With Railmark’s business model, Katahdin Railcar Services will be increasing its footprint in Maine and the surrounding area.
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Henderson, Ky., rail services and products company Railmark Holdings Inc. acquired Katahdin Railcar Services LLC, a railcar and tank car repair company in Derby, a village in the Piscataquis County town of Milo.
“This facility gives Railmark a base from which to grow its tank car repair capability across North America, well beyond Maine,” said B. Allen Brown II, Railmark's president and CEO. “With Railmark’s business model, Katahdin will be increasing its footprint in Maine and the surrounding area.”
The seller was Fortress Transportation and Infrastructure Investors (NYSE: FTAI). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Toronto, Ontario-based BMO Capital Markets, the investment banking subsidiary of the Canadian Bank of Montreal, acted as Railmark's exclusive financial advisor.
The Derby facility expands Railmark’s operating locations to 13 in 11 states.
In addition to its Derby site, Katahdin provides services throughout New England through its mobile repair service teams. The acquisition adds Association of American Railroads-certified tank car repair capabilities to Railmark's national network.
Expansion plans
Railmark's plans for Katahdin include expanding to additional U.S. locations where demand for tank car repair services continues to grow, according to a news release.
Established in 2018, Katahdin’s tank car cleaning system is a state-of-the-art automated, high-pressure water jet system, with repairs and storage as needed, according to its LinkedIn profile. On its 130-acre campus, the tank shop is housed in a refurbished 25,000-square-foot building with multiple cleaning bays, 10 working car spots and a full valve repair shop.
There’s also a full wastewater treatment plant on site to handle disposal of wastewater and the ability to steam and flare multiple cars at a time; and a 36,000-square-foot car repair facility that handles running repairs and other contract work with 15 car spots.
The Katahdin facility has historically served the New England region and the Canadian Pacific Kansas City line. (NYSE: CP). Its capabilities include North America’s only robotic tank car cleaning system.
Together with Railmark's Canadian subsidiary, Railmark Canada Limited, Katahdin will expand its mobile repair services into the provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec.
