Agrifood firm Cargill is reworking the site layout and expanding its rail loading capacity at its grain elevator in the Lethbridge city limits.
The company recently announced a $20 million project to “more than double” the loading capacity at the Lethbridge elevator, from 56 to 134 cars.
“The industry standard for rail capacity is increasing, and this project will ensure that Cargill Lethbridge is more than meeting the standard,” Allan Facchinutti, Alberta regional commercial leader for Cargill’s agriculture business, said in a release.
The expansion work is expected to be completed at about mid-harvest this fall, the company said, allowing it to move grain more efficiently from the site and boost its staff roster to 20 people from 18 currently.
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The First Avenue site handles canola, wheat and durum wheat and has storage capacity for 33,600 tonnes of grain.
The site footprint won’t have to expand to boost the elevator’s rail car spot, but the company acquired land from the city to change the location of its entrance, a Cargill spokesperson said.
“Getting this expansion off the ground required strong collaboration” between the company, the city and Canadian Pacific Railway, Cargill said in its release.
“The efficient movement of grain is critically important for the agricultural sector in our region,” Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman said in the same release. — AGCanada.com Network
