A look back at 2021 at CentrePort

While companies have spent the last year adjusting to the reality of operating in a Covid-19 world, CentrePort Canada has continued its growth and is a busy hub for industrial activity and investment.

At 20,000 acres, CentrePort Canada is North America’s largest trimodal inland port, providing companies with excellent access to a variety of transportation options, fully-serviced industrial land and existing infrastructure that supports future growth.

Despite the pandemic, CentrePort Canada land located within the R.M. of Rosser has seen significant sales and construction activity throughout the last twelve months; over $40 million of development permits have been issued, 300,000 square feet of new construction is underway and land sales continue to outperform expectations.

In addition, the City of Winnipeg released its preliminary 2022 budget, which includes $20M to support growth and development in CentrePort South. This commitment by the City is an important first step in engaging all levels of government to commit funding for water & wastewater infrastructure in the area which will help to fully realize the employment potential of these lands and attract investment.

Here’s a look at some of the highlights from 2021:

4Tracks Ltd., a local transportation company, broke ground on a $12.5 million dollar expansion in the heart of CentrePort Canada. Having experienced significant growth over the last five years, the company outgrew their space on Eagle Drive and is building a 27,000 square foot corporate headquarters and terminal.

AVAAL Business Park was brought to market in May 2021, the park comprises three multi-tenant industrial buildings with space for lease totaling 165,000 square feet.

BrookPort Business Park phases 1 and 2 have become home to at least a dozen new companies over the last year, including: Akal Truck & Trailer Centre, Benipal Brothers, Highway King Class 1 Training Centre, Longview Logistics, Natt Enterprises, Pluto Transport, RIG Logistics, Sailors Group, Sandhu Farms, SR Truck & Trailer Repair, TJ Truck & Trailer Wash and Ayr Motor Express.

CentrePort Canada Rail Park, a 665-acre rail served industrial development, continues to gain momentum and generate significant market interest. It is anticipated this project will break ground in Spring 2022.

Merit Functional Foods opened a 94,000 square foot pea and canola protein processing plant in January of 2021. Merit is redefining plant protein and is the only commercial-scale facility capable of producing food-grade canola protein in the world.

MMI Asset Management unveiled the first of three multi-tenant industrial buildings in Steele Business Park, a 17-acre industrial park with multi-tenant space for lease. The first tenant announced is Mercury Specialty Products, which is expanding its presence in Manitoba, occupying 18,000 square feet of space in Phase 1. Built by Concord Projects, these three buildings will bring 220,000 square feet of industrial space to the market in Rosser.

National Research Council of Canada’s $62 million advanced manufacturing research facility is nearing completion and close to opening its doors. The facility will focus on research in additive manufacturing and sustainable packaging.

Nutrien broke ground in June on a 100,000 square foot distribution centre in BrookPort Business Park. This facility is now open and began operations in December 2021.

O Foods Ltd: Construction is underway on Paterson GlobalFoods’ $94 million oat processing facility, O Foods Ltd. The mill will process 125,000 metric tonnes of oats from Western Canadian farmers, with expansion plans to reach 250,000 metric tonnes.

Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada has completed construction. Built by PCL, the 85,000 square foot museum came in $5 million under budget and was finished ahead of schedule. The museum is set to open in March of 2022.

TFI International is expanding in CentrePort. Construction is underway on a 70,000 square foot warehouse and distribution facility adjacent to their current location on Oak Point Highway.

Looking ahead to 2022, the inland port continues to draw interest from external markets, particularly as a preferred location for value-added agribusiness production facilities, advanced manufacturing companies, and e-commerce, warehousing and distribution services. Awareness of Manitoba as a location for investment has increased as companies look to stabilize their supply chains, minimize disruptions to their business and source both customers and suppliers from within their local market.

Other near-term opportunities exist with the further development of the T-MEC Corridor and through the recently announced acquisition of Kansas City Southern / Kansas City Southern Mexico by CP Rail with the combined entity named Canadian Pacific Kansas City (“CPKC”). The proposed T-MEC corridor would begin in Mexico at the new seaport at Mazatlán, on the Pacific coast, and connect to Monterrey, before crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in Laredo, passing through Dallas, Tulsa, Chicago and ending in Winnipeg. The CPKC rail network, connecting Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, creates a 20,000 mile integrated rail corridor terminating in Winnipeg. This will allow companies to reduce their transportation costs, eliminate offloading and reloading of goods in transit, and better manage their supply chains. The CentrePort Canada Rail Park, set to begin construction in spring 2022, is perfectly located for companies that manage part of their supply chain by rail.

Strategically located at the hub of multiple trading corridors, CentrePort Canada is ideally situated to support companies as they re-evaluate their supply chain and manufacturing activities. With existing transportation infrastructure in place, industrial land available and a special planning area in place to expedite approvals, CentrePort Canada is an ideal location for companies looking for North American locations.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•