UCTE welcomes today’s announcement that the federal government has brokered a deal to transfer the Hudson Bay Rail, the Port of Churchill and the Churchill Marine Tank Farm from OmniTRAX Inc. to a Canadian consortium effective Friday.

“Despite this news, we remain concerned for our members,” said Dave Clark, National President.  “The government has only done half the job by not addressing what contributed to the root problem.”

The Union continues to call on the federal government to reexamine the sale of the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) to a Saudi-American consortium called G3.  After the sale of the CWB, OmniTRAX was provided a federal government subsidy of $10 per ton in order to assist with loss of revenue.  When the subsidy ended, so did the economic stability for the people of Churchill.

Add to this, the current strained political relationship between the Saudi and Canadian governments has resulted in the Saudis pulling out of all of Canadian investments.

“Until we secure the former CWB back into Canadian hands, we are just putting a Band-Aid on the problem; the same way that the $10 per ton subsidy delayed the economic collapse on the community of Churchill,” said Clark.