For G&W’s CG Railway, A New Partner
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
CG Railway, LLC took delivery of the Mayan rail ferry (pictured) in 2021. (Photo: Business Wire)
Genesee & Wyoming, Inc. (G&W) on Jan. 2 reported that Grupo Mexico Transportes (GMXT) will become its new joint-venture partner for the CG Railway, LLC, a U.S.-Mexico rail-ferry service.
CG Railway has transported diversified commodities across the Gulf of Mexico since 2001, with long-term agreements to operate rail-ferry terminals at the ports of Mobile, Ala., and Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz (see map below). In 2017, G&W formed a joint venture with SEACOR Holdings, Inc., to own and operate CG Railway, which was established more than 20 years ago as a Class III and includes railroad equipment, ferries, and trackage rights over 0.583 miles of line of railroad in the Port of Mobile.
CG Railway has direct interchange in the U.S. with G&W subsidiary Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway, CN, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Alabama State Port Authority’s Terminal Railway (with connections to BNSF, Canadian Pacific Kansas City [CPKC], Union Pacific, and Mississippi Export Railroad, among others), and in Mexico with GMXT’s Ferrosur (with connections to GMXT’s Ferromex, FCCM/FIT, TFVM and CPKC de México).
GMXT announced last week its intention to purchase SEACOR’s stake in CG Railway, and will become G&W’s new joint-venture partner, “pending receipt of regulatory approvals,” according to G&W, a short line and regional railroad holding company that owns or leases 115 freight railroads world-wide.
“This further strengthens our partnership with GMXT, a leader in rail transportation services in Mexico with a strong presence in the southern U.S., including 13 ports between the two countries,” said G&W North America CEO Michael Miller, who will be a featured speaker at Railway Age’s Next-Gen Freight Rail 2024 conference, to be held March 12 in Chicago. “Their network access and expertise, coupled with G&W’s ability to deliver safe and customer-centric first- and last-mile rail service, will enhance CG Railway’s overall service offering while extending the reach of CG Railway’s efficient and secure rail service into and out of Mexico.”
CG Railway offers a three-day port-to-port transit time and “an expedited customs clearance process,” according to G&W. It operates two new double-deck 590-foot roll-on/roll-off rail ferries, each with a capacity of 135 railcars and a top speed of 14 knots. CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding Company in China built both vessels and delivered them in 2021; CG Railway received the Mayan in September of 2021 and the Cherokee earlier the same year.
