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A new achievement for the Port of Sept-Îles

Sept-Îles, January 28, 2025 – At its recent New Year cocktail party, the Port of Sept-Îles announced that it had reached an all-time high with 38.5 million metric tons of cargo handled at its facilities in 2024. That exceeds last year’s record of 36.6 million tonnes.

With such strong performance in 2024, PSI continues to rank as the second-largest Canadian port for annual activity and the leading mineral port in North America. Recognition as the “Best Dry Bulk Port 2024” at the IBJ Awards in Belgium last November confirmed the innovative and successful status of PSI among the international maritime community.

Collaboration and partnership

For PSI, 2024 was a year filled with opportunities for greater collaboration. In October, the five Canadian port authorities of Quebec announced their consolidation through a collaborative agreement to strengthen the performance, resilience and efficiency of the St. Lawrence/Saguenay maritime corridor. The Université Laval Ecozone Research Chair was another innovative partnership opportunity for PSI. In December, PSI and the faculties of Forestry, Geography and Geomatics and Science and Engineering at Université Laval announced the names of the students who had won EcoZone Achievement Awards. These scholarships, totalling $50,000, reward students choosing to focus their master’s or Ph.D research on the Bay of Sept-Îles.

25 years of shared history

In 2024 PSI also had an opportunity to celebrate 25 years of autonomy as a port. Under the theme “25 years of shared history,” the year of celebrations was kicked off at the PSI annual general meeting in the presence of local business and community leaders as well as several former PSI directors.PSI announced that over the next 12 months, it would release 4 pages of history on specific themes, offering a look back at these 25 years of autonomy:

  • Partnerships, released at the Partners of Excellence gala held by Aluminerie Alouette and the Port of Sept-Îles in September.
  • Community engagement, released at the 2024 5 à huitres maritime in October.
  • Facilities, released at the 2025 new year reception at HMCS Jolliet.
  • Environment, to be released at the PSI 2025 AGMThe pages of history are available at www.portsi.com.

At the heart of the community

Last year, the Port redistributed over $370,000 in donations and sponsorships to the communities of Sept-Îles, Uashat mak Mani-Utenam and Port-Cartier. Major contributions include the $100,000 contribution to Musée de la Côte-Nord to update the exhibit space and launch a new permanent exhibition.The 15th 5 à huitres maritime festival presented by PSI and its collaborators was also a key community event with a strong impact, both in Port-Cartier and Sept-Îles. The three-day festival highlighting Sept-Îles oysters raised over $135,000 for the local palliative care home, Élyme des sables.  

Major projects

In May PSI received a visit from the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, who announced $10 million in funding from the National Trade Corridors Fund for the Monseigneur-Blanche Dock modernization project. This announcement allowed PSI to supplement the $30 million funding already allocated.A few weeks later, PSI received a visit from Kateri Champagne-Jourdain, Minister of Employment, Minister Responsible for the Côte-Nord Region and Member for Duplessis, to confirm $2.3 million to supplement the funding required for the construction of the new Innu-inspired building. Under this $6.9 million project, the Port will build a facility with an architectural concept and exterior design inspired by the Innu culture. The main function will be to provide a permanent arrival facility for international cruise passengers at PSI.

About the Port of Sept-Îles

Boasting diverse, state-of-the-art facilities, the Port of Sept-Îles is North America’s largest ore-handling port, with a projected volume for 2025 of more than 40 million metric tons. It is also recognized as the largest primary aluminum port terminal in the Americas in terms of operational volume. In 2024, the Port of Sept-Îles was recognized as the best dry bulk port at the IBJ Awards. The facilities at the Port of Sept-Îles play a vital and strategic role in the economy of Eastern Canada. The Port is also deeply committed to sustainable development and has pioneered the first environmental observatory on the St. Lawrence to monitor the marine ecosystem as well as a research chair with Université Laval to study coastal ecosystems and port operations.

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Source :

Frédérick J.Tétreault
Director – Communications and Public Relations
Port of Sept-Îles
Tel. : 418 965-3764
ftetreault@portsi.com