Joint statement by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Wab Kinew on federal-provincial collaboration regarding Port of Churchill Plus

WINNIPEG, MB , Nov. 16, 2025 /CNW/ - "We, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Wab Kinew, are working together to build a stronger, more competitive, and prosperous economy. At the core of this is new nation-building infrastructure: ports, mines, trade corridors, and other major projects that will unlock our full potential.

Manitoba's proposed Crown-Indigenous Corporation and Premier Wab Kinew's leadership to ensure Indigenous Peoples are meaningfully and actively shaping the future of our country are in full alignment with our transformational nation-building objectives and the importance of conducting consultations in the early stages of project development.

Rooted in partnership with Indigenous Peoples, Canada and Manitoba are working together to deliver the Port of Churchill Plus: one of the seven transformative strategies announced by the Prime Minister that is, without question, a core component to the prosperity of the country. We are working together to advance how expanded export capacity in the North through Hudson Bay will contribute to increased and diversified trade with Europe and other partners, while more strongly linking Churchill to the rest of Canada.

Referral of a transformative strategy to the Major Projects Office means identifying a vision and establishing the building blocks to advance actual outcomes and results. This includes identifying who needs to be brought together to define the vision, identifying the competitive and economic elements of an opportunity, and prioritising this work to understand what can be accomplished in the short term to advance the strategy and achieve the intended long-term outcomes the strategy identifies.

Based on this direction, since the Port of Churchill Plus was listed on the transformative strategies list for the Major Projects Office on September 11, Canada and Manitoba have been actively working on a project charter and associated business case to drive this work forward. Once a board for the Manitoba Crown Indigenous Corporation (MCIC) is established, the MCIC will be a full partner in the work going forward.

This strong collaboration highlights the Port of Churchill Plus as a priority and will ensure it moves from consideration to implementation. Significant progress has been made to date and this will only continue to pick up speed. For example, some of the critical-path pieces of work include assessing the business cases for critical infrastructure development that supports competitive, economic development, compelling and interesting projects that are private sector-led and attractive to private capital, all while advancing Canada's national interests.

In support of this, the Prime Minister is announcing that the Government of Canada will provide funding to the Arctic Research Foundation to undertake a feasibility study to determine the path forward for future deployment and operation of specialised icebreakers, ice tugs, and research vessels at the Port of Churchill.

Premier Kinew is announcing $51 million for the Arctic Gateway Group to make capital improvements to the Hudson's Bay rail line and to build a new critical minerals storage facility at the Port of Churchill. This brings the total provincial investment in the project to $87.5 million and means that the joint federal-provincial investment over five years amounts to $262.5 million, including $175 million of federal funding announced in March 2025.

Today, Premier Wab Kinew and the Prime Minister have committed to continuing this work in an expedited fashion, with a view of sharing the strategy and plan for Churchill in the spring of 2026."

This document is also available at https://pm.gc.ca

SOURCE Prime Minister's Office

PMO Media Relations: [email protected]