CNR Canadian National Railway Company

MONTREAL, Sept. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - CN (TSX: CNR)(NYSE: CNI) and the Montreal Port Authority (MPA) announced today the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that commits the parties to develop a best-practices vision for the gateway's supply chain, improve productivity, and leverage these gains to increase their transportation market share.

Claude Mongeau, CN president and chief executive officer, said: "The Port of Montreal is a leading gateway for freight traffic moving between North America's industrial heartland and northern European and Mediterranean markets. Our MOU with the port authority establishes the framework to develop greater supply chain efficiencies and to grow our share of freight traffic moving between Europe and markets in Ontario and the U.S. Midwest.

"The agreement flowing from this MOU will fulfill CN's objective of reaching supply chain collaboration pacts with all of Canada's major east coast and west coast ports. We believe these agreements - driven by commercial principles and stakeholder cooperation - will bolster the competitiveness of these important maritime gateways and enhance the competitiveness of our customers in global markets."

Sylvie Vachon, president and chief executive officer of the MPA, said: "The unique intermodal configuration that allows trains to be organized dockside, directly at the terminals, is a major asset for the Port of Montreal. This agreement sheds light on our shared commitment to preserve this competitive advantage by continuously working to improve the port's rail service for the benefit of our clients.

"There is no doubt that this agreement will help strengthen the Port of Montreal's position as the market leader in the North Atlantic, but it will also confirm the status of the port as an intermodal gateway serving global markets."

About the Port of Montreal

Operated by the Montreal Port Authority (MPA), the Port of Montreal is a major diversified transshipment centre that handles all types of goods - containerized and non-containerized cargo, liquid bulk and dry bulk. It is a leading container port served by seven of the ten largest container-shipping lines in the world. Close to 1,250,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) were handled at the Port of Montreal in 2009, representing 11,266,000 tonnes of cargo.

The Port also handled 7,773,000 tonnes of liquid bulk, 2,898,000 tonnes of dry bulk, and 2,419,000 tonnes of grain in 2009. Port activity supports 18,200 jobs and generates $1.5 billion in economic spin-offs annually. For more information about the Port of Montreal, visit the authority's website at www.port-montreal.com.

About CN

CN - Canadian National Railway Company and its operating railway subsidiaries - spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the key metropolitan areas of Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., Green Bay, Wis., Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, St. Louis, and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. For more information on CN, visit the company's website at www.cn.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information included in this news release constitutes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and under Canadian securities laws. CN cautions that, by their nature, these forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. The Company cautions that its assumptions may not materialize and that current economic conditions render such assumptions, although reasonable at the time they were made, subject to greater uncertainty. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results of performance of the Company or the rail industry to be materially different from the outlook or any future results or performance implied by such statements. Important factors that could affect the above forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the effects of general economic and business conditions, industry competition, inflation, currency and interest rate fluctuations, changes in fuel prices, legislative and/or regulatory developments, compliance with environmental laws and regulations, actions by regulators, various events which could disrupt operations, including natural events such as severe weather, droughts, floods and earthquakes, labor negotiations and disruptions, environmental claims, uncertainties of investigations, proceedings or other types of claims and litigation, risks and liabilities arising from derailments, and other risks detailed from time to time in reports filed by CN with securities regulators in Canada and the United States. Reference should be made to "Management's Discussion and Analysis" in CN's annual and interim reports, Annual Information Form and Form 40-F filed with Canadian and U.S. securities regulators, available on CN's website, for a summary of major risks.

CN assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events, changes in circumstances, or changes in beliefs, unless required by applicable Canadian securities laws. In the event CN does update any forward-looking statement, no inference should be made that CN will make additional updates with respect to that statement, related maters, or any other forward-looking statement.

SOURCE CN