Recent funding announcements from the federal and provincial governments and Port Saint John (New Brunswick, Canada) will include a major harbour deepening project. The seven-year $205 million project, which is a 3-way funding partnership, involves major capital work at the Port’s West Side cargo handling piers and facilities but will also include capital for dredging of the main channel.
The main channel will be deepened from 8.4 to 10 metres (chart datum). The deepening extends the operational window for ships and will make Port Saint John more accessible to large vessels, including cruise ships. A deeper channel will provide cruise vessels the ability to dock at either high or low tide. No longer reliant on the tides, cruise operations will experience an end to schedule challenges due to tidal restrictions and cruise itinerary planners will gain the opportunity to lengthen the day for cruise guests. A longer day means guests will have more time to explore the famous Bay of Fundy region. After more than a quarter century, the cruise industry at Port Saint John is well-established, having received more than two million cruise visitors that arrived on more than 1,000 cruise ships. The cruise marketing and operations team at Port Saint John look forward to including a deeper harbour to the roster of benefits available to cruise lines calling at Saint John.
“We are delighted that our partners in the Provincial and Federal governments have joined Port Saint John with a commitment of funding. We appreciate their recognition of the importance of both cargo and cruise activity at Port Saint John,” said Jim Quinn, President and CEO, Saint John Port Authority.