Saskatchewan’s network of independently owned short-line railway companies continues to expand.
The province’s 13th short-line railway, Long Creek Railroad, officially opened Oct. 2.
Long Creek owns and operates 66 kilometres of track from Estevan to Tribune in southeastern Saskatchewan.
The line, formerly known as CP Bromhead, was owned by Canadian Pacific Railway but was slated for discontinuation in 2005.
After a prolonged acquisition process, Long Creek took possession in March and began moving crude oil earlier this year from a transloading site at Southall, Sask.
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Saskatchewan’s provincial government provided Long Creek with an $800,000 interest-free loan to help buy the line.
The loan covered 32 percent of the total purchase price.
The remaining capital was raised through share sales and leveraged financing arrangements.
The company also owns 20 acres of land near Estevan, which will be used as a siding to load pipe, frack sand and other oilfield materials.
Long Creek president Glenn Pederson said the company will focus primarily on serving the agriculture and oil industries.
“To date, we’ve been running weekly trains and so far it’s been primarily crude oil,” said Pederson, who farms near Tribune.
“For the first month of traffic, we’ve moved about 25 cars of oil and I believe we can (increase) that every month for the next few months.”
