The Port of Montreal is searching for a new chief executive after Julie Gascon left her post with immediate effect, just two years after taking the role. The Montreal Port Authority announced her departure on 3 April in a short statement that offered no further explanation.
A board committee will oversee the port on an interim basis while a replacement is found. Board chair Nathalie Pilon said the gateway is entering a new phase of development as the Contrecoeur terminal expansion project moves forward and the authority begins a new strategic cycle.
Gascon joined the port in February 2024 after serving with Transport Canada and the Canadian Coast Guard. Her exit comes at a sensitive moment for the agency. In September 2025, the Canadian government said the estimated cost of the Contrecoeur container terminal had risen from C$1.6 billion to C$1.65 billion, shortly after the authority signed a development agreement with DP World.
The project is expected to lift Montreal’s annual container capacity by more than 50% to around 3 million boxes, but it has faced criticism over environmental concerns and its inland location, which some argue makes it less competitive than US East Coast alternatives. The issue also became politically charged earlier this year when a Canadian pension fund threatened to withdraw support following revelations about DP World’s former chairman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem. Meanwhile, CMA CGM recently announced a direct Montreal call on its CAGEMA service, offering the port some commercial momentum despite the leadership change.
