Studies show year-round shipping potential from Port of Churchill

Manitoba's premier says studies showing year-round shipping potential from the Port of Churchill boost the case for expanding the Arctic deepsea port.

“This breakthrough means we can stop asking if year-round shipping from Churchill is possible,” Kinew said in a statement Friday.

He said the studies address a key concern from shippers and will help attract investment.

“Now is the time for industry, investors and governments in Canada and around the world to invest in Churchill.”

The studies say advances in marine technology and declining sea ice due to climate change mean shipping can be greatly expanded from the current four-month window.

They show the waterways could be navigated year-round by icebreakers costing between $100 million and $410 million, rather than the billions of dollars it would cost for more heavy-duty ships.

Properly designed bulk carriers costing between $60 and $70 million could also navigate the route for nine to 10 months a year under most conditions, one of the studies says.

Shipping with lighter-duty vessels is made more possible as the amount of sea ice shrinks.

The window of ice-free water has grown by about a month since the 1980s. Every half-degree of warming adds about two weeks more, another study found.

The studies were conducted by the University of Manitoba, Fednav Ltd. and the Arctic Research Foundation, while funding came from the Manitoba and federal governments, as well as the Indigenous-owned Artic Gateway Group that owns the port.

Kinew has championed a port expansion, including potential fossil fuel exports, as a key economic driver for the province.

The port has seen limited shipping activity in recent years but started shipping grain this year after a six-year hiatus as well as limited amounts of zinc and potash.

The port is among the projects referred to the federal major projects office as a transformative strategy, but it was not among the first round approved for fast-tracking.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2026.

Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press