B.C.’s tugboat operators are in the midst of a major sector overhaul thanks to the downturn in the forestry sector, and staying in business means finding new ways to diversify.
“We’re trying to survive, but we’re trying to do it the right way,” said Lukas Olsen, general manager of Campbell River’s West Coast Tug and Barge Ltd.
In a recent interview with Business in Vancouver, Olsen, 30, said his family business has implemented a succession plan that will help him and his brother inherit and carry West Coast into the future long after their father’s retirement.
The company has struggled to stay afloat in recent years as timber companies slash production amid the U.S. housing collapse.
No production means there are no logs to move for B.C.’s coastal tugboat operators, but that hasn’t stopped them from finding other business.
“Forestry is less than 40% of our book [these days],” Olsen said. “Although it’s a healthy portion of our book and we appreciate the work, we’ve had to, in the last five years, work hard to diversify … so we can maintain our business.”
That means West Coast is hauling bulk materials to serve the coastal construction industry and has even entered the sports fishing market.
“We pretty much do anything that someone wants us to do.”
Check out this week’s edition of BIV to read more from other B.C. tugboat operators and the challenges they face.