CN achieves record grain movement

CN has announced that it has set a new record for the movement of Canadian grain and processed grain products via carload with over 31 million t moved during the 2020 - 2021 crop year. CN also recently filed and published its 2021 - 2022 Grain Plan.

 

This record exceeds the previous record for carload movement of 29.4 million t set in the 2019 - 2020 crop year. CN also moved over 1.1 million t of grain from Western Canada via containers, with grain volumes moved from Eastern Canada in addition to these levels.

 

“As an essential transportation service to the economy, to our customers, supply chain partners, and the communities we serve, we remain committed to making capacity-enhancing investments to our network and to upgrade our rolling stock. These investments benefit our grain customers, as well as all those from the other sectors we serve. CN’s grain movement has been resilient during the pandemic, achieving 14 straight months of Canadian grain volume shipment records. We recognise that growing conditions across much of the Prairies have been very challenging as many producers face extremely hot and dry weather this year. Our dedicated team of railroaders will continue to work tirelessly with Canadian farmers, agri-organisations and grain customers to have the resources in place to move the upcoming harvest for the communities we proudly serve” said JJ Ruest, President and Chief Executive Officer, CN.

 

Details of CN’s record success can be found in its annual Grain Plan, entitled From Farm to Market. This is the fourth year CN has produced a Plan in conjunction with key industry stakeholders. The Plan reviews CN’s performance during the previous crop year, assesses CN’s ability to move anticipated levels of grain during the upcoming crop year, and outlines specific steps that CN is taking to ensure it has the necessary capacity to move grain safely and efficiently for the benefit of farmers, customers and supply chain partners.

 

In May 2021, CN announced its plans to acquire 1000 new-generation, high-capacity, grain hopper cars. These innovative railcars will help meet the growing needs of grain farmers and grain customers, and are part of a larger 3500 hopper car fleet renewal programme over the next three years. Building on CN’s ongoing grain hopper car fleet renewal programme that began in 2018, CN’s new generation fleet will grow to 6000 hopper cars. During the last five years, CN has invested more than CAN$15 billion in capital equipment and infrastructure to ensure it has the network capacity to meet the needs of its customers. CN’s overall investment plan reflects its determination to play a leading role in the economic recovery and to be part of the climate solution.

 

The proposed CN-Kansas City Southern combination will introduce new options for Canadian farmers and grain costumers to ship both grain and processed grain products. It will create a new single-line service to a wider array of destinations in the US and Mexico, and will also create an end-to-end transportation network across North America, enhancing competition, spurring economic growth and delivering benefits to the local communities in which both railroads operate.