BNSF News

New Canadian logistics hub to be served by BNSF

2013-02-14

​Ceres Global Ag Corp. announced the week of Feb. 4 that it has purchased 1,500 acres of land in Northgate, Saskatchewan, Canada, to build a commodity logistics hub. The hub will be served by BNSF.

Canada is the world's second largest wheat exporter and the largest supplier of crude oil to the U.S.

"This announcement is good news for Canadian farmers looking for efficient supply chain solutions to deliver their wheat to U.S. markets and Mexican flour mills. It also provides new markets for Canadian canola," said Steve Bobb, BNSF executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "The facility provides a good option, as well, for Canadian crude oil producers looking for new, cost-competitive ways to get Saskatchewan crude oil to new markets."

Northgate is located about 80 miles northwest of Minot, N.D., near the U.S.-Canadian border. The hub will have two high-efficiency rail loops, each capable of handling unit trains of up to 120 railcars. One loop will be dedicated to grain handling and shipping and the other to transloading and shipping oil. In addition, a logistics center will unload imported equipment and materials for Saskatchewan's booming resource economy. The hub is designed to handle up to 40 million bushels of grain annually and 70,000 barrels of oil daily.

The facility will provide unit train efficiencies and direct access to the 28 states BNSF serves -- as well as Mexico, numerous Pacific and Gulf ports and connections to the East and Atlantic ports via interchange. Oil producers will also have access to the more than 45 crude-by-rail destinations BNSF serves.

Construction is planned to begin this spring, subject to permits, approvals and final agreements. Initial grain and oil shipments are expected later this year, with the facility to be built out over three years.

According to Bobb, the Ceres announcement reinforces the important role BNSF plays in the global economy. "Whether it is traffic flowing from the U.S. to Canada, the U.S. to Mexico or the U.S. to the Far East, our customers will find global supply chain solutions that meet their needs," Bobb said. "And for them, that's the really good news."

BNSF Headquarters

BNSF Railway Company
2650 Lou Menk Dr. 2nd Floor
P.O. Box 961057
Fort Worth, TX 76161-0057
Phone: (817) 352-1000

For more information on the company and its transportation solutions, visit the BNSF Web site at www.bnsf.com