CSX, Shell Polymers open dedicated plastics yard in Pennsylvania
5/31/2022
By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor
In early May, CSX and Shell Polymers officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new storage-in-transit (SIT) yard in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania.
An existing CSX facility was repurposed into the SIT yard, which is owned and operated by Shell Polymers to help ensure timelier deliveries of plastic shipments. Shell now uses the yard to temporarily store rail cars and prepare them for release, and transload plastics from rail cars to trucks.
Located near Pittsburgh, the yard enables the plastics maker to more easily collaborate with nearby railroads, Shell officials said in an online post.
“Full ownership of the SIT yard allows us more flexibility when responding to customer requests because we don’t have to negotiate with a third-party owner,” they said. “Instead of having to wait for products to be loaded and shipped, our SIT yard allows us to store cars and have them ready to be released at a moment’s notice. That means faster, more reliable service for our customers and more confidence in their supply at all times.”
Shell Polymers massive new plant near Pittsburgh will begin producing plastic resins sometime in summer. The facility will be solely rail served by CSX. Shell Polymers Shell Polymers is building a major polyethylene plant covering 800 acres along the Ohio River in Monaca, Pennsylvania. Located about 30 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, the facility will be situated within 700 miles of most of North American polyethylene buyers.
Expected to launch production sometime in summer, the plant will be solely rail served by CSX, said Shell Polymers spokesman Curtis Thomas in an email.
Plastic resin produced at the plant will be transported by several modes to juggle several logistical challenges, such as rail congestion and supply disruptions.
“We will have both rail and trucking capabilities that provide several methods for our customers to acquire resin across a reliable road and rail network. This helps us to deliver quality resin more ratably, timely and efficiently,” Shell officials said.
After the plant opens, the SIT yard will operate 24/7 and handle about 80 to 100 rail cars daily to support polyethylene operations.
Last year, CSX discontinued intermodal operations in McKees Rocks and reached an agreement with Shell to lease the 70-acre property as the site for the SIT yard. The Class I opened the McKees Rocks facility in 2017.
