Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (G&W) (NYSE:GWR) today reported traffic volumes for August 2015.

Based on G&W’s significant increase in operations in the U.K. and continental Europe resulting from the acquisition of the London-based Freightliner Group Limited (Freightliner) in March 2015, G&W is now presenting traffic information in three reportable segments: North American Operations, Australian Operations and U.K./European Operations.

Historically, G&W has found that traffic information may be indicative of freight revenues on its railroads. Freight revenues are revenues for which G&W is paid on a per car, per container or per ton basis to move freight. Activities such as railcar switching, port terminal shunting, traction services and other similar freight-related services are excluded from our traffic information as the resulting revenues are not classified as freight revenue. Traffic information may not be indicative of total operating revenues, operating expenses, income from operations or net income.

G&W’s three reportable segments are summarized as follows:

  • The North American Operations segment is comprised of nine operating regions in the U.S. and Canada. This segment represents approximately 57% of G&W’s total operating revenues and approximately 75% of G&W’s total income from operations.
  • The Australian Operations segment is comprised of G&W’s existing operations in Australia and the newly-acquired Freightliner Australia operations. This segment represents approximately 12% of G&W’s total operating revenues and approximately 14% of G&W’s total income from operations. Revenues from Freightliner’s Australia operations are not reported as freight revenues and therefore are not included in this traffic report.
  • The U.K./European Operations segment is comprised of Freightliner’s operations in the U.K. and continental Europe and G&W’s existing European port shunting operations. This segment represents approximately 31% of G&W’s total operating revenues and approximately 11% of G&W’s total income from operations. G&W’s existing European port shunting operations are not reported as freight revenues and therefore are not included in this traffic report. As a result, there is no traffic information provided for the comparative period in the prior year for this segment.

August 2015 Traffic

G&W’s traffic in August 2015 was 253,807 carloads, an increase of 74,623 carloads, or 41.6%, compared with August 2014. G&W’s same-railroad traffic in August 2015 was 155,743 carloads, a decrease of 23,441 carloads, or 13.1%, compared with August 2014. The term carload represents physical railcars and estimated railcar equivalents of commodities for which G&W is paid on a metric ton or other measure to move freight, as well as intermodal units.

The table below sets forth summary total carloads by segment for August 2015 and August 2014.

Segment       August 2015         August 2014         Change         % Change
North American Operations 142,571 159,634 (17,063) (10.7%)
Australian Operations 16,227 19,550 (3,323) (17.0%)
U.K./European Operations(1) 95,009 n/a n/a n/a
Total G&W Operations 253,807 179,184 74,623 41.6%
(1) Operations from the Freightliner Group acquired on March 25, 2015

August 2015 Highlights by Segment

  • North American Operations: Traffic in August 2015 was 142,571 carloads, a decrease of 10.7% compared with August 2014. On a same-railroad basis, traffic declined 20,118 carloads, or 12.6%. The decrease was primarily due to reduced overhead Class 1 shipments and reduced coal & coke and metals traffic.
  • Australian Operations: Traffic in August 2015 was 16,227 carloads, a decrease of 17.0% compared with August 2014. The decrease was primarily due to reduced metallic ores shipments from previously announced closures of customer iron ore mines.
  • U.K./European Operations: Traffic was 95,009 carloads in August 2015. Traffic in August 2015 was led by intermodal traffic in the U.K. and continental Europe as well as minerals & stone traffic in Poland and the U.K.

The table below sets forth North American Operations carload information for August 2015 and August 2014 by commodity group.

North American Operations:       August 2015         August 2014         Change         % Change
Agricultural Products 17,632 17,962 (330) (1.8%)
Autos & Auto Parts 2,455 2,964 (509) (17.2%)
Chemicals & Plastics 14,987 14,292 695 4.9%
Coal & Coke 25,099 31,089 (5,990) (19.3%)
Food & Kindred Products 5,142 5,195 (53) (1.0%)
Intermodal - 398 (398) (100.0%)
Lumber & Forest Products 11,319 12,135 (816) (6.7%)
Metallic Ores 2,174 1,769 405 22.9%
Metals 11,587 16,565 (4,978) (30.1%)
Minerals & Stone 18,715 18,092 623 3.4%
Petroleum Products 8,902 8,433 469 5.6%
Pulp & Paper 14,856 15,007 (151) (1.0%)
Waste 3,705 3,464 241 7.0%
Other 5,998 12,269 (6,271) (51.1%)
Total carloads 142,571 159,634 (17,063) (10.7%)
Carloads from New Railroads(1) 3,055
Same-railroad carloads 139,516 159,634 (20,118) (12.6%)
(1) Total carloads from North American rail operations commenced or acquired by G&W in the last 12 months, including the Arkansas Midland Railroad, the Prescott & Northwestern Railroad and the Warren & Saline River Railroad. These railroads contributed 1,572 carloads of minerals & stone traffic, 593 carloads of lumber & forest products traffic, 426 carloads of chemicals & plastics traffic and 464 carloads from all other commodities.

The following highlights relate to North American same-railroad traffic, excluding traffic from the Arkansas Midland Railroad, the Prescott & Northwestern Railroad and the Warren & Saline River Railroad, which were acquired on January 5, 2015.

  • North American Operations traffic decreased 20,118 carloads, or 12.6%, primarily due to a decrease in overhead Class 1 shipments and decreased coal & coke and metals traffic.
  • G&W’s Other commodity group traffic decreased 6,274 carloads, or 51.1%, primarily due to decreased overhead Class 1 shipments.
  • Coal & coke traffic decreased 5,990 carloads, or 19.3%, primarily due to decreased shipments in G&W’s Midwest, Ohio Valley and Mountain West regions.
  • Metals traffic decreased 5,104 carloads, or 30.8%, primarily due to decreased shipments in G&W’s Southern, Ohio Valley and Northeast regions.
  • All remaining traffic decreased by a net 2,750 carloads.

The table below sets forth Australian Operations carload information for August 2015 and August 2014 by commodity group.

Australian Operations:         August 2015         August 2014         Change         % Change
Agricultural Products 3,951 4,251 (300) (7.1%)
Intermodal 5,268 5,540 (272) (4.9%)
Metallic Ores 1,840 4,668 (2,828) (60.6%)
Minerals & Stone 5,139 5,064 75 1.5%
Petroleum Products 29 27 2 7.4%
Total carloads 16,227 19,550 (3,323) (17.0%)

The decrease in Australian Operations traffic was primarily due to reduced metallic ores shipments from previously announced closures of customer iron ore mines.

The table below sets forth U.K./European Operations carload information for August 2015 by commodity group.

U.K./European Operations:         August 2015
Agricultural Products 95
Coal & Coke 5,959
Intermodal 76,248
Minerals & Stone 11,855
Other 852
Total carloads 95,009

Traffic volumes in the U.K./Europe operating segment include operations from Freightliner. G&W’s existing European operations are not reported as freight revenues and therefore are not included in this traffic report. As a result, there is no traffic information provided for the comparative period in the prior year for this segment.

Third Quarter of 2015 Through August Traffic

The table below sets forth summary total carloads by segment for the third quarter of 2015 through August and the third quarter of 2014 through August.

Segment       QTD Aug 2015         QTD Aug 2014         Change         % Change
North American Operations 281,906 316,895 (34,989) (11.0%)
Australian Operations 33,735 39,475 (5,740) (14.5%)
U.K./European Operations(1) 204,538 n/a n/a n/a
Total G&W Operations 520,179 356,370 163,809 46.0%
(1) Operations from the Freightliner Group acquired on March 25, 2015

The table below sets forth North American Operations carload information for the third quarter of 2015 through August and the third quarter of 2014 through August by commodity group.

North American Operations:         QTD Aug 2015         QTD Aug 2014         Change         % Change
Agricultural Products 34,384 36,828 (2,444) (6.6%)
Autos & Auto Parts 4,682 5,898 (1,216) (20.6%)
Chemicals & Plastics 29,180 28,803 377 1.3%
Coal & Coke 47,056 62,820 (15,764) (25.1%)
Food & Kindred Products 10,077 10,416 (339) (3.3%)
Intermodal 6 783 (777) (99.2%)
Lumber & Forest Products 22,993 23,771 (778) (3.3%)
Metallic Ores 4,385 3,632 753 20.7%
Metals 23,290 32,735 (9,445) (28.9%)
Minerals & Stone 38,799 37,675 1,124 3.0%
Petroleum Products 17,000 17,684 (684) (3.9%)
Pulp & Paper 30,433 29,984 449 1.5%
Waste 7,765 6,956 809 11.6%
Other 11,856 18,910 (7,054) (37.3%)
Total carloads 281,906 316,895 (34,989) (11.0%)
Carloads from New Railroads(1) 5,997
Same-railroad carloads 275,909 316,895 (40,986) (12.9%)
(1) Total carloads from North American rail operations commenced or acquired by G&W in the last 12 months, including the Arkansas Midland Railroad, the Prescott & Northwestern Railroad and the Warren & Saline River Railroad. These railroads contributed 3,126 carloads of minerals & stone traffic, 1,209 carloads of lumber & forest products traffic, 804 carloads of chemicals & plastics traffic and 858 carloads from all other commodities.

The table below sets forth Australian Operations carload information for the third quarter of 2015 through August and the third quarter of 2014 through August by commodity group.

Australian Operations:       QTD Aug 2015         QTD Aug 2014         Change         % Change
Agricultural Products 8,374 9,148 (774) (8.5%)
Intermodal 10,889 10,749 140 1.3%
Metallic Ores 4,034 9,654 (5,620) (58.2%)
Minerals & Stone 10,370 9,871 499 5.1%
Petroleum Products 68 53 15 28.3%
Total carloads 33,735 39,475 (5,740) (14.5%)

The table below sets forth U.K./European Operations carload information for the third quarter of 2015 through August and the third quarter of 2014 through August by commodity group.

U.K./European Operations:         QTD Aug 2015
Agricultural Products 131
Coal & Coke 12,218
Intermodal 161,338
Minerals & Stone 29,028
Other 1,823
Total carloads 204,538

About G&W

Genesee & Wyoming owns or leases 120 freight railroads worldwide that are organized in 11 operating regions with 7,500 employees and more than 2,500 customers.

  • G&W’s nine North American regions serve 41 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces and include 113 short line and regional freight railroads with more than 13,000 track-miles.
  • G&W’s Australia Region provides rail freight services in New South Wales, the Northern Territory and South Australia and operates the 1,400-mile Tarcoola-to-Darwin rail line.
  • G&W’s U.K./Europe Region is led by Freightliner, the U.K.’s largest rail maritime intermodal operator and second-largest rail freight company. Operations also include heavy-haul in Poland and Germany and cross-border intermodal services connecting Northern European seaports with key industrial regions throughout the continent.

G&W subsidiaries provide rail service at more than 40 major ports in North America, Australia and Europe and perform contract coal loading and railcar switching for industrial customers.

For more information, visit gwrr.com.