Issue/Source: Montreal Port Authority / Contrecœur Container Terminal Project

Location: Contrecœur, Quebec

Date: February 2026

Suggested Responses

  • The Government of Canada's Building Canada Act establishes a new national framework for diversifying and growing our economy by developing our energy and natural resources and facilitating their export to new international trading partners.
  • To see this vision through, the Prime Minister announced the Major Projects Office last August, to ensure that transformative energy and trade corridor projects are fast-tracked for review and funding consideration.
  • The Port of Montréal’s Contrecœur Container Terminal project has been referred to the Major Project Office for further assessment and consultation given its national importance and significance. The Government is committed to the project and has contributed $150M under the National Trade Corridors Fund.
  • The new terminal will increase the Port’s container capacity by almost 60%, ensuring it can meet growing demand for freight transport while strengthening its competitiveness and resilience.

Background Information

The $2.4 billion Contrecoeur terminal expansion project was one of five initial projects referred by the Prime Minister to the Major Projects Office (MPO) in September 2025 for consideration as a project of national interest. The Port of Montreal is the largest container port in Central and Eastern Canada, supporting 590,000 jobs and nearly $93.5 billion in economic activity. The expansion would address growing capacity and congestion issues by adding additional berths and supporting infrastructure to increase port capacity by 60%.

The Contrecœur project, located 45 kilometers northeast of Montreal on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, is a greenfield development to expand the Port of Montreal’s footprint by adding 1.15 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container capacity. The project consists of building:

  • a 675-meter-long quay line, including the approach area for vessels;
  • rail network expansions, including a connecting line to the existing Canadian National Railway network, a rail interchange zone and an intermodal area;
  • road access to connect the terminal to the public network;
  • a container handling yard; and
  • operations and administrative buildings.

The Government of Canada has already contributed $150 million to the project under the National Trade Corridors Fund. The Province of Quebec has committed $130 million and the Montreal Port Authority (MPA) is contributing $200 million. Approval of the MPA project-specific borrowing limit is expected by
March 31, 2026, based on agreed-upon terms with the Canada Infrastructure Bank. In-water construction works are planned to begin in 2026, followed by land-side works in the second quarter of 2027, leading to an operational terminal by as early as the second quarter of 2030. An agreement with DP World, the proposed port operator, has not yet been finalized, creating uncertainty for project financials and timelines.

The Port received federal environmental assessment approval for the project in March 2021 and a Species at Risk Act (SARA) compliant Fisheries Act authorizations from Fisheries and Oceans Canada in September 2025 for the copper redhorse fish. The MPA is currently working on an application to Environment and Climate Change Canada for issuance of SARA permits related to the Western chorus frog. While permit issuance is expected to be straightforward, as the habitat impact is small, it will be required before land-side construction begins in 2027.

The MPA has been actively consulting on the project with three primary Indigenous groups/organizations: Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK); W8banaki; and Wendake Nation. In collaboration with these Nations, the MPA

co-developed a Charter of Collaboration outlining commitments related to environmental stewardship, employment and training, procurement opportunities for Indigenous businesses, and community support. Since 2021, the Port has held over 50 consultation sessions with the Nations.

Supporting Facts and Figures

  • The Port of Montreal is the largest container port in Central and Eastern Canada, supporting 590,000 jobs and nearly $93.5 billion in economic activity.
  • The Port of Montreal is a key gateway for goods moving to and from Quebec and Ontario, as well as the U.S. Midwest and Canadian Prairies. The port serves 66% of the Canadian population and 75% of Canada's manufacturing capacity.
  • The project will create nearly 8,000 jobs during the construction phase and 1,200 jobs when in operation (direct, indirect and induced jobs across the country at full capacity).
  • In 2024, 50% of inbound containers at the port were destined for Quebec, 31% for Ontario, and 8% to Western Canada, with the remaining 11% transiting through the port to the United States.
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