WINNIPEG, Manitoba, (Reuters) -North America’s freight rail customers, from grain shippers to logistics companies, are choosing sides as Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd and Canadian National Railway fight to buy Kansas City Southern.
A takeout of KCS, would be the first major North American railroad combination in more than 20 years and create the first network to include the United States, Canada and Mexico.
CN , Canada‘s biggest railroad, made an unsolicited $30 billion bid for KCS on Tuesday, topping CP’s agreed $25 billion bid, but CP said last week it was not considering raising its offer.
CN said on Monday that it was filing 409 letters of support from shippers and suppliers with the regulator, U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB), pulling roughly even with CP’s stated level of support.
CP, which announced its combination with KCS on March 21, has said that 416 shippers and other stakeholders have written to STB in support.
CP supporters include shipping, container company Hapag-Lloyd, agriculture company Viterra Inc, an association representing Mexican auto makers, and oil refiner Valero Energy Corp.
If CP buys KCS, the bulked-up company will be able to better compete in North Dakota with dominant railway BNSF Railway Co, said Kevin Karel, general manager at The Arthur Companies, which ships corn and other crops by rail.
CP’s line crosses the agricultural state of North Dakota while CN’s does not.
“We’re really remote here, and so we need access to far more destinations, and that’s where this KCS merger really helps North Dakota farmers,” Karel said in an interview.
CN maintains that its combination with KCS would create a network that is shorter and faster than rail or truck competitors.
Its supporters include pork producer Maple Leaf Foods and steel manufacturer ArcelorMittal.
Some, like Coca-Cola Co, marine terminal operator DP World, Canadian grain handler Richardson International and U.S. food company Conagra are publicly supporting both rail bids.
Shippers’ views on the competing bids to the board may determine how KCS assesses the relative regulatory risks, investment bank Credit Suisse said in a note. CP has no overlapping rail networks with KCS, unlike CN which runs parallel for about 100 kilometres (62 miles) in Louisiana, making it easier for CP’s deal to clear regulatory hurdles.
CP on Saturday welcomed the U.S. regulator upholding a waiver that exempts KCS from the same scrutiny larger railroads face during proposed mergers. The STB had granted KCS, the smallest of the Class 1 railways, an exemption from new merger rules in 2001 because a combination involving KCS did not raise the same concerns that any transaction among bigger railways might create.
U.S. agribusiness Cargill Inc, and industry groups for chemical producers, corn refiners, and a trade group that promotes U.S. wheat exports had opposed use of the waiver, saying that a takeover of KCS is big enough to warrant full scrutiny.
(Reporting by Rod Nickel in WinnipegEditing by Marguerita Choy)
HALIFAX – A man who died trying to save three people trapped by floodwaters is among eight Nova Scotians awarded the province’s Medal of Bravery.
On July 22, 2023, Nicholas Holland, 52, and three others were driving through heavy rainfall near Brooklyn, N.S., when their vehicle was swept off Highway 14 and filled with water.
Holland, who was from Ellershouse, N.S., freed the people trapped inside, but he and 14-year-old Terri-Lynn Keddy did not survive the ordeal.
The bravery award for Holland was presented posthumously by Premier Tim Houston during a ceremony in Halifax.
Halifax firefighters Kevin Corkum and Conor Scott were also recognized for rescuing a man from his home on May 28, 2023, as an intense wildfire raced across Hammonds Plains and Upper Tantallon.
As well, 14-year-old Alexander Munroe of Windsor Junction, N.S., won an award for defending his mother and two younger brothers from a dog that attacked them on March 6, 2023.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
LONGUEUIL, Que. – A Montreal suburb began an operation on Tuesday to kill white-tailed deer in one of its local parks after years of legal battles with activists seeking to save the animals.
A spokesman for the City of Longueuil confirmed that Michel-Chartrand park is closed to the public while hunters armed with air rifles reduce the size of the herd.
“The city confirms that the deer overpopulation control operation is currently underway,” Raphaël Larocque-Cyr wrote in an email. “In order to ensure safety and ensure the smooth running of the operation, Michel-Chartrand Park is closed until further notice.”
The city just south of Montreal has been trying to carry out a cull since 2020, but it faced a strong backlash and legal challenges from animal rights groups over the fate of the deer. Earlier this month the administration said it had received a provincial environment department permit to proceed with the operation, the final step needed to begin the cull. The meat from the deer is expected to be distributed to community organizations.
The city has repeatedly said the population of white-tailed deer has grown far beyond what the space can support, damaging the park’s ecosystem and contributing to an increased risk of road accidents and Lyme disease. As well, city hall says the cull is needed to restore “ecological equilibrium” to the park as the number of white-tailed deer there has tripled in recent years — from 32 in 2017 to 114 as of this year. It has previously said the park can support around 15 deer.
Authorities said the number of deer found dead in the park has risen, from 28 in 2021 to 52 in 2023.
The announcement of the planned cull in 2020 led to a petition, protests, and even threats against the city’s then-mayor.
Animal rights activists lobbied for the city to relocate the excess deer to a refuge rather than killing them, but a veterinary ethics committee deemed the strategy unsafe for deer and humans alike. Other options, including sterilization or birth control, were also rejected.
Some groups challenged the plan in court, but their efforts were ultimately rejected last year by Quebec’s Court of Appeal, which found the city was within its rights to authorize the cull. Last year, city officials said they were hopeful the cull would be a one-time operation, and that they would be able to employ different methods to control the population once the herd is reduced to a manageable size.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his leadership of the Liberal party is not in danger, even as members of his caucus prepare to confront him Wednesday in the hopes of convincing him to step down.
He brushed off those concerns as he headed into his regular Tuesday meeting with cabinet ministers.
One by one, those ministers expressed their support for Trudeau as they spoke to reporters on their way into the meeting.
“Anybody who has ever bet against Justin Trudeau is sorry they made that bet the next day,” said Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault.
But while members of the cabinet have defended Trudeau staying on as leader, a number of Liberal MPs have signed onto a letter that aims to convince him to step aside before the next election.
It’s not clear how many members of Trudeau’s team of MPs plan to confront him, or exactly what their message will be. There is no way for the Liberal caucus to force Trudeau out, the decision about whether to stay or go will ultimately be up to the prime minister.
So far, Charlottetown MP Sean Casey is the only Liberal to publicly say that he has signed the letter.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller, who is also Trudeau’s personal friend, spoke out against MPs who hope to oust the leader.
“Any minute spent on this garbage is a minute that’s not spent on Pierre Poilievre and what he wants to do to this country,’ Miller told reporters.
Other ministers suggested a healthy debate within caucus was the best way to pull the team together.
“Any time there are voices of dissent we have to deal with them, we have to listen to them carefully,” Labour Minister Stephen MacKinnon said.
“We have to deal with them and present a unified face to Canadians.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
