CHICAGO, IL, Nov. 4 /PRNewswire/ - CN (TSX: CNR)(NYSE: CNI)
announced today it has reached a voluntary mitigation agreement
(VMA) with the Village of Ford Heights,
Ill., located approximately 26 miles south of downtown
Chicago, regarding its acquisition
of the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Company (EJ&E).
With this agreement, CN has VMAs with 25 of the 33 communities
along the EJ&E in Illinois and
Indiana.
CN, which completed its purchase of the EJ&E on Jan. 31, 2009, will provide Ford Heights funding for industrial and
economic development, as well as for communications, emergency
response training and recreational facilities.
Jim Vena, CN senior vice-president, Southern Region, said: "CN
is pleased to have reached this negotiated settlement with
Ford Heights. The bulk of the
funding under this agreement is earmarked to help the village
identify and market industrial properties that can be served by
rail. We hope this economic development support will prove to be
mutually beneficial to the village and CN in the years ahead."
Ford Heights Mayor Charles R. Griffin said: "We welcome the support
of CN in our efforts to draw new business and employment to the
village. We believe ready access to CN's North American rail
network, our proximity to major Chicago interstate highways and a suitable
supply of real estate will make Ford
Heights attractive to industry."
CN is also working closely with communities on the EJ&E that
do not have agreements with CN to ensure implementation of safety
and environmental conditions in accordance with the requirements of
the Surface Transportation Board.
Integration of the CN and EJ&E networks is well underway.
For more information on the acquisition, including a map of the
areas served by CN, please 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, including statements as to the expected
completion of the integration of the CN and EJ&E networks. 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 matters, or any
other forward-looking statement.
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, 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.
SOURCE CN
Copyright v. 4 PR Newswire