Calgary Alberta - Canadian Pacific (CP) achieved its best-ever third quarter for Canadian grain and grain products shipments, moving
7.72 million metric tonnes (MMT) in 2020 vs. 6.97 MMT during the previous third-quarter record in 2014, up 10.8 percent. CP also set a new September record for
shipping Canadian grain and grain products, moving 2.8 MMT and beating the prior September 2017 record by more than 8.4 percent.
CP's new hopper cars continue to create additional capacity.
CP's average rail car load of wheat for the 2019-2020 crop year was approximately 1.6 metric tonnes greater compared to the 2017-2018 crop year, before CP
began adding the cars to its fleet.
CP now has 3,200 new high-capacity hopper cars in its fleet.
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 High Efficiency Product (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 HEP trains.
By year-end, more than 30 percent of the CP served unit train loaders will be HEP qualified, increasing capacity and efficiency in the grain supply chain for
customers and stakeholders.
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