The Western Grains Research Foundation will get a $4.98 million gift this season from Canadian National Railway, but not out of holiday spirit per se. The Canadian Transportation Agency on Thursday ruled CN, during the 2013-14 crop year, exceeded its maximum allowable revenue from Prairie grain handling by $4,981,915, above its previously set “entitlement” of […] Read more
CN overshoots 2013-14 grain handling revenue cap
Ottawa extends grain order
Minimum amounts will vary throughout the winter
Reading Time: < 1 minute Ottawa’s new order-in-council extends the mandatory minimum weekly grain handle until March 28. But instead of a flat 536,250 tonnes of grain per week for both CN and CP Rail, the amounts vary. Until, Dec. 20, each railway must move 345,000 tonnes per week. That drops to 200,000 tonnes weekly from Dec. 21 to Jan. 3, rises […] Read more
There’s a mountain of grain to move
A big carry-over means there’s a whopping 73 million tonnes of grain to move
Reading Time: 3 minutes This year’s grain crop might not be as big as last year’s bin-buster, but there’s still going to be “heavy demands” on the rail transportation system this winter. “The initial projections from Stats Canada for the 2014 crop are 57 million tonnes in western Canada — still a very large crop,” said Bruce McFadden, director […] Read more
Grain freight minimums beneficial, but not seen as best solution
CNS Canada –– The Canadian government’s decision to extend its order-in-council requiring a minimum tonnage of grain shipped by the two major railways each week will benefit the ag industry — but it’s not the best solution out there, according to some participants. “Extending the minimum volume requirements through the coming winter and spring season […] Read more
Mandatory minimum grain handle extended
A new order-in-council will extend the federal government’s mandatory minimum weekly grain handle for Canada’s big two railways through March, just as the previous order expires. Federal Transport Minister Lisa Raitt and Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz on Saturday announced the mandatory minimums, which expired Saturday, are extended until March 28, 2015. The new order, however, adjusts the […] Read more
Shortlines shortchanged in Western Canada
CNS Canada — Western Canada’s shortline railways are getting the short end of the stick as they struggle to meet their own commitments moving grain and other products along their tracks. A backlog of grain on the Prairies over the past winter, linked in part to poor rail movement, prompted the federal government to implement […] Read more
A familiar story from south of the line
The arguments from both railways and their critics are the same, and so is the result — a clogged system with farmers paying the price
Reading Time: 2 minutes Officials aren’t going to do much to make the trains run on time to alleviate the 2014 ag rail problems. Farmers and elevators need to prepare to suffer through 2015 — and maybe 2016 and beyond. That’s my prediction after listening to nine straight hours of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board hearing on the railroad […] Read more
Should Ag Minister Ritz tackle the railways next?
Gerry Ritz won the wheat board battle, now it’s time to find a fix for grain transportation woes
Reading Time: 2 minutes Gerry Ritz slew the Canadian Wheat Board, but can he rein in the railways? If anyone can, it’s Canada’s 33rd minister of agriculture. It won’t be easy, but neither was ending the wheat board’s 69-year-old monopoly. Ritz had help. Key was Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who had a deep disdain for the board and made […] Read more
West Coast terminals have a beef with railways, too
Producers who recently toured terminal elevators say every official they met said railways are the bottleneck in the system
Reading Time: 4 minutes Turns out farmers aren’t the only ones with a beef with Canada’s railways — operators of West Coast ports say inadequate rail service is holding them back, too. Sylvan Lake farmer Michael Ammeter was one of 11 producers and grain industry representatives who toured ports in Portland, Vancouver, and Prince Rupert for five days in […] Read more
Alberta farm leader says rail system fix is on track
Ordering the railways to move more grain has grabbed the spotlight, but Kent Erickson says newly enacted legislation will bring long-term gains
Reading Time: 3 minutes New federal rail legislation is the first major step in building a sustainable and reliable rail transportation system, says the chair of the Alberta Wheat Commission. But in the meantime, extending an order-in-council that penalizes the railways if they fail to move a million tonnes of grain a week is the best short-term fix, said […] Read more
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