(Source: Canadian Pacific Railway press release, June 2, 2020)
CALGARY — Canadian Pacific set a new record for shipping Canadian grain and grain products in May, moving 2.80 million metric tonnes (MMT). This new record beats the May 2014 record by more than 300,000 metric tonnes. As of May 31, 2020, CP’s movement of grain for the 2019-2020 crop year was 24.17 MMT.
“The CP family has continued to deliver service excellence to our customers in this COVID-19 environment,” said Mark Redd, CP Executive Vice-President Operations. “CP’s operating teams in the field who serve country elevators and port terminals have risen to the challenge and created an environment of constructive tension that is pushing everyone to deliver. We are finding further efficiencies in every aspect of the business, creating quicker hopper car cycles, longer trains, lower dwell and faster train speeds.”
The grain supply chain has seen capacity growth throughout as a result of increased efficiencies. Fueled by CP’s investment in hopper cars, the 8,500-foot High Efficiency Product (HEP) train and available capacity, CP is shipping more Canadian grain and grain products than ever before. CP now has nearly 2,700 new high-capacity hopper cars in service. The new hopper cars can carry 15 percent more volume and 10 percent more weight compared to the older cars they are replacing. An 8,500-foot HEP train can carry in excess of 40 percent more grain than the 7,000-foot train model when combined with the additional capacity of the new hopper cars. Customers are actively investing in their elevator networks to accommodate 8,500-foot trains. By year-end, more than 30 percent of the CP-serviced unit train loaders will be 8,500-foot HEP qualified, increasing capacity and efficiency in the grain supply chain for customers and stakeholders.
According to Canadian grain industry metrics, CP has 54 percent of the elevator network market share, as measured by share of grain moved crop year to date. CP has moved 7.3 percent more grain and grain products this crop year as compared to last crop year, and 10.0 percent more than the three-year average.
“CP’s customers are embracing the capacity and efficiency of the 8,500-foot HEP train model and benefiting from the overall fluidity of the network,” said Joan Hardy, CP Vice-President Sales and Marketing Grain and Fertilizers. “Our customers have invested at their CP-served facilities through building new high-throughput elevators and through expanding and re-configuring existing elevators. The record grain volumes moved so far this crop year highlight the collaboration and partnership between CP and our customers and are symbolic of the value of the capacity we are generating together.”
CP spotted more than 6,000 cars each week in the late-April and early-May grain shipping weeks 39, 40 and 41, exceeding CP’s plan of 5,700 cars supplied per week. Demand for railcars has only slowed because of seasonal seeding activities, which have temporarily reduced grain deliveries to country elevators. With 10 weeks remaining in the 2019-2020 shipping season, CP is well positioned to serve the Canadian agricultural industry and anticipates spotting at least 5,700 cars per week for the remaining shipping season.