Prairie Provinces Announce Deal on Fostering the Development of Trade Corridors

Highway traffic heads into Calgary in a file photo. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)

Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba have signed a memorandum of understanding that aims to foster the development of trade corridors between the provinces in order to bolster economic growth and unite them in advocating for their mutual interests with the federal government.

The Saskatchewan government announced on April 11 that the provinces will focus on four aspects of collaboration: improving the efficiency of inter-provincial highway and rail networks, seeking federal infrastructure funding and national supply chain solutions, keeping their economies competitive and growing capital investment, and harmonizing regulations to support businesses, industries, and shippers.

Devin Dreeshen, Alberta’s minister of transportation and economic corridors, said the provinces are taking a “nation-building approach” to establishing the corridors.

“Alberta is proud to partner with Saskatchewan and Manitoba, taking a leadership role in building new trade corridors that will help our provinces and our country," he said in a news release.

“New nation-building projects need government cooperation and political will. We need to cut red tape. We need to get building things like we used to. We need to make good jobs and an affordable life a priority.”

At a press conference on April 11, Dreeshen was joined by Saskatchewan Highways Minister Jeremy Cockrill and Manitoba Transportation Minister Doyle Piwniuk.

Cockrill echoed Dreeshen’s remarks, noting that transportation is essential to the landlocked provinces whose economy leans heavily on export.

“Most of what we produce travels south through the United States, east through Manitoba, or west through Alberta and British Columbia. Economic corridors that enable supply chains are our lifeline,” he said at the press conference.

Advancing Mutual Interests

Dreeshen said that the MOU will also help the provinces to advance mutual interests, pointing to regulatory delays caused by Bill C-69, the Federal Impact Assessment Act.

Before it received royal assent in June 2019, the legislation had been dubbed the “no more pipelines” bill, as it allows Ottawa to evaluate the environmental impacts of intra-provincial pipelines and other energy development, and veto certain projects.

“This federal legislation is a common concern for Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, as well as the four other provinces that actually have joined Alberta in appealing this bill at the Supreme Court,” Dreeshen said, adding that his province will continue to call on Ottawa to “prioritize approvals and the completion of nation-building projects to enhance our trade infrastructure.”

The Prairie provinces are challenging the law’s power to regulate provincial energy and natural resource development projects, arguing before the Supreme Court of Canada on March 21 and 22 that the act infringes on the division of powers enshrined in the Constitution.

Dreeshen said the provinces will also keep pushing for the implementation of recommendations made by the federal Supply Chain Task Force, which was introduced in 2022 to examine the issues affecting Canada’s supply chain operations that suffered disruption by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past few years.

Piwniuk said Saskatchewan and Alberta are “natural key partners” for the task of improving trade through transportation.

“Manitoba’s unique gateway and hub initiatives cannot develop in isolation, that is why external cooperative partnerships will leverage our initiatives for success,” he said.

Tara MacIsaac contributed to this report