First Canada location among new BNSF Certified Sites

Shippers looking for a ready-to-run rail-served industrial site now have a trio of new locations to consider, courtesy of BNSF.

The Class I announced that three new industrial locations have been awarded its Certified Sites designation, in Enid, Okla.; Libby, Mont., and Northgate, Saskatchewan.

The Ceres Northgate Terminal is BNSF’s first Certified Site in Canada.

In order to be considered for the designation, sites undergo analysis which includes an evaluation of environmental and geotechnical standards, available utilities, site availability and existing and projected infrastructure.

BNSF said the newly-designated Certified Sites feature hundreds of acres ready for industrial development:

• Easterly Industrial Park, Enid, Okla.: Located on BNSF’s Southern Transcon route and served by three major U.S. highways, the Easterly Industrial Park features more than 300 acres and is zoned for heavy industrial use.
  • Kootenai Business Park, Libby, Mont.: A new 5,000-foot lead track from the Kootenai Business Park connects directly to BNSF’s Northern Corridor. The 400-acre development comprises 120 acres of the park on U.S. Highway 2 that are ready for development.
  • Ceres Northgate Terminal, Northgate, Saskatchewan: Situated along Saskatchewan Highway 9 just over the border with North Dakota, and with a BNSF line leading south from the facility to the Northern Corridor, the Ceres Northgate Terminal features two high-efficiency loop tracks and 1,300 acres ready for immediate development.

The Certified Sites are a part of BNSF’s Premier Parks, Sites and Transload program. The railroad says businesses looking to locate at any of these properties could save six to nine months of construction time as a result of this analysis. The goal of the program is to provide an inventory of rail-served sites that are available for immediate development.

Details for all 16 BNSF Certified Sites are available at bnsf.com/rail-development.