MALVERN, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (G&W) (NYSE:GWR) today announced that beginning this fall, its Arkansas Midland Railroad Company, Inc. (AKMD) subsidiary will offer the first ethanol unit train solution for the North Little Rock and surrounding gasoline-blending markets, serving the JP Energy terminal, which is the largest terminal at North Little Rock’s tank farm complex. Unit trains, which are able to handle up to 108 railcars, will be unloaded directly to JP Energy’s ethanol storage tanks on premises for onsite blending or direct outbound truck loading.
Prior to this, the local ethanol market was served only by truck deliveries and single-car rail shipments.
“AKMD is proud to bring this unique and efficient delivery solution to JP Energy and its customers,” Dewayne Swindall, president of AKMD, said. “It demonstrates the railroad’s ability to be a major transportation partner to surrounding industry and create logistics options that can lower costs for both area businesses and their customers.”
“Partnering with AKMD has enabled us to provide our customers with the most cost effective ethanol supply possible in Central Arkansas and beyond,” Cory Willis, senior vice president of terminals and distribution at JP Energy Partners, said. “By locating the unit train offload facilities directly adjacent to our terminal, we’re able to reduce unnecessary truck traffic and product transfers, further enhancing the efficiency and safety of our terminal operations.”
With the EPA’s mandate to increase the amount of biofuel mixed into the fuel supply, demand for ethanol blending is expected to increase, making a strong market for ethanol use in North Little Rock.
About AKMD
AKMD is a 114-mile short line railroad serving the Hot Springs and Little Rock areas. It interchanges with BNSF and Union Pacific railroads. Commodities shipped include aluminum, forest products, aggregates and energy products. The railroad was acquired by G&W in 2015.
About G&W
Genesee & Wyoming owns or leases 121 freight railroads worldwide that are organized in 10 operating regions with 7,500 employees and more than 2,800 customers.
- G&W’s eight North American regions serve 41 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces and include 113 short line and regional freight railroads with more than 13,000 track-miles.
- G&W’s Australia Region provides rail freight services in New South Wales, the Northern Territory and South Australia and operates the 1,400-mile Tarcoola-to-Darwin rail line.
- G&W’s U.K./Europe Region is led by Freightliner, the U.K.’s largest rail maritime intermodal operator and second-largest rail freight company. Operations also include heavy-haul in Poland and Germany and cross-border intermodal services connecting Northern European seaports with key industrial regions throughout the continent.
G&W subsidiaries provide rail service at more than 40 major ports in North America, Australia and Europe and perform contract coal loading and railcar switching for industrial customers.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release and conference call regarding Genesee & Wyoming's business which are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.
