CN, CP exceed grain revenue limits for 2017-18 crop year

CN and Canadian Pacific exceeded their maximum grain revenue entitlements for crop-year 2017-18, the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) ruled on Monday.

CN's grain revenue of CA$788,062,078 was CA$1,047,285 above its entitlement of CA$787,014,793, while CP's grain revenue of CA$709,499,416 was CA$1,500,513 above its entitlement of CA$707,998,903.

CN and CP now have 30 days to pay the amount by which they exceeded their revenue limits, in addition to a 5 percent penalty of CA$52,364 for CN and CA$75,026 for CP, CTA officials said in a press release. Regulations call for the payments to be made to the Western Grains Research Foundation.

CN and CP moved 6 percent less grain in the 2017-18 crop year compared with the previous year. The average length of haul of 953 miles was unchanged in 2017-18 from the previous year, CTA officials said.

The Canada Transportation Act requires the CTA to determine each railroad company's annual maximum revenue entitlement and whether each entitlement was exceeded. The entitlement is a form of economic regulation that enables CN and CP to set their own rates for services, provided the total amount of revenue collected from their shipments of Western grain remains below the ceiling set by the CTA.