Last spring, Canadian National considered shipping a large amount crude between Alberta and Prince Rupert, B.C., according to an internal memo obtained by Greenpeace and reported by the Canadian Press.
The memos, which were obtained in March, show that Chinese-based Nexen Inc. had prodded the railroad to ship crude “in quantities matching the controversial Northern Gateway pipeline,” according to the newspaper. The railroad denied any crude-shipping negotiations took place in March.
In July, a Montreal, Maine & Atlantic train derailed in Quebec, spilling its load of crude, which lead to the death of more than 40 people. The railroad, which is now in bankruptcy protection in both Canada and the United States, is reportedly looking for a buyer.
Last week, CN picked up an intermodal contract with OOCL that had previously been serviced by Canadian Pacific. For the second quarter, CN generated net income of $717 million Canadian ($697.3 million) and revenue of $2.67 billion Canadian. The railroad had planned on investing $2 billion Canadian in capital improvements throughout the year.
CN considered large crude shipments
