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THE RAILROAD INDUSTRY, which suffered less than many others from the recession and its “slow recovery” aftermath, roared in- to 2013 with pride for its 2012 accomplish- ments and plans to double-down on that in 2013. Much of that optimism is rooted in the new energy revolution driven by the shale oil and natural gas fracking in North Dako- ta, Pennsylvania and elsewhere.


Union Pacific Union Pacific scored its highest profit in his- tory as it entered 2013 (while celebrating its 150th anniversary) in a blaze of glory with a fourth quarter of $1 billion on the plus side. UP has set a capital expenditure budget at $4.1 billion for the year ahead. The biggest ticket in that expenditure is marked at$1.6 for infrastructure replacement projects.


BNSF Railway Warren Buffett’s BNSF, the prime on-site railroad beneficiary of the North Dakota shale oil boom, plans to boost crude-oil ship- ments by 40 per cent this year. Crude from the ND Bakken is likely to become the largest oil producing facility by 2020. Not incidentally, oil investments for rail-


roads are also good for grain traffic. That happy news was conveyed recently by Mark Summers, director of agriculture and wheat marketing at BNSF.


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Speaking at the annual meeting of the North Dakota Grain Dealers Association at Fargo, N.D, Summers said his company is expanding both in Minot and Williston in North Dakota and adding several expan- sions. BNSF is also adding a number of sid- ing expansions and is improving the Hi-Line extending west across Northern Montana to the West Coast.


“Our company feels confident that we’ve got the capacity to handle the demand that is coming at us,” he said, adding that coal ex- ports from the Pacific Northwest will not tie up grain traffic on the rails as feared by many grain farmers. That coal traffic, he ex- plained, would “originate from the coal fields in Wyoming and would travel up through Montana through the PNW [Pacific North- west] Hi-Line. And those projects are sever- al years away. They have to be permitted and built right now; they’re in the permit- ting phase. There’s been some struggles to get those projects properly permitted.” In fact, the BNSF executive expressed confidence that not only is coal “not going to displace capacity for grain. If anything, the coal and other commodities are supporting invest- ments that will allow us to move more grain.”


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Norfolk Southern Among the eastern states lines to benefit from the oil and natural gas boom is Norfolk Southern, with the Marcellus and Utica shale gas exploration projects (more on this below) assuming an important role, along with coal and power generating equipment. NS Assistant Vice President of Industrial Development Newell Baker told Progressive Railroading that his company officials “were


excited to see the first shipments of Bakken crude delivered to East Coast refineries in 2012, and we expect this subsector to grow significantly in 2013.” Norfolk Southern’s in- dustrial development in 2012 proved itself to be a worthwhile investment, attracting 64 new plants and expansions of 30 already-ex- isting industrial facilities.


Though the industry at large is flourish- ing because of the new energy production technology, other factors are in play. Notable among these is the increased price of gas at- the-pump which in turn tends to make the cost of highway/truck transport all the less economical.


CSX


Some $2.3 million is targeted for capital ex- penditures by CSX in 2013. That includes money for network enhancements and fleet upgrades. Specifically noted are the national Gateway double-stack route between Mid- Atlantic ports and the Midwest. Also dollars are set aside for work associated with imple- mentation of positive train control (PTC).


Kansas City Southern


Kansas City Southern cites such successes as automotive shipments, Port of Lazaro Cardenas, frac sand, cross-border inter- modal and crude oil. Put them altogether, and you are looking at more than a 40 per cent growth over the past 12 months. The heavily cross-border KCS (U.S.-Mexico) KCS sees the long-term, sustainable outlook as “very good.” That is due in no small measure to the expected opening of four new auto plants in Mexico in early 2014. President and CEO David Starling de-


clares, “This year, we achieved some impor- tant milestones. Next year, we’ll add more resources to ensure technology is among our strengths.”


Canadian National


On the opposite border of the U.S., Canadian National finished 2012 with record revenue growth, including a seven per cent boost in the fourth quarter. The largest Canadian Railroad (with trackage and business deep into the United States) expects “high single digit growth this year, due to further im- provements in the overall economy and new intermodal and energy freight business out- weighing $150 million in increased pension costs and depreciation charges for the rail- road. Some analysts worry because of the CN’s tremendous load of payouts in pen- sions to retired employees.


CEO Claude Mongeau is an outspoken critic of new regulations that he thinks might intercede in service disagreements between railroads and their shipper cus- tomers. No doubt he is not sad at the recent announcement of the retirement of a power- ful U.S. Senator whose views are the exact opposite of the CN chief (see below). Mon- geau’s diplomatic side shines through when he responds to questions about over-regula- tion merely by saying, “We will make this a moot issue by providing good service every day.”


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