Propane shortage threatens to be 'major cost expense,' says Acadian Seaplants CEO

The pipeline blockade that has shut down rail service into the Maritimes is proving costly for one of Nova Scotia's largest consumers of propane.

The 115,000 square-foot Acadian Seaplants operation in the tiny southwestern Nova Scotia community of Cornwallis manufactures products from seaweed that are shipped all over the world. The plant relies on propane delivered to the province by rail.

"We have just been told that we will run out of propane on Sunday," saidCEO Jean-Paul Deveauat the company's Dartmouth, N.S., location."For us, that is a major cost expense."

He said this will force the company to use light oil, which will cost 63 per cent more than propane.

Acadian Seaplants employs 400 people and its seaweed-based products for food, biochemical and agricultural uses are exported to 80 countries.

Acadian Seaplants gets it propane from the Wilson Fuelpropane depot in Bedford, near Halifax. The Cornwallis plant takes three truck deliveries a week.

Wilson Fuel propane managerLee Johson saidthe company realized on Tuesday it had enough on hand to supplyits customers for five days. It immediately put customers on rations in an effort to stretch the supply into next week.

At the depot on Friday,Johnson pointedto four propane railcars on site.

"One is empty. We're unloading the second one now, which will be empty today, and two are full. And as it sits today, that is absolutely all we have," Johnson said.

He saidthe company is trying to get supply trucked in from Montreal.

"We just need the government to get involved and get this over," he said.

Port of Halifax highly dependent on rail service

The Port of Halifax also hopes the trains start moving.Sixty per cent of cargo moves in and out of the port via rail.

SpokespersonLane Farguson saidno vessel calls have been cancelled yet,and Halifax's two containers terminals remained in operation Friday.

On the piers, cargo is moving in one direction: up.

"The import cargo that's coming in can't be loaded onto rail and the longer this goes on, the more of it is going to pile up on the docks," said Farguson."And then on the export side, if we don't have goods coming in, then there is not much to load up on the ships.We're doing our best."

Growing frustration

At Acadian Seaplants, Deveau saidthe extra cost of switching to oil is not the only impact his company will feel.

"The supply chains are going to fall down for all kinds of other products," he said."Will we be able to ship our products to our customers that are located around the world?"

The blockades that are causingDeveau such anxiety are a show of solidarity for the hereditary chiefs of the Wet'suwet'en who oppose the construction of a 670-kilometre natural gas pipeline through northern British Columbia.

Deveau saidhe supports peaceful protests, but these have gone too far.

"There is a big problem when a small group of people can disrupt the economic situation of the country and in an illegal manner. We have the rule of law here in Canada. We need to all operate by that," he said.