INER to haul 24 miles of 36 inch Natural Gas Pipeline

[MagnumForce]

So let me get this straight... NS hates carload business so much that they drop off cars on a shortline at an interchange 20 miles from where the material in those cars ultimately show up and directly served by the same NS line and at a place the local works everyday?

[Notch 8]

So let me get this straight... NS hates carload business so much that they drop off cars on a shortline at an interchange 20 miles from where the material in those cars ultimately show up and directly served by the same NS line and at a place the local works everyday?[/quote]

Klink has this because they can offer a service that NS cannot. NS is good for the unit trains, But what if the customer wants 30 ton 1 week, zero for 4 weeks and then they want 80 ton and the following week they only want 20 tons. In the meantime the material is stored indoors and out of the weather.... Do you think NS can offer this type of service ? Afterall only a couple days you said this "I do not believe there is any transloading going on from Ashley to there."

[CSX_CO]

Klink has this because they can offer a service that NS cannot. NS is good for the unit trains, But what if the customer wants 30 ton 1 week, zero for 4 weeks and then they want 80 ton and the following week they only want 20 tons. In the meantime the material is stored indoors and out of the weather.... Do you think NS can offer this type of service ? Afterall only a couple days you said this "I do not believe there is any transloading going on from Ashley to there."

Well, SDI isn't exactly your local Co-op. Plenty of tracks on their property to hang onto the cars, and unload when they need it. Plus, they have the unloading facilities. NS doesn't need to offer that service because SDI can adjust their ordering schedule to co-incide with they're predicted, or release empties. Again, must be a great rate if SDI is willing to pay the car hire for the cars to 'sit', transload cost, and transportation cost from Klinks to the mill. They obviously have the capacity for unit train loads of the same product?

Just seems 'odd' they would opt for a 'shortline/truck' connection when they have the ability to handle it all 'in house'. Again, not a knock on INER or SDI, just 'curious' is all.

Practice Safe CSX

[MagnumForce]

SDI has tons of room and tons and tons of track and their own locomotives. It is just really surprising that they would not do it there and instead chose to truck it. Has to be some special deal going on because I can't imagine that that is how they prefer to do things.

[Raildudes dad]

My guess and it's strickily a guess is the coal is "owned" by either the mine or a wholesale broker. The contract calls for on demand delivery for product. SDI doesn't want to deal with deal with storing loaded cars, unloading etc or a Class 1 so they are paying someone to do it for them (and at a premium to boot ). The correct amount of product shows up right on t

[AARR]

A while back there was a good article in Trains Mag about RBMN being the largest hauler of Anthracite coal. Much of it loaded at transload locations in carload lots. Some goes out in unit trains to Canada and Europe. IIRC in a good year they ship up to 6000-7000 a year. Roughly half in a bad year.

[railroadchoad]

Raildudes Dad is mostly right about this one. SDI doesn't give a rat's a$$ how the coal gets from Pennsylvania to Butler, IN. What they DO care about is that it is there when they need it and that they get it at the price that was quoted on a per-ton basis, delivered.

A certain trucking company was sending individual trucks to the Anthricite region of Pennsylvania when SDI would call for another truckload. Somebody did the math and wondered aloud of the amount that was being spent on diesel and driver wages could be off-set by getting larger lots delivered to a nearby dumping and storage location. Hence, NS was not sacrificing anything to a shortline because they weren't getting the business in the first place.

SDI doesn't get the Anthricite by rail because they don't want to have to unload it and store it. Nor do they want it mixing with the coal at the IDI coking facility that is on-site. The Anthricite is used in small quantities to add Carbon to batches of steel, from what I have been told.

[CSX_CO]

SDI doesn't get the Anthricite by rail because they don't want to have to unload it and store it. Nor do they want it mixing with the coal at the IDI coking facility that is on-site. The Anthricite is used in small quantities to add Carbon to batches of steel, from what I have been told.

So its a different commodity then what they're already getting. Ok, that makes sense.

It must be the 'high grade' Anthracite as most coal contains impurities you don't want in a batch of steel (sulfur especially). Coke is 'preferred' as a source of carbon because its had the impurities baked out.

Practice Safe CSX

[INE-KP]

SDI ordered a small amount of Anthricite Coal - about a dozen car loads or so - instead of having a dozen cars sitting around their property for MONTHS paying demarrage per car daily, they decided to have the product off-loaded and stored in a dry area where it can be hauled from a reasonably short distance on an AS NEEDED basis. They really don't use a lot of this stuff all at once. Probably a hell of a lot cheaper in the long run. A bit of advice---enjoy what you are seeing from railroads, don't try to over analyze it. Appreciate it when a railroad actually allows you to interact with them, because that is becoming a very rare option.

[Y@]

A bit of advice---enjoy what you are seeing from railroads, don't try to over analyze it. Appreciate it when a railroad actually allows you to interact with them, because that is becoming a very rare option.

QFT.