SIMIC

CN, Alabama Export Railroad and Ray-Mont Logistics said the first phase of their collaboration would be a bagging facility with an annual capacity of 25,000 TEU.

Ray-Mont already transloads resins that are railed via CN and exported out of the Port of Prince Rupert, British Columbia, reports IHS Media.

In the first seven months of this year, Mobile handled approximately 13,850 TEU of resins, up 32 per cent from the same period a year ago, according to PIERS.

Mobile is the seventh-largest gateway for US resin exports, with fellow Gulf ports Houston and New Orleans taking first and second-place rankings, respectively.

There are approximately 50 plants in Texas and Louisiana that produce various types of resins, and more are slated to open in the coming years. Logistics park proponents say the facility offers resin exporters 30 per cent shorter rail transits than those if routing through the East Coast and 60 per cent shorter transit than via West Coast port routings.

"Our interest in pursuing this intermodal opportunity is due in part to the continued federal and state investments at the Port of Mobile, as well as the recent announcement of additional container capacity at APM Terminals," said Kate Luce, president and CEO of Alabama Export Railroad.

APM Terminals Mobile, which operates the sole container terminal in the port, said in early 2020 it completed a $50 million expansion project that increased the terminal's capacity by 30 per cent, to 650,000 TEU. The expansion project includes a berth extension and the addition of 20 acres of container storage space.