International Trade committee  In what way is it adequate to transport steel? I mean, we have a good transportation system within Canada, but we have a costly transportation system within Canada. Geographically, we're a big country, so the costs are extremely high within Canada for transporting any—

International Trade committee  No. I think that would be a difficult task. For the Canadian steel producers, it would be cheaper for them to export and sell to Europe, on a freight basis, than it would be to sell into western Canada.

International Trade committee  I'm sorry, what have I learned from the Chinese? What was the last half...?

International Trade committee  I'm not 100% sure I have the question correctly.

International Trade committee  We have a transportation cost coming from eastern Canada to western Canada of approximately $120 a tonne if it's transported by rail. It's $180 to $200 a tonne if it's transported by truck.

International Trade committee  That's correct. It's more than 50% cheaper. When we transport material from any major port in China, we're paying about $45 per tonne to bring it in.

International Trade committee  Absolutely.

International Trade committee  Yes. We import, warehouse, and distribute it.

International Trade committee  Thank you.

International Trade committee  Thank you very much, Chair, for the invitation to be a witness here at this committee. My name is Bill Miller. I own Amalgamated Trading. We are an importer of steel in western Canada. I have been involved in the steel industry for over 25 years. Our main suppliers are Asian cou