October 06, 2020 Class I, Freight, Freight Cars, Mechanical, News
CN Posts Seventh Straight Month of Record Grain Hauls
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
"CN expects to start taking delivery of 1,500 new locally built, high-capacity grain cars in January.
September marks the seventh straight month of record grain movement for CN. The Canadian Class I reported that it hauled more than 2.81 million metric tonnes (MMT) last month—compared with the previous record of 2.6 MMT set in 2016—and a total of 7.76 MMT for third-quarter 2020.
In August, CN moved more than 2.43 MMT of Canadian grain—compared with the previous record of 2.31 MMT set in 2014. This performance follows record months in March, April, May, June and July.
“Grain demand is enabling the return to active employment of many of our people, and with the addition of 1,500 new locally built [Hamilton, Ontario], high-capacity grain cars [from National Steel Car], the CN ONE TEAM looks forward to breaking more records,†CN President and CEO JJ Ruest said. CN expects car deliveries to start in January.
The railroad noted in its recently released 2020-2021 Winter Plan: “At the end of winter 2019-2020, the world economy had been severely hit by the pandemic. Market volatility, price fluctuations and economic uncertainty are now a reality. But the effects are not always negative. Specific to grain movement, there had been a spike in demand in the summer of 2020 as certain countries increased their inventories to ward off food insecurity. Most other commodities have suffered, to varying degrees. The economic conditions that appeared in March 2020 may prevail throughout the upcoming 2020-2021 winter season."
"For Canadian Pacific (CP), the third quarter brought record shipments of Canadian grain and grain products. The Class I moved 7.72 million metric tonnes (MMT) over the past three months—up 10.8% since its previous third-quarter record of 6.97 MMT in 2014. It also set a new September record for these shipments, moving 2.8 MMT and beating the prior September 2017 record by more than 8.4%.
This follows the railroad’s summer announcement that it hauled more Canadian grain and grain products in the 2019-20 crop production year than any in its 139-year history. In total, CP moved 29.52 MMT in the 2019-20 crop year, exceeding the 2018-19 record of 26.77 MMT by 2.75 MMT, or 10%.
“We are proud of the steadfast commitment and dedication the CP family has shown throughout the pandemic, which has been critical to Canada’s grain supply chain and to our customers,†CP Vice President Sales and Marketing Grain and Fertilizers Joan Hardy said. “The CP team showed itself ready for this fall’s harvest, supporting customers and their supply chains to get grain moving off the combine and to market. Customers tell us the crop that continues to come off the fields is large, and CP is ready to keep it moving.â€
CP is boosting capacity with new hopper cars. In June 2018, the Class I announced plans to invest more than $500 million in 5,900 new high-capacity grain hopper cars within four years. (This represents 40% of the total hopper car fleet and enables the removal of all low-capacity hoppers.) CP now has 3,200 in service; it expects to add another 100-plus cars before the end of the year, according to its 2020-2021 Winter Contingency Plan Report.
CP’s average railcar load of wheat for the 2019-20 crop year was about 1.6 metric tonnes (MT) greater compared with the 2017-18 crop year, before the new cars started coming on-line. The cars carry 15% more volume and 10% more weight compared with the older cars. An 8,500-foot High Efficiency Product (HEP) train can carry in excess of 40% more grain than the 7,000-foot train model when combined with the additional capacity of the new hopper cars, according to CP.
The railroad added that customers are “actively investing in their elevator networks to accommodate 8,500-foot HEP trains. By year-end, more than 30% of the CP-served unit train loaders will be HEP qualified, increasing capacity and efficiency in the grain supply chain for customers and stakeholders.â€
CN Posts Seventh Straight Month of Record Grain Hauls
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
"CN expects to start taking delivery of 1,500 new locally built, high-capacity grain cars in January.
September marks the seventh straight month of record grain movement for CN. The Canadian Class I reported that it hauled more than 2.81 million metric tonnes (MMT) last month—compared with the previous record of 2.6 MMT set in 2016—and a total of 7.76 MMT for third-quarter 2020.
In August, CN moved more than 2.43 MMT of Canadian grain—compared with the previous record of 2.31 MMT set in 2014. This performance follows record months in March, April, May, June and July.
“Grain demand is enabling the return to active employment of many of our people, and with the addition of 1,500 new locally built [Hamilton, Ontario], high-capacity grain cars [from National Steel Car], the CN ONE TEAM looks forward to breaking more records,†CN President and CEO JJ Ruest said. CN expects car deliveries to start in January.
The railroad noted in its recently released 2020-2021 Winter Plan: “At the end of winter 2019-2020, the world economy had been severely hit by the pandemic. Market volatility, price fluctuations and economic uncertainty are now a reality. But the effects are not always negative. Specific to grain movement, there had been a spike in demand in the summer of 2020 as certain countries increased their inventories to ward off food insecurity. Most other commodities have suffered, to varying degrees. The economic conditions that appeared in March 2020 may prevail throughout the upcoming 2020-2021 winter season."
"For Canadian Pacific (CP), the third quarter brought record shipments of Canadian grain and grain products. The Class I moved 7.72 million metric tonnes (MMT) over the past three months—up 10.8% since its previous third-quarter record of 6.97 MMT in 2014. It also set a new September record for these shipments, moving 2.8 MMT and beating the prior September 2017 record by more than 8.4%.
This follows the railroad’s summer announcement that it hauled more Canadian grain and grain products in the 2019-20 crop production year than any in its 139-year history. In total, CP moved 29.52 MMT in the 2019-20 crop year, exceeding the 2018-19 record of 26.77 MMT by 2.75 MMT, or 10%.
“We are proud of the steadfast commitment and dedication the CP family has shown throughout the pandemic, which has been critical to Canada’s grain supply chain and to our customers,†CP Vice President Sales and Marketing Grain and Fertilizers Joan Hardy said. “The CP team showed itself ready for this fall’s harvest, supporting customers and their supply chains to get grain moving off the combine and to market. Customers tell us the crop that continues to come off the fields is large, and CP is ready to keep it moving.â€
CP is boosting capacity with new hopper cars. In June 2018, the Class I announced plans to invest more than $500 million in 5,900 new high-capacity grain hopper cars within four years. (This represents 40% of the total hopper car fleet and enables the removal of all low-capacity hoppers.) CP now has 3,200 in service; it expects to add another 100-plus cars before the end of the year, according to its 2020-2021 Winter Contingency Plan Report.
CP’s average railcar load of wheat for the 2019-20 crop year was about 1.6 metric tonnes (MT) greater compared with the 2017-18 crop year, before the new cars started coming on-line. The cars carry 15% more volume and 10% more weight compared with the older cars. An 8,500-foot High Efficiency Product (HEP) train can carry in excess of 40% more grain than the 7,000-foot train model when combined with the additional capacity of the new hopper cars, according to CP.
The railroad added that customers are “actively investing in their elevator networks to accommodate 8,500-foot HEP trains. By year-end, more than 30% of the CP-served unit train loaders will be HEP qualified, increasing capacity and efficiency in the grain supply chain for customers and stakeholders.â€
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