Ports of Indiana selects OmniTRAX as development partner

Ports of Indiana has selected OmniTRAX Inc. to serve as rail operator and development partner at the Ports of Indiana-Mount Vernon, Indiana’s largest port.

The new rail agreement, which will go into effect Aug. 1, represents the fourth domestic port in the OmniTRAX network, according to an OmniTRAX press release.

"The Mount Vernon port provides efficient multimodal access to the Midwest, and we are committed to helping grow existing businesses while bringing new jobs and new customers to Indiana," said OmniTRAX CEO Dean Picante.

Ports of Indiana-Mount Vernon is a 1,200-acre port on the Ohio River with potential connections to five Class Is and annual shipments of approximately 6.7 million tons and 40,000 rail cars. The port is home to 12 companies, with onsite services for cargo handling, warehousing, barge fleeting and foreign-trade zones, as well as 680 acres of available land, including a 544-acre megasite.

It is the closest port to the median center of the U.S. population and the soon-to-be completed Interstate 69 trade corridor from Canada to Mexico.

Established in 1970, the Mount Vernon port has more than 8,000 feet of river frontage and 10 cargo terminals on the Ohio River handling coal, ethanol, DDGs, grain, soy products, fertilizer, steel, minerals and general cargoes. The port is currently investing $5 million in rail improvements and has submitted a federal grant application for a $16 million project involving the construction of a new railyard and transload facility.