That's the day Woodward Oil Ltd. is sending a tanker into Montreal to pick up its first load of Nunavut-bound fuel.

The Newfoundland company recently inked a three-year deal with the Nunavut government to deliver gas, diesel and aviation fuel to communities in the Baffin and Kivalliq regions.

Newly acquired for the contract is the 16,000 ton ice-breaking tanker Tuvaq, which will carry fuel from Shell Canada's Montreal refinery to communities in Baffin.

The 16.8 million litre-capacity Tuvaq is scheduled to make six trips out of Montreal during the 2003 sealift season.

A smaller, shallow draft Woodward tanker, the Mokami, is scheduled to make eight trips out of Churchill delivering fuel to communities in Kivalliq.

Both vessels are double-hull, ice-breaking tankers with fully segregated ballast and are rated ice class 1A Super.

Headquartered in Goose Bay, Woodward has a long history in the North. The firm operates both marine and aviation arms.

"We have been shipping fuel oil products along the Labrador coast and in the Arctic since 1973," said Woodward.

The company operated fuel distribution facilities in Iqaluit for 12 years and in Resolute Bay for 30 years, until 1999.

Woodward has used the Mokami for fuel deliveries to Nunavut Power installations in Kivalliq and previously to DND (Department of National Defence) sites on the DEW Line.

The vessel will replace the tug-and-barge system employed out of Churchill by Northern Canada Transportation System (NTCL), the former contractor.

"Both ships are fairly fast, in many ways faster than a barge operation," said Woodward. "Barges typically operate at six to seven knots. We operate at anywhere from 12 to 16 knots."

NTCL had delivered fuel to communities in the Kivalliq region for 27 years, and in the Baffin for six years.

The company retains the fuel delivery contract in the Kitikmeot region, with Imperial Oil now contracting supply.

Shell Canada has the supply contract for both the Baffin and Kivalliq regions, estimated at about 130 million litres in 2003.

"A contract stipulation was that all fuel supplied must be refined in Canada," said Shell's Janet Annesley.

Fuel for Kivalliq communities will be sourced from Shell's refinery in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta.

Shell has leased additional tank farm facilities in Churchill to augment its existing storage capacity.

The GN has refused to disclose contract figures or volumes for the new-look fuel re-supply and delivery system. Savings for both over the three-year contract terms with Shell, Imperial Oil, Woodward and NTCL will be about $16 million, said the government.

It is estimated the contracts are worth about $100 million over the three years. Nearly 20 per cent of the Nunavut government's annual budget is spent on fuel.

The GN is currently fielding RFP (Request for Proposal) responses from interested firms for a separate dry cargo sealift this summer.

Previously, NTCL shipped fuel and dry goods on the same vessels.

NTCL faced a fuel supplier's nightmare two years in the so-called 'bad gas' fiasco.

Hundreds of vehicle owners in Baffin and Kivalliq communities reported engine problems after using NTCL-delivered gas that was missing a cleansing agent.

"We are well aware of the fuel quality incident two years ago," said Shell's Annesley.

"In a climate such as in the North you simply cannot go far enough to ensure quality. That is something Shell takes very seriously. We stand behind our products."