VULCAN, Alta. – It will be an historic crossing when Saskatchewan-based AgPro Grain moves into Alberta and expands in Manitoba within two years.
Owned by Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, AgPro has opened an office in northeast Calgary to oversee construction of six major grain facilities in Alberta.
Vulcan, Wilson Siding, Crossfield, Trochu, Killam and Lavoy are the sites. Ten other centres are planned for Saskatchewan and Manitoba as the grain co-operative stretches across the Prairies.
The expansion costs $195 million. The Alberta share of the deal is $90 million for the six operations, said Lyle Bauer, general manager of AgPro.
Read Also
Mixed results on new African swine fever vaccine
The new African swine fever vaccine still has issues, but also gave researchers insight into how virus strain impacts protection against the deadly pig disease.
At Vulcan, the terminal is planned to sit on 100 acres so the company can extend storage capacity or provide other services in the future.
In a series of public meetings in the towns affected, marketing plans were unveiled to local farmers.
Bauer said pool realizes it is entering a different political milieu in Alberta, but added this expansion is a business deal, not a political move.
“We are a commercial operation as far as this is concerned. We are where the markets are to meet your needs,” said Bauer.
“We’re not looking through rose-colored glasses. We know it won’t be easy for us but we do have designs on moving forward and being a major player in your community.”
Competitive market
The company faces stiff competition in Vulcan from Alberta Wheat Pool and Parrish & Heimbecker, which are already firmly entrenched in this southern Alberta community.
Bauer said the Vulcan terminal expects to service a 100-kilometre radius which may shift depending on commodities and market conditions.
When selecting the sites, the pool looked at regional cropping patterns and production, as well as rail sites capable of handling 100 car unit trains.
“Our intention is to put up a facility that will receive rail service for years to come,” said Bauer.
People using AgPro’s terminals won’t have to buy pool memberships.
The co-operative’s delegates will have to decide if they want to extend the delegate structure outside of Saskatchewan. There are already about 2,000 Sask Pool members in Alberta, said Doug Leask, who is in charge of pool membership.
The centres will each employ 10 to 15 full-time staff.
The inland terminals can accommodate 112 rail cars at once and provide two receiving legs that can handle 10,000 bushels per hour.
Each terminal is designed to hold 35,000 to 45,000 tonnes of grain including privately leased grain condominium storage.
Terminals clean grain before shipping to ports and screenings, or leftovers, may go back to farmers or will be sold locally as livestock feed.
Farm chemicals and some specialized equipment will also be sold.
