CanEst Transit Inc., a new company founded by La Coop fédérée, Transit BD Inc. and MGT Holdings, will create on port territory a facility that will specialize in the containerization of agricultural products destined for local and international markets.
CanEst has signed a long-term lease with Montreal Port Authority to operate out of the former Grain Elevator No. 3 annex. Once modernization work at the facility has been completed, CanEst will receive by rail and truck bulk products from Quebec, Ontario, Western Canada and the U.S. Midwest. The company will be able to store, clean, sift, package and containerize agricultural products, as well as handle bulk or bagged grain and by-products. Once containerized, agricultural products will be delivered by truck to local markets or directly to Port of Montreal’s container terminals for onward transit by vessel to the international markets that the port’s container lines serve. The CanEst facility is scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2014.
“The CanEst project fits in perfectly within our ‘port-plus’ strategy to provide value-added services to port users and to attract new clients,” said Sylvie Vachon, President and CEO of Montreal Port Authority. “This project will increase our capacity for handling bulk products. Users will benefit from the port’s strategic location on the St. Lawrence River to serve international markets.”