Asian lumber export opportunities also
prompt CN to expand
capacity at Prince George,
B.C., transload operation
VANCOUVER, Aug. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ - CN (TSX: CNR)(NYSE:
CNI) and China's CNBM Forest
Products Trading Ltd. announced today that they have reached an
agreement to use CN's new lumber transload facility in Vancouver to increase the supply chain
capacity for Canadian lumber exports.
CN is scheduled to start operation of the lumber container
export facility at its Thornton Yard in Surrey, B.C., in the fall of 2011. It will
have an initial footprint of eight acres and throughput capacity of
approximately 10,000 containers per year, with room to grow up to
20 acres. The facility, supplied with rail cars of lumber
originating in communities in the British
Columbia (B.C.) Interior, will make it easier to transport
lumber to export markets in China.
Jean-Jacques Ruest, executive
vice-president and chief marketing officer of CN, said: "Lumber
exports to China now account for
close to 25 per cent of the western Canadian total and are expected
to continue to increase at a fast pace in the years to come. CN
aims to foster a world-class export supply chain for Canadian
lumber in cooperation with CNBM Forest Products Trading, lumber
producers in B.C., and ocean shipping lines serving Port Metro
Vancouver."
Ken Kao, general manager of CNBM
Forest Products Trading - Shanghai, said: "It is imperative that we
align expected demand with appropriate facilities and ocean
capacity to accommodate the growth we see coming over the next few
years. We are pleased to be able to conclude an agreement with CN
on capacity at the new Thornton
transload facility.
"For CNBM Forest Products Trading - the largest lumber buyer in
China - CN continues to be a very
important component of our global supply chain. With its access to
both the ports of Vancouver and
Prince Rupert and its commitment
to support transload infrastructure, we can continue to meet our
strategic growth objectives for the China market."
CN also announced today that it plans to increase lumber
transload capacity at its Prince George Distribution Centre to more
than 30,000 containers annually. The facility was built in 2007 to
support Port of Prince Rupert
export opportunities.
Prince George, located 500
miles east of Prince Rupert, is in
close proximity to British
Columbia's large fibre reserves and other natural
resources.
Ruest said: "We are confident that, together, CN and its
transload facilities, CNBM Forest Products Trading, lumber mills
and ports in B.C. and ocean shipping lines can help spur increased
economic activity and job creation in the province through a
highly-efficient supply chain that will help meet increasing demand
for lumber in China."
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 or 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.
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
CNBM Forest Products Trading Ltd. is a leader in the sourcing of
strategic materials to support the Chinese economy, including
lumber from across the world and has developed significant volumes
of Canadian SPF lumber, which are expected to grow annually for the
next five years.
SOURCE CN