Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL), Saskatoon, Sask., announced on Feb. 26 that it is investing $41.8 million to build a new state-of-the-art, high-throughput fertilizer terminal near Grassy Lake, Alta.
Construction is scheduled to begin this spring, with the terminal expected to be fully operational for the summer of 2020. FCL said the project will create about 150 jobs during the construction phase, with five full-time and two seasonal positions required when the terminal becomes operational.
“This facility supports local co-ops and is the next step on our journey to grow within the crop inputs business,” said Patrick Bergermann, FCL’s Associate Vice-President of Ag and Home. “This is a long-term investment back into Western Canada that will help us better serve and meet the needs of local co-ops, along with their members and customers.”
The new terminal will have 34,400 mt of storage capacity, and will be able to fill a super B trailer with straight product in about six minutes. FCL said the site will have rail access with a looptrack that can accommodate up to 110 car unit trains, which will allow the facility to efficiently receive product from domestic and international suppliers.
“Having a facility that efficiently receives and stores phosphate is essential as domestic production ends this spring,” said Dan Mulder, FCL’s Director of Fertilizer. “This is one of the opportunities we want to provide through the terminal, along with greater convenience and service levels for co-op customers in southern and central Alberta.”
This is the third fertilizer terminal to be constructed by FCL in recent years to warehouse, blend, and distribute a full suite of crop nutrition products to locally-owned Co-op Agro Centres, which then supply local farm customers. FCL invested C$75 million in 2016 to build two fertilizer terminals in Hanley, Sask., and Brandon, Man., which have storage capacities of 45,000 and 27,500 mt, respectively (GM July 29, 2016). The Hanley and Brandon terminals became operational in 2017 (GM Sept. 22, 2017).
FCL is owned by more than 190 retail cooperatives that form the Co-operative Retailing System (CRS) in Western Canada. FCL was established in 1955 to provide centralized wholesaling, manufacturing, marketing, and administrative services to member co-ops.