Sask. government provided interest-free loan
Saskatchewan’s newest short-line railway is hoping to haul its first carloads of prairie grain later this spring.
Northern Lights Rail of Kinistino, Sask., is in the final stages of acquiring 59 kilometres of track from Canadian National Railway.
The track runs between Birch Hills, Sask., and Melfort, Sask., about 200 km northeast of Saskatoon.
Northern Lights president Wayne Bacon said the company is hoping to take possession of the line May 1 and will begin moving grain shortly after that.
“It’s a done deal,” said Bacon.
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“We hope to take possession by May 1 … and we expect our first train run some time in May.”
Bacon said the new short line — Saskatchewan’s 14th —Â will move primarily grain but will be available to provide transportation to other industries as well.
Grain will be loaded at two producer car loading sites that are currently under construction and nearing completion at Kinistino and Beattie.
A third site will eventually be added at Birch Hills once necessary track upgrades have been performed.
Grain cars will be pulled east to Melfort at a maximum speed of 16 km-h and then transferred to a CN line that runs south to Humboldt, Sask., and connects to CN’s northern main line that runs west through Warman, North Battleford and Lloydminster.
Northern Lights organizers have been working on a deal to buy the line for approximately three years.
Financing arrangements were finalized last week with the an-nouncement of a $550,000 interest free loan from the Saskatchewan government.
Northern Lights organizers raised $1 million to start the short line.
Investment capital was also provided by four rural municipalities and various local governments.
About 70 farmers also contributed.
“In the business plan, that ($1 million) gives us some extra money to do maintenance and put up loading sites and so on,” Bacon said.
The railway has also bought a refurbished locomotive, which will be delivered by rail from Ogema, Sask., within the next month or so.
Bacon said Northern Lights expects to move 600 to 800 cars of grain per year initially. The number could eventually increase to 1,000 cars or more once local farmers become more comfortable with the process of loading their own rail cars.
“I know it’s been a bit of a challenge here in the last year or so to get producer cars, but I think things are starting to look up a bit,” Bacon said. “I think it’s a great opportunity for agriculture in this community, and I think it just opens the door for more economic development in this area … because once you lose that rail track, you basically lose that opportunity.”
Saskatchewan will have 14 short lines with the addition of Northern Lights Rail and 2,060 km of provincially regulated track.
