Rail car recycler, repair company may locate at Port Manchac
Sunday, November 16, 2008 6:10 PM CST
PONCHATOULA — A rail car recycling firm and locomotive repair company are interested in locating at Port Manchac.
Pat Dufresne, executive director of the South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission, said the names of the companies will be divulged as talks progress. Now, discussions are in the very preliminary stage.
Dufresne said Port Manchac would be an ideal site for both businesses. The port has two rail spurs leading from the nearby Canadian National Railroad, one of the nation’s main rail lines.
“Both companies would be a good fit,” Dufresne said.
The rail car recycling firm would bring in old rail cars to be cut up and sold for scrap. The locomotive repair business is needed because many of the plants and industries in South Louisiana have locomotives to move product and equipment. Those locomotives require regular maintenance and occasional emergency repairs.
Neither company needs a large land area, Dufresne said. The commission plans to apply to the state Department of Transportation & Development Port Priority Fund for an infrastructure grant if either of the firms commits to the port. Neither would require a large structure.
With inquiries for port space increasing, Dufresne said the commission is also considering looking into a funding source for a third rail spur.
“We’re on a fast track to negotiate rail space for both companies,” he said. “It’s a matter of working out the logistical details.”
An asset of the locomotive repair company is that it would be available to move cargo at the port if necessary, he said.
Last month the commission signed a lease with Bayou Diesel LLC for a $15 million plant to refine glycerine at the port and eventually manufacture bio-diesel.
The commission is also working through the state to get funding for road, sewerage, water and drainage improvements at the port.
Contact Reporter Don Ellzey at 254-7831.