security. Since the late 1990s, we have invested over CA$8 million dollars. In 2006 alone, we devoted more than CA$2 million towards projects related to the security of our infrastructure and facilities. Last December, we became the first port in Canada and in North America to require that empty containers arriving at our terminals, either by truck or by train, be sealed.
The federal government also plans to install portals that detect radioactive materials at our container terminals at certain ports like Montreal. And Transport Canada will introduce the first phase of the Marine Transportation Security Clearance Program, which will become operational at the Ports of Montreal, Vancouver, and Halifax by the 15th of December 2007. This program will reinforce maritime security by requiring maritime workers who hold specific functions and that have access to restricted areas to have security authorization.
Under a new initiative, the MPA retains control of the Alexandra and Bickerdike Quays and all the water basins in the area, including the one near grain elevator No. 5. It also protects the Montreal Port Authority's head office. This government initiative recognizes the importance of maritime and port activity, and the importance of ensuring its continuity. After all, the port has an important role to play. Montreal's economy depends on it.
Our 2007-2011 corporate plan forecasts investments of over CA$175 million in the enlargement and improvement of our installations, while remaining financially sustainable. The lion's share of the CA$175 million will be invested in the container terminals, since traffic volumes are projected to surpass the 13 million tonne mark.
As federal agency, independent and profitable, we operate the Port of Montreal's infrastructure without subsidy from the three levels of government - federal, provincial, and municipal. We are determined to continue to pursue our mission and remain committed to:
The port's many successes include creating economic spinoffs of CA$2 million annually and almost 18,000 direct and indirect jobs. We enter 2007 with the goal of providing services and infrastructure that are without equal, while ensuring that we continue to highlight the port's advantages.
The port is a perpetual worksite. The worksite will never come to an end. We will continue our work on a daily basis, as we will never cede to the competition. Otherwise, it will truly be the end.